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Guide dogs
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Guide dogs
Guide dogs are specially bred and trained to enable
people who are blind or vision impaired to achieve
independence and enjoy equal rights and responsibilities.
Throughout the world, the preferred breed for
a guide dog is the Labrador. The Labrador is a
responsive, intelligent and placid dog that learns
quickly.
It takes approximately one and a half years to
train a guide dog and, over the course of its
working life, a professional guide dog costs Guide
Dogs Victoria around $25,000. Guide dogs are provided
free of charge to Victorians who are blind or
vision impaired, without discrimination.
Breeding and puppy raising
Guide dog puppies are born and raised at the Guide
Dogs Victoria Breeding Centre in Kew. At seven
weeks of age, the puppies are placed on the Puppy
Raising program. With regular support from puppy
raising supervisors, volunteer puppy raisers nurture
and socialise the puppies until the age of 12
months. When they're not producing litters, the
stud dogs and breeding bitches live with boarding
families.
Guide dog assessment
At 12 months, the puppies return to the Guide
Dog Centre for a health examination and a week-long
assessment of temperament. This involves testing
each dog's reaction to other dogs, animals, distractions
and situations that may commonly produce an anxious
reaction in other dogs. Guide dogs are bred to
inherit characteristics such as fearlessness,
indifference towards other dogs and animals, an
even temper and the ability to focus and concentrate.
Test standards are high, since the safety of vision
impaired people is at stake.
About half of the puppies are ultimately selected
for guide dog training. The remainder are trained
as 'companion' dogs, 'pets as therapy' dogs or
offered as pets to good homes.
Guide dog training
Dogs that pass the rigorous assessment undergo
a five-month intensive training program. Each
guide dog instructor handles six to eight dogs.
Eighty sessions cover a range of situations in
a variety of settings, such as residential, city
and rural areas. The lessons include:
· Walking in a straight line.
· Ignoring distractions.
· Stopping at a curb.
· Learning not to react to other dogs,
even if attacked.
· Learning commands such as 'forward',
'straight to the curb', 'find the door' and 'find
the counter'.
· Intelligent disobedience, such as ignoring
an unsafe command.
· Getting used to the body harness.
· Techniques to indicate obstacles, such
as stairs.
· Walking around obstacles, including obstacles
that would hit the handler's face.
· Traffic awareness and safety.
· Using public transport.
Guide dogs are trained through leadership and
positive reinforcement. They are praised when
they exhibit desired behaviour. The dog learns
many commands, including disobeying a command
if its handler (the person who is vision impaired)
has not heard approaching traffic. Each dog is
trained to recognise the height and width of its
handler to avoid obstacles such as overhanging
trees.
Training for the guide dog handler
The handler and their guide dog work as a team,
with the dog obeying the handler's commands. The
handler undergoes one month of intensive training
with their guide dog at our residential training
centre in Kew. The guide dog team is given support
to settle into their own home, and an instructor
will ensure they become familiar with their local
environment. They will learn how to safely negotiate
their most often-used travel and transport routes
for work, shopping and personal needs.
By law, guide dogs are permitted to travel in
taxis and on public transport, and are allowed
in all public places such as restaurants and hotels.
Guide Dogs Victoria provides follow-up sessions
for each guide dog team after one, three, six
and 12 months, and annually thereafter. On average,
a guide dog will work for about eight to 10 years.
When the dog is around eight years old, Guide
Dogs Victoria and the handler start preparing
for the changeover to a replacement guide dog.
Suggestions for sighted people
A guide dog isn't always 'on duty'. When its body
harness is removed, the dog understands that it
can relax and play. However, for the safety of
the handler, you should never distract a guide
dog while it is working. General cautions include:
· Don't pat guide dogs.
· Talk to the handler, not the guide dog.
· Don't whistle to a guide dog.
· Don't offer food.
· Keep your own dog on a leash, away from
the guide dog and under effective control.
Where to get help
· Your doctor
· Guide Dogs Victoria Tel. (03) 9854 4444
Things to remember
· Guide dogs are specially bred and trained
to enable people who are blind or vision impaired
to achieve freedom and independence.
· It takes approximately one and a half
years to train a guide dog, at an average cost
of $25,000 over the course of its working life.
· Do not distract a working guide dog in
harness.
· By law, guide dogs are permitted to travel
on public transport, including taxis, and are
allowed inside all public places such as restaurants
and hotels.
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