An Eye on Guide Dogs–What They Want Us To Know
One of my greatest pleasures is getting to know loyal blog readers. Bonus: Their dogs! Laura Lauteret (Laura L now) has commented often for several years, and many of us had heavy hearts when we learned that her beloved guide dog, Seamus, died of hemangiosarcoma four years ago. What a joy to meet her new dog, Kyle, who she has had now for about two short months. The post about “Intelligent Disobedience” got Laura and I into a discussion about its importance in service dogs, and I ended up asking if she could help us understand more about life with a guide dog. Here she is now with her new guide dog, Kyle.
Laura is comfortable for you to know that she is legally blind, having been born prematurely, before medicine knew how to look for, and treat, “retinopathy of prematurity.”
We talked at length about the process of getting a guide dog, the challenges and joys of training a new one, and what she would like people to know about what guide dog teams need from the rest of us.
I’m going to start on this last topic first, because it’s important, not to mention that it led to the best laugh I’d had all week. I asked her to tell us about some of the weird questions she’s been asked when she was out in public with her guide dog. My favorite: Someone asked her “How do you have sex?” I laughed so hard I almost fell out of my chair. (Please send good answers in case she ever gets asked that again.)
A question I thought was a good one was: How do you pick up poop? Answer: All dogs are trained to potty on cue. Their handlers can tell if its peeing or pooping by the slant or curve of their back. If it’s poop, they follow their dog’s back to the tail, and pick up.
Most importantly, what would Kyle (more on him soon) want us to know about guide dogs for the visually impaired? In Laura’s words: “These are dogs! Not machines.” People seem to think they can do anything, ANYTHING to guide dogs because “your dog would never bite anyone.” People actually say that to her. Too many take liberties with guide dogs that they’d never take with other dogs, and it puts their handlers in a terrible position. Laura has actually had parents say to her that it was fine that their child was trying to crawl over Shamus, because “kids need to experience this.” Save me.
People also seem enamored of the idea that guide dogs are there to “protect” them. Laura said if her dog tried to protect her from anyone, she’d have to give him away. I will never forget giving a book talk in a local book store when a woman in a wheel chair came in with a massive German shepherd, clothed in a service dog vest. People had been encouraged by the store to bring their dogs, so there were quite a few there. The shepherd, in the first row, spent the first fifteen minutes glaring at another dog a few seats away. The owner had told me that the dog was “protective,” so I had at least managed to get her at the end of a row, and chatted away to the group while never quite taking my eyes off the shepherd. Eventually, smoke began to come out of the dog’s ears (okay, maybe not quite yet), and I would’ve bet the farm it was about to launch at a hapless Labrador, who had been busy making herself as small as possible, several seats away. While still talking, I casually strolled off the stage, blew out a breath and took a hold of the shepherd’s leash. So no; “protective” (which is usually either “possessive” or “defensive aggression based on fear) is not what any guide dog handler needs.
Laura also talked, with love and insight, about the different personalities of her four guide dogs. Fascinated myself about the different natures of working sheepdogs, I loved hearing about her first, Marlin, who was a “very serious worker,” and a good first dog for her. Marlin sent out “I’ve got you vibes,” which has got to be every one’s fantasy at some point in their lives, blind or not. (Why am I channeling The Bodyguard movie here?) Laura cried for weeks after Marlin had to retire, and now knows she got a new dog too soon. Torpedo suffered a bit from “second dog syndrome,” but they got along and he did good work for her. Torpedo guided more “like a shepherd”–always looking far ahead, keeping more space between objects than dogs who guide like labs (and Marlin, who would walk right up to things and then squeak you by).
