[nfbmi-talk] raising leader dogs new story

Tue Nov 4 17:16:48 UTC 2014

Raising Leader Dogs: Program matches dog, client

Lisa Roose-Church, Livingston Daily 10:54 p.m. EDT November 1, 2014

Leader Dogs pt3_01.jpg

Clinton Township resident Karen Spear, who is legally blind, works with her new guide dog, a black Labrador named Angel, at Leader Dogs for the Blind’s

campus in Rochester Hills.(Photo: LISA ROOSE-CHURCH/DAILY PRESS & ARGUS)

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Clinton Township's Karen Spear bent over to pick something up and smacked her face on a table.

She chalked up the incident to her poor vision, something she had learned to manage at a young age. A co-worker told her that it was not normal and encouraged

her to seek professional help.

"I have been visually impaired all my life," Spear said. "I'd go camping, and I always hit the first (bathroom) stall because I knew it was there. I'd look

down when walking and people would say, 'Look up,' but when I did, I started tripping.

"I adapted to what I didn't know," she added.

In 1992, after smacking her face on the table, Spear followed her friend's advice and sought assistance. She was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, an

eye disease that damages the retina. She said her doctor told her "to start counting" because there was no cure and someday she would be blind.

Today, Spear's central vision is smaller than the circumference of a straw. She has no peripheral vision and is considered legally blind.

When her vision first worsened, Spear learned to walk with a white cane. She managed well enough but continually bruised herself because she would bump

into things.

She thought about getting a dog, and someone recommended Leader Dogs for the Blind in Rochester Hills, which pairs guide dogs with visually impaired people.

However, Spear got scared, she believes, of the responsibility that comes with pet ownership.

"I could not drive," she said. "I had to rely on other people, and I wanted freedom."

In 1996, Spear reconsidered and got her first dog, Angel, a yellow Labrador from Leader Dogs. When Angel was no longer able to work as a guide dog, Spear

spent a couple of years staying home. She was afraid of going out, and last winter she often fell on the ice and snow.

Spear missed getting out of the house, so she returned to Leader Dogs in September to get a new guide dog.

She requested a yellow Lab because she liked the dog's disposition, but then she met a black Lab-golden retriever mix that just happened to be named Angel.

"I'm just overjoyed with the whole thing," Spear said during a recent interview at the Leader Dogs facility in Rochester Hills. "We got the cream of the

crop. The puppy raiser was an Iowa prisoner. I think this was God-sent."

Before she can take Angel home, however, Spear and others like her must spend 26 days at the Leader Dogs for the Blind campus in Rochester Hills training

and learning about her guide dog. The dog's training began when it was 3 days old.

Leader stages

Leader Dogs — Labradors, golden retrievers, German shepherds or Labrador-golden mixes — are bred through the nonprofit organization's breeding program.

The breeding female and the stud male are owned by Leader Dogs but reside in host family homes spread throughout the country.

There are about 90 dogs in the breeding stock, which includes males and females.

Hosting the male dog is easier because the family has to make it available when it's time to breed. The rest of the time, the dog is a part of the host

family, although it is owned by Leader Dogs.

Being a host family for breeding females is more of a commitment.

In the dog's first six weeks of life, the family who hosts the female is responsible for getting the puppies used to being handled, said Rachel Kniffen,

director of communications and marketing with Leader Dogs for the Blind.

Betsy Hundley of Genoa Township, who hosts a breeding female named Glory, said she is responsible for introducing the puppies to textures and sounds in

a normal day. She also assists the female dog with weaning and checks the puppies' health, including weight gain or loss, and feeding schedules.

After six weeks, the puppies are taken to Leader Dogs and given checkups and their shots, if needed, and then handed to puppy raisers.

The second phase, known as the training phase, lasts until the puppy is about 12 months old to 15 months old. The volunteers who host the puppy are responsible

for basic training, such as teaching the dog to sit and heel, while socializing the dog as much as possible.

