Zoltán Cser has worked hard in the coal mine in the city of Ajka for 22 years. Moving up the career ladder, he mastered the collier profession and became a leader who was responsible for his colleagues’ lives in the deep stulms of the mine. Not long before his retirement, he decided to keep on helping others. He became the owner of Malina, one of our breeding females, and is currently providing a home for her second litter.

It is noteworthy that his cosy house in the city of Érd and its well-kept garden both prove that Zoltán has many professions at his fingertips. The steps in the house, the garden retreat made of pine and the sauna are all crafted by him. He is no stranger to caring for plants either as he became an agriculturist at an young age.

He spends a lot of time with the two female puppies, at midday he is feeding them solid food, while the ever curious Malina is bustling about. The little ones are going to get their final names at their naming ceremony, until then, we use their names given by Zoltán.

The world is revolving around the puppies now

“Lafaty is like Malina, she loves giving kisses. She has her own opinion about everything, we can hear her whining right now.  Latyak is a biting puppy, she loves nibbling everything, it is not by chance that her teeth had started coming in earlier than her sister’s” Zoltán says.

The one-month old puppies get up early. They wake up at 4 AM, they eat, then they have a big wrestling match until 7:30 AM and if the weather is not too hot, they continue playing outside. At midday, their tummies wake them up, after playing, they sleep again. Around 8 PM they get up again and play for 2 hours before bedtime.

“Malina is a perfect mom, she feeds them and keeps them clean but the sharp puppy teeth cause some problems for her, so if she needs a bit of rest, she retreats for a while” Zoltán says.

Puppy raising is time-consuming. “What I had planned earlier dropped off the radar but I’ll have time to catch up with those things later. I’m doing a new outdoor run for them that’ll include the shadowy terrace on which they can cool themselves.”

It is a bit easier now because the puppies rest a lot during the day, Malina plays with them a lot, they require less attention, so their caregiver can cook and keep the house tidy more easily.

Suddenly, everything has changed in Zoltán’s life

“We got Malina from the Foundation with my Partner, we had prepared for the arrival of the puppies together. We set up a whelping room in the house. My dear Partner left me two years ago, she died. No one can fill the void of her absence but Malina and her two puppies help a lot emotionally. I see their everyday development, I watch them and take notes of who and when does what” Zoltán said emotionally.

“When we started volunteering for the Foundation, it was a bit strange at the beginning but then I soon embraced the whole thing, and looking back, I wouldn’t have missed it” Zoltán said. We were curious what he was thinking about: “As an agriculturist, I had not thought of living together with an animal inside my house. When my Partner died, Malina couldn’t relax, she was looking for her. Our previous dog had not been allowed to go upstairs but Malina galloped up when she was 4 months old and lay down beside the bed on my Partner’s side. She still sleeps upstairs with me to this day.”

Zoltán lives an active life, full of activities connected to dogs. He is regularly visited by friends whom he got acquainted with through the community of the Foundation and he knows a few labrador owners in his neighbourhood, too.

Malina became the star of Érd

We taught Malina everything that a trained guide dog has to know but as a breeding female, she does not have to take the guide dog exam. That is why the next story is interesting.

Zoltán proudly shares with us how often his dog is praised in Érd in the biggest supermarket, what a smart and disciplined dog he has – “It happened a few times that the shop assistants used Malina as an example of the ideal customer” Zoltán says with a smile – this place is not dog friendly but thanks to the admiration and permission of the Manager, Zoltán and Malina can go shopping there together.

“It’s pure joy to go anywhere with Malina. As soon as she sees the car key in mi hand, she immediately goes to her place in the car” her owner says with pride. “Malina has as many kms on her as on my car.”

We asked Zoltán to give a piece of advice to those who would like to be puppy raisers:

“Don’t hesitate, a missed opportunity won’t occur again. If you can help even one visually impaired person, it may be strange for a few days when the dog you raised leaves you for training but I haven’t regretted my decision, I wouldn’t have missed it.”

We are looking for puppy raisers! 

We are looking for volunteer puppy  raisersfor Darázs’ eight–week-old Labrador puppies.

The little ones will move to their new homes in the first week of September. The first personal meeting after the written application will be on July 19, 2025 in Törökbálint. 

Application: https://barathegyisegitokutya.hu/kolyokneveles 

 

Our foundation is waiting for applications from all over the country, regardless of age. 

 

Your puppy will be sent to a visually impaired owner when they are one year old, but they will not be separated from you “forever”.

You can meet them, they can spend the holidays with you and we will report on what is going on with them in life. Many little Labradors are waiting for their puppy raisers!