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It's been a while since our last Pupdate and in that time India has graduated and Tweedie took her place. We now jump forward to Tweedie's graduation...
Congratulations to Tweedie! After two years of dedication and hard work, Tweedie has made it as a fully qualified guide dog. Guide Dogs for the Blind recently went to catch up with her and her new owner Yvonne...
“Not only were we greeted by a very happy Tweedie when we arrived, we were also nearly knocked off our feet by all of Yvonne’s other pets. There’s Isobel the Irish wolfhound, Freya the dachshund and Yvonne’s four cats, Saph, Toffee, Dave and ‘Lil Girl’. It’s a very busy household but it’s clear to see that Tweedie has settled in brilliantly and is a very happy girl.
Yvonne explained that she lost her eyesight 12 years ago. She went to bed one evening and woke up to find that her sight had gone completely due to retinal detachment. Yvonne then spent the next 12 years in her home as she didn’t have the courage to leave it on her own, until she applied for a guide dog and was partnered with Tweedie. Thanks to Tweedie, Yvonne can now catch the bus, walk to her local shop and enjoy the same freedom to get around as everyone else. “I don’t know why I didn’t do this 12 years ago” said Yvonne.
Yvonne told GDftB that some of Tweedie’s best traits are her excellent obedience and wonderful personality: “Tweedie know as soon as she’s in her harness it’s time to work and then when the harness comes off she’s a loving pet and great friend.””
India's expanding her horizons. India will soon be moving onto Guide Dogs Training School to begin her next phase of training, so Pat has been working with her to ensure that all of her basic commands are as polished as possible. She can now indicate stairs and lifts by stopping in front of them and has been on a range of different kinds of public transport, including buses and trains. All these new experiences she has taken in her stride and hasn't had any issues. When off duty she absolutely loves free running and playing retrieval games is one of her favourite things to do.
Elliot and his new guide dog owner Bob have just qualified as a working partnership! Bob and Elliot met for the first time when Elliot's trainer Tony took Elliott around for a visit at Bob's house. They got on like a house on fire and Tony knew that they were going to be the perfect match. After the initial meeting, Elliott went to stay with Bob and his wife Judy for the weekend, before they began training together. Training together began really well for the pair, Elliott picked up the routes which Bob uses on an everyday basis very quickly. As the partnership is still new, Judy is 'shadowing' the pair when they go out on their walks to make sure that they are both safe. Bob says that it takes time to get used to working with a new dog, but Elliott is great and definitely the dog for him.
"Elliott has given me back my independence, I will be able to go out without Judy and not feel worried. Elliot is great and we are really forming a great bond."
India's off to a flying start. Now that Elliott has qualified as a guide dog, we are now sponsoring a new puppy called India. Her puppy walker is Pat and India has already settled in very well. Pat explains that she is a loving and confident puppy who made herself very much at home right from the start. Pat helps out a few days a week in a school - and India loves to go along to get experience of being in this different environment. India is currently attending puppy classes with Pat which she very much enjoys.
Remember Crumble? Crumble had seven puppies and took to motherhood right from the beginning. She is now having a well earned rest and enjoying life with Mary, Brian and their other dog, Roza. As a guide dog mum, Crumble will have a maximum of five litters overall and will be retired by the time she is seven years old.
Jan 2010 -Elliott's Training
Elliott and his puppy walker Mary. Elliott is busy learning lots of new things; he is being taught to walk properly on his lead and learning basic commands. He is also visiting many different environments with Mary, so that he can feel confident in all situations.
Elliott is progressing at a good steady rate with his training and is always eager to please. However, as Elliott is a very sociable dog, he tends to lose concentration on his training if someone does not ignore him. This is being overcome now.
Moving on with Elliott. Elliott has moved into training and kennels. Already he has been introduced to the harness and has taken to it well. Elliott is aware of wearing the harness when it is first put on him but as soon as he is given guiding tasks, it takes his mind off it.
Elliott starts advanced training. Elliott's level of training has now started to increase and he is being encouraged to start making decisions himself. Furthermore, he needs to learn that even if the instruction asks him to go forward when it is not safe to do so, he should disobey the command if the situation is dangerous.
As Elliott is a very confident dog who needs to be kept motivated and stimulated, his trainer thinks that he will be best suited to someone who has an active lifestyle.
Final stages... Tony, Elliott's trainer has been giving Elliott lots of responsibility to think for himself while out on training walks. This gives Tony the opportunity to find out what Elliot is good at and what needs to be worked on. The main focus they have at the moment is 'right shoulder work' and obstacle avoidance. Right shoulder work is when Elliot has to be mindful and consider his handler as an extension of himself, to ensure that he allows enough space on his handler's right hand side to prevent them from colliding into obstacles.
Tony will soon do blindfold walks with Elliott, where they go out and Tony wears a blindfold. This gives Elliott a chance to really show off his training as he has to think entirely for himself. Another member of the team will follow behind so that they do not get into any danger.
Sept 2009 - A new puppy
We are now sponsoring a puppy called Elliott. Our original puppy was Crumble, but as she did so well in her training the charity decided that they would like to breed from her. Our sponsorship then swapped over to Dana. Dana unfortunately died peacefully in her sleep in earlier this year. As a result we changed again, this time to Elliott.
Visit to the Guide Dogs Training Centre - December 2008
Heidi had a fascinating day out visiting the Guide Dogs Training Centre. She saw how our current pup Dana receives its lessons, brought in by its Puppy Walkers.
When a guide dog puppy has completed its puppy walking at 12-14 months old, it moves on to the next stage of training, and is assigned to a guide dog trainer. They introduce the dog to wearing a harness, teach it basic obedience commands and how to guide - walking in a straight line, stopping at kerbs and avoiding obstacles.
Every year 1,000 guide dog puppies are bred in the UK. At any one time, Guide Dogs for the Blind, are supporting around 4,600 guide dog partnerships in the UK.
If you are interested adding your support Guide Dogs for the Blind, go to their webpage on www.guidedogs.org.uk
Pupdate (groan!)
Dana is still progressing well with her training. She is past the puppy walker stage now and beginning the full training. Like most labradors, she is good natured and willing, but somewhat excitable and needs to be restrained from racing off after passing rabbits.
All work and no play….
We do get out from time to time and this page is where we tell you about our team’s interests, our days out and, of course, our Guide Dog puppy.
If you are interested adding your support Guide Dogs for the Blind, go to their webpage on www.guidedogs.org.uk
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