What happens when a Guide Dog retires?

Well folks, I'm a little bit sad just now. My cousin Keegan has had to retire from being a Guide Dog. Guide Dogs retire for many different reasons, but the deciding factor is 'when they can no longer do the job effectively'. So, for example, if we can't keep up with our person any more, develop problems with our sight or hearing or become generally unwell. Sometimes a traumatic experience can end a Guide Dog's working life.

Keegan was the victim of a vicious dog attack - where the owner told his dog to attack whilst Keegan was walking his Person home from the station one night - a couple years ago. Poor Keegan hasn't been the same dog since, and now he can't work any more. His Person and the instructors from Guide Dogs Victoria have been trying to help him get over his fears, but it hasn't worked. He's afraid of dogs and doesn't want to go anywhere wearing his harness, because bad things happened whilst he was wearing it. So, he's being retired as a Guide Dog. This picture shows him with his Person in happier times.

So, what happens when a Guide Dog retires?

For the Person, it's a case of training with a new Guide Dog - usually they will be placed on the waiting list and matched with their new dog before the current one officially retires, but sometimes this isn't possible and the current dog retires before there is a new one ready to train with the handler. Then they must use a long white cane to get around (which is a lot harder and involves running into everything instead of going around it). For the dog, though, there are three options:

Option 1: The handler keeps the old dog as a pet
This is the option most handlers would prefer. We Guide Dogs develop a very strong bond with our handlers. They take care of us and we take care of them. So, where possible, our handlers keep us as a pet after we retire - we stay at home instead of going out all the time, getting plenty of love and attention when our handler is home. This option often works best if there is someone else in the house to give us extra love. Our handler is working on developing a bond with a new Guide Dog, and it can be hard on us when we retire to see our Person go out and take another dog instead of us. That doesn't mean it can't be done, just that we can feel better if there's extra people to give us love. There are several reasons why it might not be best or possible for the retired Guide Dog to stay with their Person. For example, if the Person's home is too small for two big dogs or is often away from home for long periods of time. Also, if seeing their Person go out with another dog becomes too stressful for the retired one. If this is the case, then the nest option is preferable.

Option 2: The retired Guide Dog goes to live with a friend of the handler
This means that someone the Person knows will provide a home and love and attention for the retired Guide Dog. This is the next best option, because we still get to see our Person fairly often, they hear all about how we are doing and know we are being loved and cared for. In some cases, though, this isn't possible either. Perhaps our Person doesn't know anyone who has a safe yard, time to be with us or space for a large dog. It's rare, but it can happen. In these cases, option 3 comes into play.

Option 3: The dog is placed in a new home by the Guide Dog association
If all else fails, the Guide Dog association which placed the Guide Dog in the first place will assist in finding a home for us to retire into. Most have long lists of people who want puppies who are reclassified (don't quite make the grade as a Guide Dog). They also have lists of people who are prepared to house dogs on a temporary or permanent basis. Sometimes retiring Guide Dogs go back to their puppy-raising family. And yes, we do remember them, even years later!

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So, what of Keegan? Well, his Person has become friends with his puppy raisers and they have arranged to take him back. He will be living in Adelaide, a long way from us, but he will be happy and safe and we will be kept updated on how he's doing. He's only 5, so there's a lot of life for him to enjoy still!



The MummyBear says she would have liked to be able to take him here, where I live, but with so many big dogs already, it would be too much for her. Besides, I'm grooming her to take extra care of me when, years and years from now, I decide that I need to retire. Then she can give me more treats!

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Well, hope that helped explain what happens when a Guide Dog retires. It really does depend on the dog and the situation the Person is in when the Guide Dog retires, but I've tried to give you a basic rundown on the options!

More questions? Feel free to comment!

How does a Guide Dog know when to cross the road?

I got a message from on of my Twitter pals, @Snick_the_dog recently. Here's what he had to say:

@GD_Kenworth,
Mom wonders how Guide Dogs know when to cross the street. I would run into traffic if Mom didn't stop me. I am too impatient!

Well, Snickers, to be honest, I get a little impatient sometimes too. You see, I'm not actually allowed to say 'GO' to cross roads, only 'STOP' when it isn't safe. Sometimes I think My Person takes FOREVER to say 'forward'!

