The pitter patter of tiny, life-saving paws…

These perfect puppies are the first from Medical Detection Dogs’ new breeding scheme.

The charity launched its first ever scheme last year and Mum, Leia, gave birth to 3 bouncing boys and 3 gorgeous girls just before Christmas.

From left to right we have Alf, Poppy, Coco, Hershey, Imperial and Max.

The six puppies don’t know it yet but they’re going to save lives; four as super sniffers with MDD and two with other assistance dog charities.

Medical Detection Dogs trains dogs to save lives using their amazing sense of smell. Bio Detection Dogs learn the odour of diseases like cancer, Parkinson’s and malaria in the charity’s training room. Medical Alert Assistance Dogs work with individuals with complex conditions such as Type 1 diabetes, PoTS and severe allergies to warn them when a medical emergency is about to happen. Recently, the charity has been training dogs to detect the odour of COVID-19 and they are now screening people in real-life settings as part of their training.

Puppy Supply and Training Manager, Chris Allen, says: “Sourcing puppies has been challenging during the pandemic. Starting our own breeding scheme will allow us to supplement our current dog supply routes. It won’t be our only source and we continue to gratefully accept donations and train dogs from rescue but it will allow us to continue training a steady supply of dogs to save lives.

“The puppies are absolutely gorgeous and real characters already. We’ve got a confident one, a sensible one and a cheeky one – much like with all siblings!”