Guide dogs: the precious "eyes" of the visually impaired
Guo Mei
The "Regulations of Beijing Municipality on the Construction of Barrier-Free Environments" will come into effect from next month, which clearly states that visually disabled persons with relevant documents can bring guide dogs into public places and take public transportation, and relevant units and individuals must not refuse.
Guide dogs are working dogs that provide guidance services for the visually impaired after training and assessment. They are also loyal guides and veritable "eyes" in the dark life of blind people.
The world's first guide dog
Guide dogs are working dogs for the visually impaired.
At home, it can lead the owner to the kitchen and bathroom, bypass tables and chairs, etc. to do housework; when going out, it will pay attention to the traffic and obstacles, and can also take the owner to visit friends, go shopping, take a car, etc.
Humans have a long history of using smart dogs to serve the blind.
The murals of the ancient city of Pompeii, a city buried by the ash from the eruption of Vesuvius, once depicted a blind man walking in the market led by a dog.
In 1819, the pioneer of education for the blind and the Viennese priest John William tied a twig around the dog's neck and trained it to lead the way. This dog is regarded as the world's first guide dog.
Later, he also opened a guide dog training organization similar to the current one, called the "Vienna Reconstruction Center for the Blind", and published a booklet called "Teaching the Blind", which describes the methods of training guide dogs.
He believes that the soft rope attached to the guide dog can’t allow the blind to accurately perceive the dog’s every move. It is recommended to replace it with a hard rod to ensure that the distance between the blind and the dog is fixed. This idea is similar to today’s guide saddle (ie. The use principle of the metal bracket fixed on the guide dog is the same.
Regrettably, his claims were not widely known at the time.
In 1847, Switzerland's Burrell wrote the book "Guide Dog Training" based on his own experience in training fox dogs, but it did not attract any attention either.
It will be about 100 years after the first guide dog appears to train and train guide dogs in a systematic manner, and to include this work in the welfare of the blind.
The First World War was a human catastrophe at the beginning of the 20th century. In the past four years, the participating countries suffered heavy casualties. Germany paid a heavy price for the war. Millions of people lost their lives and countless others were injured.
Once, doctor Herhard accompanied a blind wounded soldier to a German military hospital, and his dog followed.
After a while, Herhard walked away, leaving behind the blind soldier and the dog.
When he returned again, he found that the dog and the wounded soldier were missing. After looking around for Hehad, he saw that the dog had safely walked a certain distance with the wounded soldier.
He was very surprised. Although he knew that his pet dog was very smart, he never thought that he could lead the way.
"If trained, dogs will surely become good partners for the blind and wounded soldiers." Hehard thought so, and gradually started experiments, with satisfactory results.
In 1916, Herhard founded the first guide dog training school in the modern sense to help soldiers who were blind in the war.
In 1923, the National Guide Dog Training School was established in Potsdam, Germany. The government officially promoted guide dog training courses to the whole people. In 1926, the world's first guide dog association was established.
Around 1927, about 4,000 guide dogs were put into use in Germany.
Although this is far from satisfying the needs of the blind, with the help of guide dogs, some people who have lost their light are able to return to society.
Guide dogs are "on duty" all over the world
Guide dogs and their training are recognized throughout the world from an American woman, who is Dorothy Harrison Eustis.
Dorothy, born in Philadelphia, loves dogs very much and is a famous dog trainer.
In 1923, working in Switzerland, she established her own kennel called "Lucky Farm", which mainly breeds German shepherd dogs known as the "universal working dog". At the same time, she trained police dogs for the police station and the Red Cross. Rescue dog.
After hearing about the German training of guide dogs, she went to Potsdam to visit.
After returning to New York, Dorothy introduced the project in a special article in the Saturday Evening News.
This article attracted the attention of Maurice Frank, a 19-year-old blind man. He then wrote to ask Dorothy to train a guide dog for himself.
Dorothy accepted the challenge, but asked Morris to go to Switzerland to train with the guide dog.
The training results were satisfactory, and Morris returned to the United States with a guide dog.
Inspired by Dorothy, she decided to devote all her energy to training guide dogs.