It's up to My Person to assess the traffic conditions and decide when she thinks it's safe for us to cross. She gives me the 'foward' command when she thinks it's all OK. I'm allowed to say no (by not moving foward) if there's a car or something dangerous. This is called intelligent disobedience.

I found this picture of my cousin, GD_Keegan, when he was in training.

As you can see, the instructor has his arm back. This is the start of the hand movement that goes with the 'forward' command. The instructor is waiting for the truck to be close enough to be a threat, then he'll give the 'forward' command. If Keegan doesn't move, he gets lots of praise (and is told 'when you can', so he can choose to go when the truck is past, if the road is then clear). If Keegan steps at all, the instructor would pull back on the harness sharply and say 'NO'. Most of us learn pretty quickly that stepping out when there's a car that close only leads to getting in trouble.

It does help that we've been having to stop at roads all our lives - our puppy raisers never cross a road without stopping. We are also not supposed to walk in front of (or behind) a car with the engine running EVER.

So how does My Person tell if it's safe to cross? She looks (as she is not totally blind she uses what sight she has) and she listens. On quiet streets this isn't too hard - hear a car and figure out where it's coming from. On busier roads it's harder. We always try to cross at traffic lights or intersections. If there aren't audio signals for the crossing, My Person can use 'parallel traffic' to give her clues. If traffic is going accross the intersection in the same way she wants to cross, it should be safe.

Sometimes we Guide Dogs do make mistakes - which is why our People need to make the judgement and stay aware of what the traffic is doing. Road crossing safety for Guide Dogs and their handlers is a matter of continual reinforcement - if My Person thinks I'm cutting things too fine (and she tests me on it sometimes) she lets me know I've chosen wrong and won't cross the road. I'm usually pretty good at it, though!

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Thanks for such a good question, Snickers!

Questions? Comments? I'm looking for my next question, folks - comment me your ideas!

How does a Guide Dog know where to go?

Well, this is both a simple question and a complex one.

The simple answer? Our handlers tell us where to go. They can tell us the name of somewhere we've already been, or they can tell us when and where to turn - we Guide Dogs know words like 'straight on', 'left' and 'right' as well as 'find'.

So why is this a complex question? Because it can also mean 'how does a Guide Dog know what a [name of place] is?'

The answer? We don't really. We get taught what our person means when they say things like 'chemist', 'post office' and 'supermarket'. They could just as easily teach us that those places are called 'elephant', 'apple' and 'blue'. So - how does it work? I'll tell you how My Person teaches me. It's pretty similar for most handlers, but there will always be some variations.

First, My Person checks maps and asks questions to make sure she knows EXACTLY where she's going - how many streets do we need to cross before we turn? Is there a path to follow through the park? How far along a street do we need to go before we might see the place?

Then we leave home. She tells me we are going 'somewhere new' - so I don't have to worry about not knowing. This tells me I'm going to be told every step of the way what to do. I don't like it much - I'd rather know where I'm going and take My Person there. But I do like new places, too, so I'm willing to compromise occasionally. At each road or turn My Person will give me the direction and sometimes she tells me the name of the place we are going. We just keep following her directions until we find a place that seems right. (Lucky My Person has some useable sight or we might never find some places!)

Sometimes My Person gets someone to help her find somewhere the first time. She has them walk in front so I can follow them. This does make her life a lot easier, but I don't mind either way.

Once we've found the new place we stop and My Person makes a big fuss of me, tells me where we are and how clever I am. Sometimes she even gives me a treat! After that, I know that word and that place are the same. If My Person tells me we are going to that place I'm very happy to take her there - after all, I love being told how clever I am!

Some Guide Dogs need to go somewhere several times to learn the word for it. Others (like me) only need to do so once and we know the way backwards and fowards.

Usually a Guide Dog needs to be taught each place they need to go. We don't usually recognise a building as being a particular place unless we've been taught what it is. Some of us can be taught that the word 'chemist', for example, means a different place depending on where we are. I know that My Person means the nearest one and take her there.

Sometimes we still choose to do things our own way. One day, My Person and I went with the MummyBear and the DaddyBear to a new shopping centre. My Person told me she was looking for a 'chemist' but didn't expect me to find it myself. I took her right there!

Now it's time for my question to you... How do you think I managed to find a chemist in a place I'd never been before? My Person asked a primary school class this question a few weeks ago and got some interesting answers. Comment me with your thoughts and I'll give you mine a bit later on!