The Beginning

Ray was born on Dec. 29, 2003, a product of the world class breeding program, at Guiding Eyes For The Blind in Yorktown Heights New York. His litter was designated an "R" litter , hence his name. And by the way, Ray is his full name, not Raymond which we use more than occasionally, as it seems much more sophisticated. Ray is the 9th guide dog puppy that my wife has raised or as she calls them "loaner puppies". Having just raised a very active female and energetic predecessor to Ray, our request for the next pup was a yellow marsh mellow boy. It's amazing to me that those in charge of matching pups to raisers did such a good job for Ray and us because he fit the bill perfectly. (More on that later.)


 Ray spent his first 10 weeks or so in the Breeding Center with his Mom and litter mates, during which time he was tested and evaluated many times for initial suitability and entry into the Guide Dog program, which he passed. But his formal guide dog training would come in about 14 months.  Here are a couple of photos of baby Ray, we think,  while still in New York. After all little yellow lab pups pretty much look the same. So we'll say that they are almost definitely him?

Next...The Meeting