[nagdu] Owner training

[Tracy Carcione]

Hi Katrin.
That's very interesting.  I have often wondered what it is that separates
the dogs who make it as guide dogs from those who don't.  It would seem
that any dog who is healthy, intelligent, sensible, and willing to work
should be able to do the job, but that does not actually appear to be the
case.
Can you shed any light on what the difference might be?  Can you say why
the dogs who proved unsuitable were unsuitable?
I have been hearing for decades that the drop-out rate for would-be guide
dogs is about 50 percent.  I would think, with being bred for the job for
many generations, that that rate would have improved over the years, and
maybe it has, a bit, but the drop-out rate is still quite high.
I'd be fascinated to hear more about whatever mysterious spark  it takes
to become a guide dog.
Tracy

> On owner training, finding the dog with the right structure and aptitude
> can
> often times be the most challenging part.  I believe the current statistic
> on guide/service dogs is only about 1% of the dog population has what it
> takes to successfully make it as a guide or service dog.  For me, I owner
> trained my 1st dog successfully, then spent 3 years and probably close to
> $8,000 on dogs that didn't work out.  Dogs that didn't work out for health
> reasons or temperament reasons.  That being said I had very specific wants
> in a dog for both temperament, structure and breed.  After 3 years, I
> decided to cut my losses and went to a program.  I don't really like
> purebred Labradors and most purebred Goldens wouldn't be a good
> temperament
> match for me, and after washing out a couple of dogs, if I couldn't have a
> flat coat, which is my breed of choice, I really wanted a lab golden cross
> and that's what GDF matched me with and I love him.
>
>
>
> Having done both the owner training and the program route, I will say that
> while I love owner training, from a cost and risk perspective my next dog
> will probably also be a program dog.
>
>
>
> Katrin
>
>
>
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