And then, she got Seamus, her heart dog. He died, suddenly, at age eleven of hemangioscarcoma, that brutal cancer that takes dogs like an armed assault. I lost Mist, one of my first BCs, four days after her own diagnosis; the speed of it makes their deaths that much harder. Laura felt like she’d been hit by a car, and still misses him. Seamus guided more like a typical shepherd, but never from fear, more like “I just want you to know what’s coming up ahead of us.” Here is the sweet, sweet boy:
Laura had to wait four, long years for her new dog from Guide Dogs for the Blind (Covid put everything on hold–the dogs are purpose bred and tremendous effort goes into getting them well-socialized and stress-resistant at an early age. Once things opened up, there was a huge bottleneck.) Kyle is young and still wanting to sniff his way around the world, is yet attentive, responsive, super sweet and she trusts him completely already, even though she is aware he still needs training. He’s been doing fantastic work for her, (see the post on “Intelligent Disobedience” about him stopping in a cross walk when a car Laura couldn’t see had entered it).
Kyle is also relatively chill, important for Laura who has a desk job, so much so that sometimes she has to encourage him forward and say, “Kyle, just go!” She’s had enough experience to know when he is feeling unsure, and it seems to me that Kyle is a lucky, lucky boy to have her. I will soon have the pleasure of meeting them both at the Midwest Championship Sheepdog Trial outside of Hudson, WI at the Finals on Monday September 2nd when I’ll be doing some announcing! I can’t wait. Photos to come.
Here’s Kyle, 2 years old and already a best friend and partner to Laura.
I’d love to hear more from anyone with a working dog, from service dogs of all kinds, to working sheepdogs, scent detection dogs, etc. about your experiences with different types of dogs. Right now, my Skip is pushing me to learn how to handle his particular personality type on the sheep being used in trials this time of year. He’s brilliant on “flighty” or easy to move sheep, and truly lost on “heavy” sheep who “lean on a dog.” I scratched him from the last trial because he did every thing I asked at the one before, but I “retired” because he and the sheep were moving at a snail’s pace. I’ve learned some new exercises we are trying out . . . we’ll see. What about your working dog(s)? What different types of dogs are best in what situations. I can’t wait to read your comments!
MEANWHILE, back on the farm: What is better than the smell of a barn full of hay late in the summer? (Okay, maybe not being allergic to it? But, damn, I still love the smell.)
Between Jim’s Habitat for Humanity volunteer buddies, the Sutter and Zwettler families, we got 315 bales of hay into the barn well before the snow flies. Unloading hay requires, ideally, 2 folks to carefully place the bale on the elevator (seen far right bottom corner), which grudgingly fights gravity and moves the bales into the barn on the upper floor.
Bales arrive through a window designated to receive the hay, and then are stacked, which gets harder as the number of bales increases. Here Jim is catching a falling bale, and then passing it along to folks stacking it.
I brought the sheep down to see if they approved, a tough test since they are fat as ticks on the knee-high grass that our endless spring and summer rains created. Luckily, they ate enough to make me happy they’ll be fine all winter.
I asked Skip and Maggie to pose on the hay after it was all in and stacked. Skip was happy to help. Maggie, in her dotage, has regressed to the teenager who HATES IT when you get out the camera.
Here’s hoping none of your four-legged friends hate anything this week. I’m loving the super moon, the snowy tree crickets, and pretending the garden is not screaming WEED ME! Let us know what it’s been like to have working dogs with very different personalities, and how that has effected your work together. We’d love to know!
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About the Author
Patricia B. McConnell, PhD, CAAB Emeritus is an applied animal behaviorist who has been working with, studying, and writing about dogs for over twenty-five years. She encourages your participation, believing that your voice adds greatly to its value. She enjoys reading every comment, and adds her own responses when she can.
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I’ve always wondered what we as people with other dogs can do to make it easier for guide dogs and their partners. Twice I’ve had experiences where a guide dog reacted with concern to my dog. The first time was with Ranger. We were out for a walk and I saw the guide and his partner coming toward us. I also saw the guide dog tense up seeing Ranger. I moved us off the sidewalk as far as possible and told the partner that I was there with my large dog who was on leash and under control. She urged her dog by without saying anything so I have no idea if what I did was helpful.
