The Guide Dogs charity is thrilled to announce the arrival of its first litter of guide dog puppies for the year 2026. Born on January 7th at the home of a volunteer near Kidderminster, the litter consists of ten adorable pups, including six boys and four girls.
The proud parents are Tabitha, a two-year-old black Labrador and first-time mum, and Harris, a five-year-old Golden Retriever who has sired 18 guide dog litters so far. The puppies are a delightful mix of their parents’ colours, with half of them black and the other half a golden yellow.
Janine Dixon, the breeding and welfare operations lead at Guide Dogs, expressed her joy at the occasion, saying, “It’s always a joyous occasion when the first guide dog puppies of the year are born. They are at the very start of a long journey, and have a great deal to learn before they can become qualified guide dogs in 2027.”
The puppies are set to be named in the coming weeks and will soon leave their mother to be vaccinated, microchipped, and health-checked before being placed with volunteer Puppy Raisers across the UK. Each year, the charity aims to breed between 1,200 and 1,300 puppies to meet the growing demand for guide dogs.
Janine Dixon added, “It’s an incredibly rewarding role raising a tiny pup into a confident young adult. We’re always on the lookout for more volunteers to help us along this journey.”
The Guide Dogs charity is dedicated to providing life-changing support to individuals with sight loss, and the arrival of this first litter of 2026 marks the beginning of a new generation of guide dogs that will soon be making a profound difference in the lives of those they serve.
