[blindkid] Guide dogs for twelve year olds?
Richard Holloway
rholloway at gopbc.org
Wed Jan 20 15:51:59 UTC 2010
I can see both sides of this issue but I have to agree with Albert.
Certainly it would be possible for a younger child to find himself or
herself "in too far" in having to care for and deal with a guide dog.
Indeed that would be possible for a 16 or 18 year old, or dare I
suggest an older adult as well?
With that said, I have heard of many things that my blind daughter
would supposedly not be "ready" for, including having a cane for
travel. That did not stop her from having a cane at 18 months and if I
had it to do over again, all I would do is not delay until she was
that old. Some kids at my daughter's current age (seven) still have no
canes or if they have them, have little motivation and encouragement
to use them. That doesn't mean MY child cannot become an outstanding
cane traveler at an early age.
Not long ago, O&M "experts" nearly always wanted to keep canes out of
blind kids hands until, what, middle school or even later? I also know
of cases where they would bring a cane for an O&M lesson and then
leave WITH THE CANE. Again, presumably because the kids "weren't
ready" to be independent cane travelers. You are supposed to be a
proficient cane traveler before you can travel with a guide dog. When
kids used to get canes much later, that could have come into play more
but it is very possible for a 12-year-old to be an expert cane
traveler now. Such a child could have been using a cane for 10 years
or more by age 12 after all...
My daughter is above grade level with her reading and writing braille.
Some of her blind friends at the same age are not so fortunate (while
others are). We decided early on to make every effort to keep her
"caught up" with her sighted classmates (if not ahead). Some other
parents don't feel this is so important, even if there is no reason
(besides vision issues) which should hold the child back. So, who is
"right"?
Well, I clearly have an opinion about what is right for MY child. It
really isn't my place to say what is the correct choice for others. So
here is my point-- I cannot say yet if my daughter would possibly be
ready to consider guide dog use and ownership 5 years from now (at age
12), but I can say with some certainty that just because others are
not ready would not mean that she could not possibly be so.
Can children possibly be mature enough to be in charge of the care for
an animal before age 16? I would say "yes, in some cases, absolutely".
(Who would disagree?) And clearly some kids are excellent cane
travelers before 16. So then why would we close the door to the
possibility?
Is this a good idea for all kids in the age range of 12? I suspect it
is not. besides, guide dogs are not for everyone-- not even all blind
adults. Still, I for one would vote for more investigation into this
before we begin to campaign against it. We need to be the trend
setters for open-minded thought where our kids are concerned. If this
is possible and beneficial for even one of our kids, let's find a way
to make it (safely) happen.
Richard
On Jan 20, 2010, at 10:09 AM, Albert J Rizzi wrote:
> Here here! Wy set the bar low when in fact a child of 12 years or
> 13 years
> has the capacity and maturity to handle the responsibility? Isn’t it
> our
> responsibility to give all children those tools they need based
> upon their
> individual abilities to achieve all things possible in their lives.
> I do not
> see the reason for nor the reluctance to allow any teenager an
> opportunity
> to exercise their choice for mobility and that it include a guide dog.
>
> Albert J. Rizzi, M.Ed.
> CEO/Founder
> My Blind Spot, Inc.
> 90 Broad Street - 18th Fl.
> New York, New York 10004
> www.myblindspot.org
> PH: 917-553-0347
> Fax: 212-858-5759
> "The person who says it cannot be done, shouldn't interrupt the one
> who is
> doing it."
>
>
> Visit us on Facebook LinkedIn
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blindkid-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindkid-
> bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Doreen Frappier
> Sent: Wednesday, January 20, 2010 9:40 AM
> To: (for parents of blind children)NFBnet Blind Kid Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [blindkid] Guide dogs for twelve year olds?
>
> I am not opposed to having responsible 12 year olds own and care for
> a guide
> dog. I believe that children mature at different rates. For
> example, 4-H
> children own and care for animals (on their own) at very young
> ages. They
> are responsible for feeding and caring for that animal. One of my
> children,
> (sighted) is 13, and has been the sole trainer of a dog since she
> was 9
> years old. She has won many awards and competitions with her dog,
> including
> adult dog shows. She is responsible for feeding and caring for that
> dog.
> When the dog gets her check ups at the vet, she comes to the vets
> office.
> It's true, a young person can not take care of the expenses of a
> guide dog,
> but I am all for training teaching blind children to be independent
> as early
> as possible. I think each situation is different. I am not aware of
> everything that goes into caring for and owning a guide dog, but I
> think
> some children are capable and should not be excluded because of
> age.
>
> Doreen
>
> --- On Wed, 1/20/10, Heather <craney07 at rochester.rr.com> wrote:
>
> From: Heather <craney07 at rochester.rr.com>
> Subject: [blindkid] Guide dogs for twelve year olds?
> To: "NFBnet Blind Kid Mailing List, (for parents of blind children)"
> <blindkid at nfbnet.org>
> Date: Wednesday, January 20, 2010, 7:22 AM
>
> I just wanted to get some feedback on this from some parents of blind
> children and teens. I, personally, was absolutely apalled to hear
> that a
> local guide dog school, not mentioning names *coughs* Freedom guide
> Dogs
> *Coughs* has preposed a program to place guide dogs with twelve year
> olds.
> All of the other schools in the US accept teens no younger than
> sixteen or
> eighteen years of age, depending on the school, but twelve? I am
> happy to
> note that at present, no O and M instructors, parents or twelve year
> olds
> have contacted the school to enquire about this program, but I am
> dreading
> the day. This makes a mockery of those exceptional blind teens who
> are, at
> sixteen or seventeen, responsible enough, committed enough and have
> demanding enough schedules to properly care for, utalize and
> actually need a
> guide dog. At what age would you consider supporting your teen in
> researching guide dog schools? At what age would you support them
> actually
> submitting applications? How old would you want your teen to be
> before
> actually being placed with a guide dog? Do you think that you would
> have
> the blunt honesty to deny your support of your child getting a dog
> guide, if
> they were not emotionally, mentally, etc capable of utalizing a
> guide dog,
> at that time in their life? Do you think that you could restrain
> yourself
> from taking care of the dog, interacting with the dog, or doing
> things that
> would undermine the ownership of the dog by your blind teen,
> acknowledging
> their sole ownership and responsibility for the dog, even if you, as
> their
> mother or father still have all other rule-making power in the house-
> hold?
> Finally, would you ever, honestly let your twelve year old apply for
> a guide
> dog? I just felt this should be brought to the list's attention.
> Just me
> personally, I would not encourage my blind teen to start researching
> guide
> dog schools until age fourteen or fifteen, and I would not
> allow them to apply to schools until they were at least fifteen, and
> that
> is assuming that they are emotionally ready to deal with the demands
> of a
> guide dog, such as handeling an emergency vet situation, mentally
> able to
> care for the dog, such as, researching and selecting safe toys,
> effective
> medications and appropriate foods, mature enough to deal with the
> social
> implications, such as access issues, and that they actually had a
> need, not
> just a want for a guide dog, due to a challenging travel area or
> complex and
> demanding schedule of activities and classes. Please share your
> thoughts.
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