Friday, December 14, 2012

Southeastern Guide Dogs Holiday Open House

Twice a year Southeastern Guide Dogs opens their campus and invites everyone to come learn all about how guide dogs are bred, born, raised and trained at the Palmetto, Florida campus. One open house is held in May and the Holiday Open House is held in December...complete with a visit from Santa. 

Visitors can also visit the campus from 9:00 am to 11:00 am every day except Thursday and Sunday for puppy hugging,dog walking, and to enjoy the beautifully landscaped 23 acre campus. The pictures below show how some of the 500 holiday open house visitors enjoyed their day.






Tour guides guided visitors through the 23 acre campus.

Visitors could visit information tents manned by SEGD staff & volunteers  

Lots of good information on how to get involved with SEGD.
Volunteer to be a puppy raiser or host a breeder.

The grilled franks and sodas were a big hit.

Blindfold walks are always a special part of every open house. 


The grounds at Southeastern Guide Dogs are landscaped beautifully.

Ambassador dogs and their handlers greet visitors before tours began.

SEGD Ambassador black Labrador Spirit and her mother,
yellow Labrador Ambassador Lynde.

SEGD Ambassador Tez and her handler Laurie.

The Training Kennel is where the In For Training dogs 
live when they return to campus. It's affectionately known as
Guide Dog U.

A highlight of the tour was meeting and petting the puppies.

The gift store was decorated for the holidays.

Nice looking hoodies.


Free eye exams courtesy of The Eye Associates.

A tradition at Southeastern Guide Dogs...taking a picture by the
big rock in front of the Administration Building.

Santa listened to a lot of wish lists from kids and puppies 
of all ages.

If you visit the west coast of Florida, Southeastern Guide Dogs is located
about an hour south of Tampa and forty minutes north of Sarasota. A visit
to the campus will be a highlight of your vacation.


























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