With family gatherings, Christmas parties and more people in the streets, Christmas is an exciting and distracting time for dogs – which makes it a potentially difficult time for a guide dog.

We spoke to Barry about his guide dog Zac and how Zac copes with the Christmas period.

A life-changing dog

The first thing we spoke about with Barry was the difference that Zac has made to his life. Zac has been Barry’s guide dog since July of 2010 – for the 6 years prior to that Barry hadn’t been able to leave the house without someone else to accompany him.

“Zac’s made an absolutely incredible difference to my quality of life,” Barry said. “Massive.”

Christmas with Zac

Having been with Barry for 7 years, Zac has experienced his fair share of festive seasons. We asked Barry if Christmas Day itself was any more difficult for Zac.

“He and I go out for our walk on Christmas Day just like any other day,” Barry said. “The fact it’s Christmas doesn’t stop us.”

“Zac really enjoys the family all being over – my son has a greyhound, so when they come over you have two dogs in the house. They both enjoy that.”

The present of wrapping paper

“Zac loves to get involved with the presents,” Barry told us. “Although he’s more interested in the wrapping paper than anything that’s inside.”

“Once we’re done opening presents, he’ll drag the paper away and rips it to pieces. It makes a mess, but that’s his Christmas treat.”

Supporting Guide Dogs at Christmas

Guide dogs like Zac make a huge difference to people’s lives all year round. That’s why, this Christmas, we’d encourage you to sponsor a guide dog puppy.

By sponsoring a puppy, you not only support that puppy through its development into a life-changing working dog, you also receive a great selection of rewards – including regularly Pupdates on how your pup is doing and a personalised certificate.

Want to know more about sponsoring a guide dog puppy? Visit our Christmas Hub.