[nagdu] Guide dog school that offers guide dogs to children between the ages of 11 & 17 years old.

[David Andrews]

I do not think this is a good idea -- and my perspective is from a 
non-dog user, which is different from many of yours.

Personally I think a person should know how to use a cane well, and 
have experience with it prior to getting a dog.  Secondly it 
perpetuates the myth that all blind persons need a dog to be 
independent -- which we all know not to be true.

I have other reasons, and I also acknowledge that there may well be 
exceptions, but 11 seems a little young to me.  I have an 11 year old 
child, and if he were blind, I could see him wanting a dog, it would 
be cool, but he just isn't ready for it, and he would never have the 
option of being a good cane user.

Dave

At 07:04 AM 5/31/2013, you wrote:
>What do you all think about this...
>Deanna and Pascal
>
>
>
>MIRA - The only organization in the United States dedicated to providing
>guide dogs to blind children and youth between the ages of 11-17.
>
>MIRA: from the Spanish "look", "to have one's sights set on", was the
>nickname of a favorite guide dog trained by Eric St. Pierre, founder of MIRA
>Canada. MIRA Foundation USA takes its name from its collaboration with MIRA
>Canada, a nonprofit organization founded in 1981 upon the belief that all
>individuals, regardless of their physical challenges, should be able to set
>their sights on the same goals as those people born without handicaps.
>
>Today, MIRA Canada is recognized as a global leader in the breeding,
>selection, and training of guide and service dogs. MIRA USA was created in
>
>2008 as a legally separate entity, but with close ties to MIRA Canada, where
>our dogs are currently trained.
>
>Our mission is to offer blind children in the United States between the ages
>of 11-17 the opportunity to receive guide dogs free of charge, to provide
>targeted educational outreach to promote public awareness, and, as we
>continue to grow, to offer support services to the adult population of blind
>and their families.
>
>It is our experience that blind children, for the most part, are highly
>adaptive, fiercely determined, and seek to have many of the same
>opportunities as their sighted peers. Although a cane provides an adequate
>degree of mobility for the blind and severely visually impaired, there
>remain some serious limitations. For example, it is impossible to navigate
>with a cane when there is no tactical information such as what is provided
>by sidewalks. A child living in a rural area is severely challenged by this
>restriction.
>
>Furthermore, a cane tends to be isolating, whereas a dog provides a social
>bridge to the sighted community. Not only are dogs social creatures, they
>also provide stability and a level of protection through their visual
>awareness training that a cane could never replicate.
>
>Finally, a guide dog provides a young blind person with a greater level of
>self-reliance at an early age. Although a very young student is not going to
>be out on the streets alone with their dog, having the ability to navigate
>without holding a parent's hand is crucial to developing maturity and
>confidence. The student's freedom and mobility are especially enhanced in
>the school environment with the assistance of a guide dog. Although there is
>no cure for blindness, there can be hope, and we at MIRA witness it every
>day through the service of a MIRA guide dog.