In 1928, she established a guide dog training center called "The Seeing Eye" in Switzerland. In 1929, she established a guide dog training school in the United States, where 17 blind people and their dogs were trained.
A year later, the school moved to Morriston, New Jersey, and it continues to this day.
In order to let more people know about guide dogs, Dorothy spent a lot of time traveling and giving speeches. Guide dogs and their training methods have gradually become known to the world.
In 1930, articles about her began to appear in British newspapers.
Murray Kluck, a dog trainer living in Liverpool, and a companion who raises a German shepherd are very interested in what Dorothy said as a guide dog.
In September 1930, they met in London, England.
At that time, Dorothy generously stated that he would send a dog trainer to the UK to give lectures, and Murray was responsible for solving the problem of the venue.
The guide dog training school was then officially opened in the UK. One year later, the first training course was completed and the other two training sessions started.
Initially, the training of guide dogs was limited to "single fights alone". Without government support and social assistance, they would inevitably face economic difficulties, but this is not the biggest problem.
At that time, the most irreconcilable contradiction was the public's strong opposition to the use of dogs for the blind.
Murray once described that dog trainers face personal attacks every day, people insult and try to stop their work, admonishing them that this kind of training is stupid and useless.
It wasn't until the first guide dog was "on duty" in the UK that the user really got help through the guide dog, and the scolding gradually subsided.
The Guide Dog Association was formally established in the United Kingdom in 1934, 20 years earlier than the United States.
In the following years, the training of guide dogs was extended to Australia and other countries.
Guide dogs first appeared in Asia in 1938. An American young man took his guide dog to Japan on a trip, which caused a lot of repercussions, but it was 19 years when Japan’s first guide dog completed training and went on the road. It's later.
At present, the training of guide dogs is popularized in many countries.
Among them, the "World Guide Dog Federation" established in 1946 is an international guide dog organization that provides technical guidance to 72 guide dog training schools from 28 countries, formulates qualified guide dog standards, and promotes their use Guide dogs, and also provide services for the visually impaired.
A total of 35 countries in the world have established guide dog training institutions, and more than 20,000 guide dogs play an important role in helping blind people achieve independent lives and participate in social activities.
Guide dogs in our country started late.
The first training base was completed in Dalian in 2004, and the training of the first generation of guide dogs began.
Two years later, the first qualified guide dog "Maomao" officially took office.
In recent years, the country has enacted relevant laws and local governments have also supported the development of guide dogs. The public's awareness and acceptance of guide dogs has increased.
In 2018, China also promulgated the national standards for guide dogs, which stipulated the selection and breeding requirements of guide dogs. At the same time, it also stipulated the requirements for the breeding and management of guide dogs, as well as the requirements for return visits, retraining, and retirement. The development of the career is of great significance.
At the upcoming Beijing Paralympic Winter Games, the Dalian Training Base of China Guide Dogs will provide 20 qualified guide dogs to provide services for the visually disabled.
Dog "family history" review is very strict
A qualified guide dog is a member of the family, a partner of the visually impaired, and is deeply trusted and liked by them.
Unlike pet dogs, guide dogs are a kind of working dog, whose main job is to replace the eyes of the visually impaired and serve them. Therefore, guide dogs must undergo rigorous training before they go to work instead of being blindly indulgent like pet dogs. .
Guide dogs can help the visually disabled avoid obstacles, find destinations, cross the road, find seats, and safely go up and down stairs, etc.
A guide dog is not a navigation, but it has a good memory and can remember more than 7 destinations. The premise is that the owner needs to take the guide dog to know this route first. Generally, it can remember it after walking two or three times.
If you are going to an unfamiliar place, you need the owner to grasp the direction through electronic navigation or other methods, and the obstacles and vehicles on the road can be handed over to the guide dog to assist in avoiding.
Not all dogs are suitable for participating in the blind guide work.
Initially, the German Shepherd was almost the only choice for all countries.
Later, it was discovered that Labrador Retrievers, which are adaptable, friendly, and willing to work, are better, and the smart but small personality Golden Retriever comes next.
