KILTWALK UPDATE 21 September 2025

A week on from our Wee Wander, our fantastic team of 20 plus canine partner assistance dogs Belle and Gregg can look back with pride at their achievements. We all completed the Walk, met new people, made new friends, shared stories and laughs, had fun (hopefully), supported and encouraged each other and other walkers as well, took lots of photos and feature on the Kiltwalk socials too. THANK YOU from all of us for your generous donations. In 2023 our team of 6 raised £2,957; 2024 saw 12 of us raise £4,161 and so far our 2025 Wee Wander team of 20 has raised over £5,580 with more to come.

I’ve found this year especially difficult and emotional due to Belle’s terminal cancer diagnosis. Just after I had signed up to do the Kiltwalk again in April and registered team ‘Let’s Go with Canine Partners’, I received the heartbreaking news after her major surgery that the aggressive and rare cancers had returned and she probably only had a matter of weeks left. I keep a very close on her and have shed many tears since behind closed doors but we both have so much support from Canine Partners, her veterinary team at Dundas Veterinary Practice, family and friends. I could not have believed that my amazing girl would still be with me, having completed the Kiltwalk and getting her own medal, healthy, eating and drinking normally, not in pain, living her best life, having great fun, enjoying new experiences, saying “hello” to lots of people, still learning new skills, loving ‘working’ (and lots of offlead wombles around the country) although I’m only letting her do light ‘duties’ - to Belle it’s all a game with her tail wagging furiously as she grins with pride and love. The day she came in to my life back in February 2019 she was my miracle girl and each and every day this year especially she continues to prove to me that she is. As I said in the Kiltwalk video on YouTube “Belle, you are my everything” and to everyone who has donated to our team members THANK YOU. Xx

UPDATE: We’ve only got 3 days until our Kiltwalk. Although the forecast looks dubious, we’ll all be encouraged to keep going thanks to the kindness and generosity of so many of you. Our first Kiltwalk for Canine Partners we were 6, last year we were 12 and this year we’ve now got around 20 team members - fantastic. I can’t believe how far we’ve come from 2023 when Lois May and I had a chat about doing the Kiltwalk together. Every time I look at Belle, I am indebted to you all and Canine Partners too. Thank you for supporting your own team member and encouraging them to reach their fundraising target. Xx

Canine Partners is celebrating its 35th Anniversary this year. Our Team Captain, Wilma Lawrie, has the most amazing, highly trained Canine Partner assistance dog, Belle, who enables her to remain as independent as possible by doing so many tasks that are difficult for her and risk causing injury and severe pain - picking things up that she drops, loading and unloading the washing machine, opening and closing doors, pressing lift and pedestrian crossing buttons, getting items from shelves in shops, getting the phone, medication bag and items from elsewhere in the house, helping her get out of bed, bringing her wheelchair as well as great companionship, giving lots of cuddles, playing, enjoying long walks in the countryside, on beaches and so much more. She’s also stunningly beautiful and has recently been nicknamed ‘Belle Macpherson’ because of her gorgeous looks, long legs and slim figure! She’s also incredibly photogenic. They have been partnered for 6 years and did the Edinburgh Wee Wander in 2023 and 2024. Belle would love to be our Team Captain but is happy taking a back seat being vice team captain instead, encouraging us all to raise as much as we can. She has helped our previous Kiltwalk teams raise over £6,000 so far and this year we’d love more people to join with us and help the charity Canine Partners to continue its life changing work by raising even more. Belle along with canine partner, Gregg, his custodian and other team members also loved meeting Sir Tom Hunter at the start last year.

Since we signed up for the 2025 Kiltwalk, Belle has sadly been diagnosed with terminal cancer and we hope that she will be able to join us on the walk but if not, she will be in all our hearts as we walk. As Belle’s time might be limited, Wilma has applied to Canine Partners to be considered for a successor dog but has no idea how long it will take for the charity to find a perfect match as there is already a long waiting list for successors. 🥰💜🐾

Belle is featuring on the Kiltwalk social media channels and YouTube. See why we are all Kiltwalking https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TcOcmd-mSWY

Our amazing dogs bring a greater independence and quality of life to their partners, offering security, companionship, and practical help with everyday household tasks. They are trained to help with everyday tasks such as opening and closing doors, unloading the washing machine, picking up dropped items, pressing buttons and switches and fetching help in an emergency. Our life-transforming dogs also provide psychological and social benefits including increased independence, confidence, social interaction and self-esteem.