More than 12,000 Aussies countrywide have signed up for next month's Pawgust challenge to walk 30 minutes a day for 30 days, raising money for Guide Dog puppies in training.
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The 30 day challenge works out to be 'ruff-ly' two kilometres per day and at the time of publishing, the challenge has raised more than $440,000 - enough at this stage to train eight and a half guide dog puppies.
You can keep an eye on the tally of funds raised on the Pawgust website, which also features a countdown clock for when paws hit pavements around Australia.
While the challenge is an opportunity for those with a canine companion to turn their daily walkies into charitably dollars - you don't necessarily have to own a dog to join the fun. The challenge is a good excuse to get out for a walk yourself while raising much-need funds.
Guide Dogs Australia says it cost roughly $50,000 to train a guide dog that will go on to provide years of independence and companionship to someone with blindness or low vision.
As an experienced guide dog puppy raiser, Aislinn Lalor knows just the effort that goes into raising a gifted pup. She says working with Guide Dogs Australia is a good place to learn how.
"Being a puppy raiser is a good way of getting an idea of what it might be like to have a puppy again, or for a first time. Obviously they are so cute and gorgeous, but they do take a little bit of work, so it's by no means easy.
"But through Guide Dogs it's really helpful. I definitely learned a lot being a puppy raiser with them because they provide a lot of support and direction as to how you can train the dog to do the things that it needs to be a guide dog, but also it's useful just in general," Ms Lalor said.
As a lecturer in occupational therapy at Monash University in Melbourne, Ms Lalor is a great believer in how important the role of a dog plays in offering not just service support, but also emotional support.
Guide Dogs Australia found in a survey, that more than 80 per cent of dog owners credited the mateship of their dog as helping them stay positive during the current pandemic.
Ms Lalor said her and her colleagues at Monash University were working on studies that looked at what role occupational therapy can play in understanding the capacity of assistance animals in the community and the positive affects that assistance dogs particularly, can have on the experience of people living with various different conditions.
Some of the studies included looking at the experiences of using assistance dogs for children with autism and their families; and the affects of a dog on social connections, where dogs are used as a conduit to community inclusion for people with cognitive disabilities.
Dogs have long been humans' best friend, but the potential they offer to help people heal from a trauma, or to regain their independence, is sometimes underestimated.
Many of the puppies in training that don't go on to make the grade to become guide dogs, often go into support roles for people with post traumatic stress disorder, following a career in the emergency services.
"I've heard stories where people [suffering PTSD] who had stayed at home for 10 years, say now I've got this dog, I've got this capacity to get out again," Ms Lalor.
"'It's just so enabling for them to be able to return to engaging in the community and participating in what everyone else sometimes takes for granted, all because of that special support a dog can provide."
For those puppies that do go on to become guide dogs, they provide a level of independence to someone who might have given up on their quality of life due to the limits of their vision impairment.
"That sense of independence is just such a big thing." Ms Lalor said.
"From talking to those who do have guide dogs, the difference that it makes for them, even just on the cognitive demand that comes with using a cane, compared to when they have a dog - it takes away a lot of the work and the stress they would otherwise have to deal with to be able to be out in the community."
Initiatives like Pawgust help to provide more visually-impaired Australian's with the life-changing help of a guide dog.
But in the present times of the pandemic, Ms Lolar said being a part of something as simple as a fundraising group could help boost a sense of community that had been disrupted due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Mr Lolar and her fellow puppy raisers formed a group for their Pawgust challenged through social media, which provides a base for them to stay connected and support each other's fundraising efforts.
She encourages other's interested in raising funds for Pawgust to form a fundraising group with friends as a way to stay connected.
"The virtual connection allows us to support each other and come up with new fundraising ideas," Ms Lolar said.
"It's also helpful being in teams because you do feel that motivation and encouragement from others; and it's just really nice to feel like you are benefiting someone else, but doing what you would normally do, I would normally walk the dogs anyway," Ms Lolar said.
"I definitely recommend for anyone who is wanting to get involved, to do so, and not to feel like whether they do or don't have the capacity fund raise a lot of money, that any amount of money is going to make that difference to Guide Dogs.
"And also they would have that community connection where you feel like you are a part of something. Obviously your dogs benefit too because you've made that commitment and you're going to be out walking with them rain, hail or shine.
"Even if you don't have a dog to walk, the challenge provides someone the opportunity to be able to get out and about, which is obviously a benefit to their health and well being - but is also going to be contributing to Guide Dogs, which is fantastic."
"Anyone who want to get involved with Pawgust, should definitely do so, and to all the dog lovers out there, continue loving your dogs and appreciating them."