[nagdu] Guide Dog Age and Retirement

[avapup.7 at gmail.com]

Hi,

I have a question I hate to ask, but I guess my curiosity overrides my not wanting to know.

How old were others' guide dogs when they first began to slow down a bit, and how old were your dogs when you retired them? Does anyone have a guide dog who is still working (or has been in the past) at 9 years or older?

My Lab guide Cocoa is 9 years old, and I know she is slowing down a bit. Though she still loves to work, her energy level is slowly dropping, and I am nearly certain she will retire perhaps by the end of this year, maybe early in 2014.

My first dog retired at 6, but from a minor medical condition that didn't affect her quality of life a bit, just meant guiding wouldn't be the best idea.

Is 9 young for a Lab to begin slowing down? Is 9 or 10 young for a Lab to retire? I will do what is best for Cocoa, and when retired, she will still stay with me at home, though I may wait to apply anywhere for a successor dog until (a long time from now) when she passes on, I'm not sure.

I just don't know -- 9 sounds so young, yet so scarily old, for a big dog.

Thanks.
Ava and Cocoa

Sent from my iPhone