In addition, dog breeds such as Border Collie and Standard Poodle have also been used in foreign guide training. Different dog breeds have different characteristics and training methods.
However, Labrador Retrievers are the most used in all countries in the world, and the best training effect is still the Labrador, and the training success rate accounts for about half.
Even the docile Labrador and Golden Retriever can not all become guide dogs.
They must first go through a strict "family history" review. Dog trainers must trace their ancestry more than three generations to see if they have a "guide dog pedigree", check their physical condition, genetic diseases, personality, and behavioral characteristics, and their ancestors must not have Injury records, ordinary domestic dogs do not have this qualification, only pure pedigrees can breed dogs with stable personality.
In addition, guide dogs must also have learning ability, willingness to work, and gentleness. Like a Labrador, the personality is active, but this does not mean that it is not good. This trait makes them like working and is good for training.
Guiding the blind is an individual's hard work, and letting a lazy dog breed to guide the blind is tantamount to "catching a duck to the shelves."
In addition, guide dogs should be of moderate size, easy to tow and install guide saddles, and should be friendly to humans, obedient, sensitive, fragile, aggressive, and poorly physique dogs are not suitable.
Now most of the guide dog associations around the world have their own dog breeding centers. These guide dogs with "family heritage" will undoubtedly increase the success rate of training.
High training elimination rate of guide dogs
In 2001, Japanese writer Kengo Ishiguro published the book "Goodbye, Kelu", based on a real guide dog in Japan, and recorded 12 years of serving the blind.
This book sold 2 million copies in Japan as soon as it was published. It broke the sales record 13 times in just 8 months and was hailed as the most moving animal biography.
In 2004, the book was adapted into the movie "Guide Dog Little Q", which moved countless audiences.
Everyone remembered the Labrador named Kelu (Little Q), was impressed by its excellent work ability, and at the same time was impressed by its hard training life.
Indeed, cultivating a qualified guide dog is not easy.
Police dogs, search and rescue dogs and guide dogs belong to the three major working dogs today, among which guide dogs have the highest requirements and training costs.
From puppies to guide dogs, the training period is as long as 18 months, costing about 100,000 yuan, and the working life span is 6 to 10 years.
The training usually starts two months after the puppies are born. They are first sent to the homes of the puppies raising volunteers. The main purpose is to adapt the puppies to family and human life, as well as to understand public places, such as playgrounds, elevators, crosswalks, etc. .
In addition, people have to train small dogs to do some basic obedience commands, such as standing, waiting, walking and so on.
Of course, the most important thing is to take full care of the puppies to make them grow up healthily. This is also to cultivate the closeness and trust of guide dogs to humans.
The one-year-old puppies will leave their “adoptive parents” and will be sent to a guide dog training base for five months of intensive “learning”. Professional trainers are responsible for the assessment and training.
Here, the puppies must first learn to observe strict work and rest time to adapt to the owner's diet and daily life in the future, and also learn to go to the toilet after hearing instructions.
During the "basic course" learning process for more than a month, the trainer will assess these little dogs from several aspects, such as whether they are willing to learn, whether they can remain quiet for a long time, whether they are nervous and aggressive, and whether they are easily distracted by the surrounding environment. Wait.
The little dogs will decide to stay according to their overall performance: the excellent ones will start formal training; the normal ones will be given another chance to "retake the exam"; the poor ones will be eliminated immediately.
Of course, even if they are eliminated, these purebred dogs can still become other working dogs, but they are not suitable for guiding the blind.
Next is the "professional class".
The puppy must first be trained to walk in a straight line and stop on the edge of the road; secondly, understand and obey all the instruction terms; finally, be able to complete the skills of a guide dog freely.
For example, when walking close to the front left of the owner, you must walk in a straight line. You can't look down and smell it. If you see obstacles in front, you can lead the owner to avoid it smoothly; you can stop when crossing the road and follow the instructions of the signal lights.
The "professional course" exams for guide dogs are not easy at all.
For example, guide dog training schools in the United Kingdom will "live with cats" as a compulsory subject, because for most dogs, they can't help but chase after cats.
However, a qualified guide dog must not only get along with the swaggering cat in front of him, but also must withstand its "provocation". Guide dogs are attracted by cats or other animals and may lose their owners.
