[nabs-l] dog v. cane

[autTeal Bloodwortho]

I agree, it is a much quicker and efficient way to travel but you do need to 
be a good cane traveler. With a dog i have found  that it is easier to go 
around obstacles. Last fall i had a class in room 210 and another 212 on 
seperate days of the week. My wonderful dog didn't have a problem knowing 
which room to go to on the right day of the week.

However, even though a guide dog is a wonderful way to travel i want to add 
that it is a huge responsibility. When first applying i just had in my mind 
" now I can cross that 4 lane highway" or " now maybe i will walk straighter 
and around people better". What i didnt know was 1 sometimes people dont 
move or might distract the dog. 2 you take care of this dog like they are 
your child ( brush their teeth, weigh them regularly, clean their ears, 
brush them.

I hope i didn't change your mind because it is an amazing experience having 
somebody that loves you so much unconditionally but yet is so helpful and i 
want to reccomend Guiding Eyes For The Blind in yorktown Heights New York.

        -Teal


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ignasi Cambra" <ignasicambra at gmail.com>
To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list" 
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, November 23, 2010 8:39 AM
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] dog v. cane


>I think people have said many good things on this topic, and I agree with 
>pretty much all of them. The only thing I would add is that besides all the 
>advantages that you already talked about, for me a big thing is that 
>traveling with the dog is much, much faster. I used a cane for a long time 
>and at least in my particular case, walking around with the dog literally 
>helps me to get wherever I'm going twice as fast. At national convention 
>last summer I realized that with the dog I was much faster than everybody 
>using canes, and other dog users seemed to be faster too. Of course when 
>you are busy or travel a lot being fast is important, but some people may 
>really not care about it.
> On Nov 21, 2010, at 9:47 PM, Jorge Paez wrote:
>
>> Hi all:
>> I am considering options for travel, and my Vision Teacher and I have 
>> discussed if I ever wanted to get a dog.
>>> From your points of view, what are the advantages to using a guide dog 
>>> instead of a cane?
>> I am very comfortable with a cane, and I'm aware that good use of the 
>> cane is required before you can get a dog,
>> but what are the advantages of a guide dog in terms of day-to-day life?
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Jorge
>>
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