[NAGDU] Guide dogs aroundthe world, current developments

[Gabriel Moloney]

hi again
Yes as i stated earlier I am a former guide dog owner from Europe, yes wheel e there is a uniform approach to free running guides for down time, that is up to the person, what I did not agree at the time and still do not is rewarding the dog for bad behaviour on free runs, as I have seen guide dog owner do so in the old country.  I was told to do this by a former GDMI to bring him back and if the nuts from the food did not work, try chicken or something else to get their attention.  I was talking about dog parks that can be dangerous for our guides, as people who are pet owner have no control over their dogs, so why put your dog in a place like that, if there is a safe place and you want to free run your dog that is your choice.  to do so, again my own experience with free running with that dog who’s recall was not the best, the free runs stopped for him, finally I don’t think anybody was suggesting that European guide dog owners are restricted to their own area all the time, but I know this for a fact in the United Kingdom who are told 1; not to leave your area for a couple of months or familiar routes, 2; I know off one UK guide dog owner that she could not travel to Ireland with her dog, and this was the Guide Dog organisation in the UK telling her this.  Where is the independence there??? just saying and again yes interesting topic.
warm wishes to all
Gabriel 

> On 21 Apr 2018, at 15:19, Gabriel Moloney <gmoloney6467 at googlemail.com> wrote:
> 
> hi thats great that your current dog has great recall, and that it has your husband’s dog to play with, and for food rewards and clipper training I know, that it was and maybe is getting bigger in Europe now  I know it was in Ireland.  And again I suppose that it is up to us as individuals on if free runs is something that we want to do for our dogs and again it is great that your dog has very good recall, I know that my last dog was just ok with recall and the one before her was not  so his free running days ended, as i was not willing to give him food treats to bring him back to me while free running.
> cheers and kind regards
> gabriel
> 
>> On 21 Apr 2018, at 14:56, Bianka Brankovic via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> 
>> Hi gabriel and all,
>> 
>> as for the free runs, my current dog has a very good recall when she is off leash and of course you wouldn’t want to let your dog run free near a street. My view on food rewards has drastically changed throughout the years. At first, I did not like them at all, now I use them on a regular basis. As for socializing, of course this is only encouraged during free runs. On leash contact may be allowed if your dog feels comfortable with it. When working, it is strongly discouraged, there might be some allowance if the other dog is sniffing your dog annyways. My current guide could care less for other dogs, she has my husband’s dog to play with and that’s mainly enough for her. My husband’s dog likes other dogs in general. 
>> 
>> As for the dog distraction issue, I personally believe dogs who have well socialized dogs to play with on a regular basis are better around other dogs. I have had two dogs with severe dog distractions, with one of them I could continue working for a while, the other had to be retired. 
>> 
>> Hope that clarifies it a bit. 
>> 
>> Kind regards,
>> 
>> Bianka 
>> 
>> 
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