The second time was at a Community College with D’Artagnan. He was at the top of a hill outside the library being loved on by students and staff. At the bottom of the hill about 50 yards away was a Guide Dog and partner. I love watching Guide Dogs at work. He was scanning the environment looking for potential problems and absolutely froze when he spotted D’Artagnan. His partner finally had to use a leash to move him on. D’Art noticed there was a dog but was busy soliciting attention so he wasn’t doing anything threatening. I did move so I was standing between D’Artagnan and the guide but it didn’t seem to make any difference because the Guide Dog already knew he was there. I felt bad about not being able to do anything to help the do who was clearly worried about my giant. At that distance shouting to tell the partner what her dog was worried about didn’t seem all that helpful.
Thank you SO Much for this post! I have also wondered how best to support those who are working with service dogs (and continue to be amazed at their skills)
I’ve had the pleasure of working with six different therapy dogs at hospitals and military facilities where we often encounter both “real” and sometimes “ersatz” service animals (usually wearing a vest, but behaving inappropriately), and the only issues we have ever had are when the ersatz dogs have charged, barking from the end of a hallway at my dog. One week this happened and my Nell watched this, then looked up at me as if to say “now, that’s weird”, as we moved to a different room. The following week we turned a corner and come almost nose to nose with a (thank God!) well behaved service dog. In this case, both animals looked back at their humans and proceeded on their way. In both cases the service animal was wearing a vest, in both cases the dogs were non- traditional breeds, but totally different in terms of how they handled exposure to an unfamiliar dog.
I had four poor experiences with Guide Dogs reacting to my Siberian Husky (Mr Bombproof, wouldn’t bat an eyelid, luckily) and as a result, was recently invited onto a national radio programme to discuss it. Guide Dogs UK have just adopted a new, R+ training plan (better late than never!)
I was then invited to a VIP tour of the national training centre. Some of the trainers are not completely adjusted to R+ and using clickers and it was interesting that they are also getting some push back from service users who want to use P+
After a brief chat with the CEO, I was immediately out on the street with a blindfold and a dog who was about to graduate. First challenge for me was a set of steps and then a major road with traffic. Talk about jumping in at the deep end! It was a visceral example of what it really means to trust a dog. The challenge for the dog was having someone who was so busy concentrating on the environment that the rate of reward plummeted and who kept trying to reward in the LLW position beside her knee instead of in front of the dog. In site of that, she led me correctly to the crossing.
It was interesting to hear in detail about how they match users to dogs too.
The radio programme that led me there had an interesting episode a few years ago with a service user who had given up his dog. Interestingly, he found out that he was just not prepared to live with a “needy” dog as he put it, and the it was a constant reminder for him that he was visually impaired.
He also said that he had imagined that a Guide Dog would be a mix of “Lassie and Google Maps”!
The presenter of the programme, incidentally, has a companion dog but has never wanted a Guide Dog.
I never cease to be astonished at the stupidity and sheer rudeness of people around working dogs. Sadly, a working dog jacket or nervous dog leash seems to act like a green light to some people to interfere.
Just watched Inside the Mind of a Dog, a documentary on guide and service dogs narrated by Rob Lowe. This is about research being conducted on methods to evaluate potential guide dogs for suitability early in their training. Well done and worth watching.
Hi there! I have a working SD, who is a very large black German shepherd, he is my mobility/assistance dog. Very chill, extremely quiet & unflapable. He is confidant but not at all ‘alpha’. A total velcro dog; he’s aware of my every breath or every blink of my eye. No matter what we may be doing, or where we might be, if hes working or just relaxing, he is vigilant. I sometimes wonder if or when he sleeps? He checks my right eye often ( it was he who discovered I had an ongoing infection in my right eye deep set, so much so, two ophthalmologist w all their sophisticated equipment & technology had not found this right off) Jaguar grasped what was going on w my eye at less than 9 months old, and we’d only had him a couple of days. He also took impeccable care of me after my shoulder surgery w no training or prompting from me. When I could manage getting out of bed alone, he relaxed and no longer came over to assist me getting out of bed. If I’m not feeling well, he lies next to me, or gets on the bed w me which he never does otherwise. He’s always close to me but doesn’t get on the bed. If I swim he’s beside me. If I fall, he moves under me like a Lyft or let’s me grab his body to get up.