The socialization occurs when the puppy raisers take the dog everywhere as they go through their daily lives, whether it's to a doctor appointment, the

movies, grocery shopping or the workplace.

"We ask puppy raisers to take the puppy to church, the restaurant, or a kid's basketball game," Kniffen said.

The third phase involves training at Leader Dogs.

David Locklin, class coordinator for Leader Dogs, said guide dog mobility instructors — men and women who have completed a three-year apprenticeship — train

on average 40-50 dogs per month.

Instructors spend four months assessing and training each puppy, which includes evaluating how the puppy behaves or responds to different environments and

whether the dog is comfortable with the Leader Dogs harness.

"(Guide dog mobility instructors) also train the dog for specific guide dog tasks — stopping at a curve, negotiating around things like lamp posts, chairs

and all kinds of things," Locklin explained. "The ultimate aim is to keep the client safe — not going into the road, not bumping into things and not being

distracted by actual dog things.

"We ask the dog to walk a central, straight line from curb to curb, which is not natural behavior, so we have to train that in," he added.

Of the 40-50 dogs that complete training each month, about 25 will go on to be paired with a visually impaired person who has been fully vetted by Leader

Dogs officials to ensure that they receive the breed of dog that will work best with them.

The remainder of the dogs are "career changed," Locklin said.

Cheryl Sacrates, communications coordinator with Leader Dogs, said a career change could mean the dog is placed with an organization like Paws for a Cause

or with rescue organizations that adopt the dogs out. Some of the German shepherds that are career-changed may become police dogs, she said.

"Puppy raisers get a chance to get the puppy back, and about 60 percent will take the dog back," Socrates said. "There's a two-year waiting list to adopt

a Leader Dog."

If a dog passes the training, it moves onto the second step — it is paired with a Leader Dogs client.

Client, dog meeting

The dog and its new owner spend the first couple of days getting to know each other. This is done with assistance from Leader Dogs instructors.

"What we ultimately want is success," Locklin said. "That's the key thing, and to do that we need to make sure the planets align, as it were."

If the dog and client are a match, they move onto stage three, where the client begins to learn how to continue the dog's training.

At this stage, Locklin said, the emphasis is on the basics of obedience — practicing walking up and down the Leader Dogs' hallways, having the dog stay

by the client's side, sitting, walking and having the dog respond to the client's voice.

The latter is important, Locklin said, because when the dog is in the harness, it needs to respond to the user's voice.

The client and dog are also placed in real-life situations, at first under the assistance of instructors. This could include learning to walk across a busy

roadway or shopping at the mall — any everyday situation that is normal for the client. Eventually, the client and dog are introduced to more potentially

stressful situations and the instructor slowly steps back so the dog is responding to the client.

Leader Dogs also coaches clients — especially those who have never had a dog before — on basic ownership responsibilities, including feeding and grooming

the dog.

Typically, a Leader Dogs' client spends 26 days at the Rochester Hills campus for this training, while a returning client could spend about three weeks.

At the end, client and dog go home together.

"They've got the schooling and the tools they need to be successful at home," Locklin said. "That's the point of the 26 days, especially for new clients.

We give them everything they need here so they are successful in the home environment."

Locklin said in some instances that Leader Dogs may follow through with home visits, depending on the client and his or her needs.

On average, Leader Dogs, which is funded through private donations, works with more than 200 clients per year. The program is free "so everyone has the

opportunity to get the training," Locklin said.

Contact Daily Press & Argus reporter Lisa Roose-Church at 517-552-2846 or at lrchurch at gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @LisaRooseChurch.

Organization survives on donations

Leader Dogs for the Blind operates on donations from individuals, community service groups such as Lions Clubs, corporations and foundations to fund its

programs.

Anyone interested in making a donation or who needs Leader Dogs' services, is asked to call the organization's philanthropy department at 888-777-5332 or

248-651-9011 or donorsupport at leaderdog.org.

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