[nagdu] introduction and guide doog school recommendation

[Raven Tolliver]

Hi John,
Every school is perfect for someone. You will get any number of loyals
or graduates recommending the school where they got all, most of, or
their most recent dog. People will recommend the Seeing Eye, Guiding
Eyes, GDB, Pilot, Leader, GDF, GDA, and so on. While all of those
schools have their advantages and upsides, I can think of pitfalls for
all of those programs.
The bottom line: you need to decide on the school that sounds or seems
perfect to you. How do you do that? Consider what factors are
important to you. But wait, this is your first guide dog, so maybe you
don't know what those factors are yet. That's fine. Here are some
factors for you to consider and research.
location of program, ownership policy, dog training methods used,
length of formal guide training, average age of dogs issued, dog
breeds offered, length of student training, in-home training offered,
special needs training program offered, graduation ceremony,
puppy-raiser contact, veterinary assistance fund offered
That is not an exhaustive list by any means. I'm certain others will
contribute. But those are some of the more important factors when
considering a guide dog school.
I personally chose Guiding Eyes because I needed the financial
assistance with veterinary costs at the time, and I felt it important
to receive a dog that was trained in New York. Also, I wanted an adult
dog, specifically a golden retriever. GEB was perfectly able to
satisfy my requirements.
The same things might not matter to you. You might not care which
breed you get, or how young your first guide dog is. You might want
ownership upon graduation. Or, you might need in-home training for
your circumstance. It's up to you to research what each school offers,
and as you find things you like, write them down and try to find a
school that has those things. That's how I went about it.
Visit school's websites and click around. Call admissions and ask
questions. Put emails out on this list about specific schools once you
become interested in a few. It's far easier to answer questions about
specific schools than it is to make a suggestion to a person we know
absolutely nothing about.
I hope this helps. Good luck on your search.
--
Raven

On 2/17/14, starmy22 at gmail.com <starmy22 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi,
> My name is John.
> I'm 28 years of age.
> I'm considering getting a guide dog.
> I have a quesiton: what are some  good guide dog schools that you could
> recommend for some one who is getting there first guide dog?
> I hope to hear from you.
> Sincerely,
> John Sanders
> _______________________________________________
> nagdu mailing list
> nagdu at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for nagdu:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/ravend729%40gmail.com
>


-- 
Raven