( he’s 120 lb so he can manage this)
Jag never bothers other animals including reactive dogs. He doesn’t even growl. He just watches and continues on like they are not even there. Whether encountering wild animals or domestic, he just observes. He’s incredible. Not sure how I will ever manage w/o him. He’s my everything. He will be 8 years old next month.
My service dog is a long haired GSD and is trained for mobility. A year ago when I began to have some medical issues he started alerting to significant medical concerns. Just lately, as my vision has deteriorated, he also on his own, has taken on some guide dog service (leading me away from obstacles, pausing at crossing areas, etc.)
One early morning I stepped out of our building onto the stairs with him just as a man was walking his huge dog. That dog was apparently startled and lunged at me, growling. His owner, a big guy himself, was using both hands to attempt to hold the dog back.
My service dog stepped in front of me and just sat down. The growling dog immediately backed off and the handler led him away.
Then we simply continued on our walk.
Guide dogs and their owner/handlers are truly inspirational. My hat’s off to both Laura and Kyle on their remarkable partnership..
I wonder if you would also showcase therapy dogs. I recently lost my beloved dog who was a therapy dog in a local children’s hospital. As an Australian Shepherd, it was unusual for her to be so calm and gentle around others (my current ones thinks everyone is wonderful and wants to show it) and especially around all of the hospital machines she was exposed to. She gave and gave and gave to the patients, their parents and caregivers, the doctors and even the receptionist every other week. These animals are extraordinary.
Wonderful post and reminder for me to send a donation to
Guide Dogs for the Blind…
Nonsensical answer to ridiculous question, “Always with the lights on.”
A funny Service Dog story – I’m in a wheelchair watching a movie in a theater and my dog is laying next to me. All of a sudden he stands up and looks at me. I couldn’t find anything wrong so I cued him back into a “down”. This happen a few times which was very out of character for him. It wasn’t until we were leaving that I saw that the person behind me had kicked over his popcorn and a lot went under my wheelchair. My dog was probably just asking for permission to eat some.
To the person wondering how to handle a situation where you are in contact with a guide dog team and the dog is concerned about yours, yes, communicate. If we know what the concern is we can mitigate that situation. Even directional information which would help us navigate away from the dog may be useful, although do be careful not to assume the direction we’re going. So the conversation may look like this:
Sighted person, “I have a dog on leash under control. We are passing on your right”
Handler: “Thank you”
Sighted person: I’ve observed that your dog seems concerned about the presence of mine, I’m giving you space. I’m about 3 metres away. You have a clear path straight ahead and another to your left”. I’m going to say this, not many blind partners are taught about canine body language from guide dog schools. It took for me to go down the owner-training route to get clear about body language. Unfortunately, this is the downside of guides being recognised as tools, or mobility aids. There is often the thought that these dogs will handle anything, that the emphasis needs to be on orientation. Orientation is a massive component yes, but I feel we could be better taught about signs to be aware of that our dog isn’t coping. I’m a better service dog handler now that I have done the legwork on my own. I know not everyone can, but blind and VI people, we really do need a Patricia or someone similar to coach us equally on how to help our dogs stay socialised and able to cope. I have a german shepherd mix and a cattle mix who both do assistance/guidework, and I have to say that before that, I had labs for guide, and a terria for the medical alert work I require. Where have herding/retriever mixes been all my life? So biddable, although the shepherd mix will want to know “why” I want her to work a certain way. The one thing I find with the herding mixes is that no matter what the discipline, they watch, everything. Their eyes engage before anything else does. I can feel their heads become still when they are watching something and working out whether they need to become concerned. Once we engage the eye, we engage the whole body. Even though we need to give a “forward” cue when being guided, I now never underestimate the power of a simple look at me”. I also have a reset sniff cue that my working dogs know isn’t free rein to sniff their way around the country-side: it literally means, ok that situation was hard, let’s briefly decompress just right here.
