Students from 60 primary schools have voted for their choice of names for the six new puppies in a naming campaign organized by the Hong Kong Guide Dogs Association (HKDGA) and Link to help raise awareness for the needs of the visually impaired in Hong Kong.  
 

Six primary schools that stand to receive a special gift together with a certificate from HKGDA who have picked the most popular six names for the puppies are:

Guide-dog Puppies                     Winning Primary Schools
Simba                                             Baptist Rainbow Primary School
Snoopy                                           ELCHK Lutheran Academy 
Sugar                                             Chan Sui Ki (La Salle) Primary School
Star                                                Pat Heung Central Primary School
Summer                                         Diocesan Boys’ School Primary Division
Storm                                             Hong Kong International School

The six puppies are now being raised by volunteer puppy raisers and would start formal guide-dog training when they reach 14 months of age.

“Guide-dog puppies are raised differently from normal pet puppies. They learn to behave properly at any time, and to be at ease in many different environments, including busy places like our shopping centres and fresh markets,” said Aubrey Ho, Link’s Director (Corporate Affairs and Marketing).

Link is one of the first companies to open all of its properties for guide-dog training since 2013. The “Guide Dogs Breeding and Education” programme is sponsored by The Link Together Initiatives, which also funds puppy-raising and future training until guide dog matching is completed.

Guide dog services are in high demand in Hong Kong, and consequently, the need for volunteer puppy raisers as well. Volunteer puppy raisers prepare a vital foundation for future training in guide dog work that will benefit the future partner that the puppy is eventually matched with.