Sponsor Buttons and transform a deaf person's life

Black Labrador puppy holding toy sausage in mouth

Sponsor this cute Labrador from just £5 a month and you’ll receive a fantastic welcome pack, regular updates throughout her training journey, and exclusive Pupdates in our Puppy Pen blog. You will also be helping people to live well with hearing loss.

Sponsor Buttons from £5 a month

Black Labrador puppy looking directly at camera

Black Labrador puppy holding sausage toy in mouth

Black Labrador puppy sitting on grass looking to the side

Black Labrador puppy laying on grass in oversized Hearing Dogs jacket

Sponsor Buttons: An easy-going and cheerful friend

Buttons wants to give you a ‘boop’! With a nose for sniffing out fun, this beautiful girl brightens every day with her comforting company. Sure to melt your heart, Buttons has some of the best ‘puppy dog eyes’ we’ve ever seen (and trust us, that’s a big statement!) What’s more, our little Labrador is on her way to transforming a deaf person’s life.

Buttons has been settling in brilliantly with her Volunteer Dog Trainer, Bridget, and her housemates, Bridget’s two pet Labradors. However, when it comes to having fun, this independent pup is equally happy to play on her own or with her canine friends.

“Buttons has taken to life at home like a duck to water,” shared Bridget. “She loves zooming around the lounge first thing in the morning which makes me laugh! Although she is excitable, there is also a calmness about her.” Well Buttons, it certainly sounds like you know how to start the day right!

Loveable through and through, Buttons really is as cute as – well – a button! She may only be at the start of her life-changing journey, but just like her glossy black coat, this young puppy is already beginning to shine.

A man wearing a shorts and blue tshirt is sitting on porch steps with a white cockapoo dog — Peter and his hearing dog Arya

How your puppy sponsorship will help

You'll help a puppy become a life-changing hearing dog. They'll stop a deaf person feeling isolated and alone, and alert them to sounds they can't hear including the doorbell and the fire alarm.

Start your Puppy Sponsorship

Very small fluffy white Spaniel puppy with light brown ears holding a soft toy duck in her mouth in a room with a dog bed and some other toys in the background

Sponsor for £5 a month

£5 a month could pay for lots of yummy treats and exciting toys to reward your clever puppy during their training.

Young black Labrador looking to the left with a small hurdle and some cones in front of her and a person to the left, only their legs are visible.

Sponsor for £8 a month

£8 a month could pay for fun puppy classes that help your pup on their journey to become a hearing dog.

Woman in Hearing Dogs burgundy jacket in bed in room with a dog on the bed in front of her laying down but looking alertly at the women

Sponsor for £12 a month

£12 a month could teach your puppy how to alert a deaf person to life-saving sounds, such as the smoke alarm.

Training Progress: Buttons on her best behaviour

In the early stages of a hearing dog’s training, we focus on teaching puppies their basic cues, such as ‘Sit’, ‘Down’ and ‘Wait’, encouraging them to listen to their trainers and be rewarded for it. At home, Buttons has been practising these cues at mealtimes, by being asked to sit and wait while her food bowl is put down. We’re proud to share that after just a few days, Buttons was able to master beautiful table manners!

How many ‘aww’s can Buttons receive throughout her training? Will her coat become even shinier? And which deaf person will she grow up to support? Sponsor Buttons today to find out!

Sponsor Buttons from £5 a month

1. How do I sponsor a puppy?

2. What do sponsors receive? How do they follow puppy’s progress?

All sponsors receive a fantastic welcome pack, which includes a certificate, car sticker and postcards of their puppy. You'll also receive a cuddly puppy toy, notepad and pen.

From then on, we send regular updates on how your puppy is doing, either printed or, if requested, by email. We publish training updates roughly every five to six months, depending on how quickly the puppy goes through training. On average, across the 18-24 months of a puppy’s training, this means four updates.

The updates show, through beautiful photos, how your puppy is getting on, with comments from the people involved with his or her training. The full set of updates goes right the way through training and then introduces you to the deaf person your puppy is helping on a daily basis (if they have given us permission to do so).

In between full updates, we also publish ‘Pupdates’ (see what we did there?) in the online Puppy Pen every two months, showing what a fun life your puppy is having as he or she learns about the world. When we do this, we also email our sponsors to tell them there’s a new Pupdate.

So, you'll see the progress you have made possible. You can also celebrate the outcome, when your puppy is partnered with a deaf person and helps them to live well with hearing loss.

3. Can I sponsor as a gift?

Yes! Sponsorship makes a great gift for both children and adults.

To do this, go to the sponsor page and choose ‘it’s a gift’ under ‘Who is this sponsorship for?’. You can also choose whether to have the welcome pack sent to you, or directly to the gift receiver.

It generally takes around 10 working days for welcome packs to be despatched. If you don’t manage to order in time but you want to be sure you have something on that special day, you can download our print-at-home certificate in one of two ways:

If you sponsored online, you will be emailed a link to download your sponsorship certificate as soon as your sponsorship is set up. If your email doesn’t arrive, then please check your junk/spam folder.

If you have sponsored via a manual form, then please phone us on 01844 340734 or email us at sponsorapuppy@hearingdogs.org.uk and we will email a certificate through.

4. What happens when my puppy graduates?

When the puppy’s training journey ends and he or she is matched with a deaf person, we transfer the sponsorship automatically to a new puppy if you paid by Direct Debit or a monthly PayPal donation. You can of course choose not to follow your new puppy and cancel your regular donation if you wish by contacting us. If you paid as a one-off, we ask if you’d like to sponsor another puppy.

We do this with a letter or email at the same time as your final update, in which you get to see the result of your support. We also show you lovely photos of the new puppy. It’s a very exciting time, as one journey ends and another begins!

5. Why do you have minimum amounts?

As a well-run charity we try to be as efficient and effective as possible in everything we do. However, there are certain limits below which we would simply lose money on each sponsorship. The amounts we ask for mean that, after costs are considered, sufficient money goes towards helping a sponsor puppy through its training and helping a deaf person live well with hearing loss.