The guide dog blind, how does it work?

The guide dog blind, how does it work?

The guide dog blind, how does it work?
The guide dog blind, how does it work?
How are these dogs chosen, trained and adapted to their function? Guide dogs are an invaluable help for people who are deficient. In addition to improving their mobility, they allow them to be much more self-sufficient .

Since its domestication thousands of years ago, the dog has always been a valuable aid to man in various ways. The modern history of this privileged relationship has witnessed a considerable development of canine learning and its role in relation to the human. Among the main developments that are being discussed, assistance to people with visual impairments is most significant. For the beneficiaries of such support on a daily basis, this is a real blessing .

Early Learning begins :

Schools and organizations specializing in the training of blind guide dogs pay particular attention to the selection of puppies. They usually give preference to young dogs with pedigree and from breeds known for their patience, kindness and ability to learn. For example, Golden retrievers and Labrador retrievers are the most commonly used. German Shepherds are also found in this type of work .

Of course, there is no question for the puppies chosen to shorten weaning, quite the opposite. They spend the first 2 months of their lives with their mother in the nursery and are accustomed to human presence and contact very early on. The quality of the process of socialization, essential for all dogs and even more for the guide dogs of the Blind, is also the subject of great care on the part of the educators .

Thereafter, the puppy is entrusted to a foster family with whom he will integrate the fundamentals: Obedience, Basic orders ("Seated", "lying", "not moving"...) and life among humans . 


Adapting to all everyday situations :

From the age of 12 months, the puppy begins his apprenticeship at school. His educator gradually introduces him to the exercises of obedience and behavior. Little by little, the animal acquires the skills that will allow it, later, to serve as a guide to its future partner .

He learns to obey orders, to avoid obstacles, to report them (for example, to lie down), to follow roads and pedestrian passages, to behave in public transport and to react to injunctions with the very precise vocabulary peculiar to Orders received by a guide dog .

Her training lasts 6 months and is based on positive reinforcement. Once this is completed, the dog receives a certificate of aptitude and can finally be entrusted to the visually impaired person who will benefit from his daily accompaniment. A phase of about fifteen days is first observed so that each of the two elements of the duo gets used and adapts to the other. The first week takes place at the school and the second in the home of the blind person. Once this internship is complete, the duo will evolve in complete autonomy .

It is estimated that the training of a guide dog is between 18 000 and 25 000 dollars .


 

How are these dogs chosen, trained and adapted to their function?

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