In addition, for guide dogs, the most difficult thing is that they must absolutely obey the instructions but not blindly follow them.
If the owner issues an instruction, but the instruction may put itself in danger due to visual impairment, the guide dog will have to flexibly "violate the contract."
For example, the owner orders to cross the road, but at this time a car comes around the corner, the duty of the guide dog is to refuse to obey until the danger is eliminated.
Guide dogs are the "eyes" of the visually impaired, so there will be more than a month of training for the dogs and their owners to participate.
During this period, the owner should not only learn to take care of the guide dog independently, but also learn to cooperate with the dog, such as issuing instructions, etc. The two parties should run in with each other and be familiar with living habits, work and rest time, personality rules, language characteristics, etc.
At this point, the rigorous training is considered to be completed, and then through the assessment and evaluation of the professional team, only after passing the qualification can it become a working dog with guiding skills, and the elimination rate is as high as more than half.
A real guide dog must have a work permit issued by a formal organization, and it will only be delivered to the visually disabled who apply through formal channels.
It is precisely because of such strict screening and training that there has never been any case of a guide dog wounding a person in history.
Earn respect with serious work
At the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games, Ping Yali, the first gold medalist in the history of the Paralympic Games in China, completed the torch relay under the guidance of the guide dog Lucky; in 2019, American man Thomas Panek played in his three Guided by the guide dog, participated in the New York Half Marathon and completed the race. It took 2 hours and 21 minutes and made history...As a working dog, many countries respect guide dogs and provide legislative protection to stipulate these Working dogs can enter any public places such as shops, restaurants, hotels, airplanes, buses, etc. Pet dogs are usually restricted from entering these places.
Some welfare organizations also provide eye-catching marks for guide dogs so that others can pay attention or avoid them.
Don't think the guide dog is a dog, but he looks serious when he works.
This "serious face" often makes people mistakenly think that it is unhappy. In fact, this means that guide dogs need to concentrate at work to ensure that they avoid obstacles and are not disturbed by things around them.
At this time, even with a plate of chicken legs and fleshy bones in front of it, without the permission of the owner, the guide dog will not even glance at it. This is a professional guide dog, unmoved in the face of temptation.
It should be noted that if we see a guide dog in a public place, we should not disturb or pet it, as this will only distract its attention.
If you arrive at the destination, after taking off the guide saddle, the guide dog will enter the "off-work" state. At this time, you can also play like a normal pet dog, acting like a coquettish and relaxing with the owner.
Guide dogs are well taken care of whether they are eliminated in training or after retirement.
Usually, guide dog trainers and puppies' families can adopt them first.
Moreover, every guide dog association has a long list of names on the waiting list, and many people are looking forward to adopting these special dogs with human nature.
Further reading
Do guide dogs need to be purchased at a high price?
The training fee for guide dogs has always been at a high level.
In the United States, it takes about US$20,000 to train a qualified guide dog.
However, it does not necessarily need to be purchased. In our country, guide dogs are for public welfare, and applications are only open to the visually disabled. Guide dogs that are qualified for training are delivered to the visually disabled who meet the application requirements for free.
The "expensive" of guide dogs lies in their preciousness.
The training of a guide dog in China takes about one and a half years, and the requirements for dogs are relatively strict, and the training elimination rate is high. Therefore, it is not easy to train a qualified guide dog, and the cost of manpower and material resources is high. .
At present, the number of guide dogs in China is relatively rare, so they are more precious, but this does not mean that they are expensive.
Although the number is small, it does not mean that the threshold for application is high.
Applicants only need to meet the basic application requirements, have the ability to use a guide dog, and can bear the daily feeding cost, and then they can apply to the base. After waiting in line and passing the inspection, they can match a suitable guide dog. There are no special requirements for applicants’ occupation, economic strength, or social status.
Guide dogs are also dogs, and they can be fed scientifically after entering the service period.
In order to maintain the ability of the guide dog to work, the user needs to treat the guide dog strictly according to the content learned during the guidance period, and ensure the daily nutrition and regular physical examination of the guide dog.