Infanta Sofía inaugurates dog hospital

Infanta Sofía inaugurated the Clinical & Healthcare Complex of the ONCE Foundation Guide Dog Breeding & Training Centre (FOPG) in Madrid on Friday.

On Friday, 30th January, Infanta Sofía was in Boadilla del Monte, Madrid, to inaugurate the new Clinical & Healthcare Complex of the ONCE Foundation Guide Dog Breeding & Training Centre (FOPG).

This marks the Infanta’s second solo engagement since attending and presenting the first edition of the ‘Objetivo Patrimonio Concurso de Fotografía Infanta Sofía’ Awards of Patrimonio Nacional, at the Royal Collections Gallery, in December 2024. Infanta Sofía did, though, meet privately with the President of Portugal at Belém Palace in October 2025 during her studies at Forward College in Lisbon.

On Friday, the Infanta was accompanied by the President of the ONCE Social Group, Miguel Carballeda, Secretary of State for Social Rights, Rosa Martínez, President of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the Government Delegate in Madrid, Francisco Martín, Mayor of Boadilla del Monte, Francisco Javier Úbeda, and the President of the ONCE Social Group, Miguel Carballeda.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey

Infanta Sofía was given a tour of the facilities and had the opportunity to interact with some of the dogs in care at the centre. The Infanta learned about the programmes that train dogs to become guide dogs for blind people—which take around 24 months—and how the centre ensures adoptions are with suitable foster families.

The veterinary clinic offers specialised support, welfare, and training for guide dogs. The FOPG comprises more than 50 professionals with proven experience and a high level of specialisation in the field of veterinary welfare. These include mobility instructors, trainers, puppy supervisors, caretakers, administrative staff, and general services personnel. The centre also houses its own specialised area for genetic selection and breeding.

The Clinical & Healthcare Complex of the ONCE Foundation Guide Dog Breeding & Training Centre (FOPG) was opened 35 years ago by Queen Sofía and has since modernised its technologies and practices to today’s standards.

From the Royal House of Spain:

The ONCE (Spanish National Organisation of the Blind) created the ONCE Guide Dog Foundation in 1990, adopting the model of European and North American guide dog schools (35 years in operation). Since its inception, it has provided nearly 4,000 dogs to blind or severely visually impaired people in Spain. It currently places an average of 140 dogs, but with the new centre, this number will reach 200. The waiting list is currently between four and five years, and this new centre will help reduce it. The foundation holds demonstrations that are seen by between 8,000 and 10,000 people every year throughout Spain.