Guide dogs are amazing, and I think it’s so important for adults to teach kids how to act if they see one. Something simple and age appropriate like, “That’s a dog doing its job to help its person. Do not go near it, try to distract it, or ask to pet it.”
Nonsensical answer to the ridiculous question: in Braille.
Thanks for spotlighting Laura L and Kyle. What a great team! And thanks for the guide dog information. We rarely see service dog teams, but know to give them a wide berth so as not to interfere.
I am so glad that puppies are now being raised and trained with +R. The first guide dog puppy raisers we knew, several decades ago, only knew +P, and it really turned me off – very harsh corrections. My sister-in-law has raised a dozen guide puppies in recent years, and her training has been a joy to watch.
The stories your commenters are adding of service dogs in action are terrific.
My favorite farm chore was putting up hay (and the shower afterward to wash all the itchy stems and sweat off afterward).
I really liked this article. I have a white standard poodle guide dog. There aren’t many guide dog schools that do poodles ( I have severe asthma and allergies) I can say that for me giving me directions about where you are and where your dog is is important. My girl has had to rework and relearn because people have allowed thier dog to attack mine no blood but me and my girl were bit. I have been chased. Now my girl has learned to sit in front of me and ask for a treat to alert me of a dog. I have less vision now than I did when I first got my girl. Communication is key. A lot of guide dogs have been attack by other dogs and can not be aggressive but very tuned in to the location of other dogs and be trying to figure out an escape route. Maui is my first guide dog and we’ve been together for almost 5yrs come October.
I am fortunate to have my third guide dog, Dash, from Occupaws Guide Dog Association in Madison Wi. All 3 have been black labs. My first was attacked by another dog and after that he got very aggressive with every dog we encountered. As a handler, I would ask the public to never allow your dog to approach us, and especially without first asking us from an appropriate distance. I had to retire him at 5, it was heart breaking to say the least. The dog was on a retractable leash, I can’t stand those. These precious dogs are so highly trained, not to mention the over $60,000 cost. I have done many public speaking engagements about guide dogs, and am always willing to educate the public whenever possible. Dash is absolutely outstanding, and we are a perfect match! He doesn’t miss a beat, and is constantly aware and watching everything I do both in and out of harness. Thanks Occupaws!!
Hey all, it’s so awesome to read all of the comments. Especially to the other handlers of SDs out there, awesome insights. Kyle and I just got back from running a few errands, and there was a man behind me in the line at the pharmacy counter. He just out-right asked if he could pet my dog, despite the fact that I was clearly in the middle of doing something else. My mother, who was with me, intervened, and said that Kyle was working. I thanked her. Usually, I can answer for myself, but in this particular situation, I appreciated the help. I think another good post would be on the differences between service, emotional support, and therapy dogs. Most of the general public often interchange these terms, and I find that can be not only confusing, but potentially dangerous for dogs and their handlers. Finally, I’m so excited to go see the sheep dog trials, and meet our Dear Leader Trisha. I’m sure Kyle and I will have a great time!
Also, I’m adding my actual answer to the rediculous question. I said, well… when a mommy and daddy love each other very much…
Now, here’s the answer I laughed hardest at. “In Braille!” So awesome!
Some other answers I wish I’d said?
How do you?
With a lot of noise!
Has it been so long for you, you’re wondering if they’ve changed it?
I sometimes think people think we’re zoo exebits, cause they’ll ask the weirdest stuff. Anyhow, keep ’em comin, and Kyle sends kisses and tail wags to everyone!
Snowy tree crickets.
I was just at Picnic Point yesterday evening and recalled doing late night snowy tree cricket observations for Jeff Bayliss’ class!!
🙂
Thank you for this amazing insight. I thought a lot about guide dogs lately. My mum has undergone emergency hearth surgery to remove a benign but large tumor and, after the dismissal fm hospital, had come to live in our house (in a separate small apartment). Since she arrived our 2 labs (female 3.5 years and male 2) have immediately understood that she needed to be cared of. The first days they slept on her feet and never left her. As things progressed she started to go walking with Shara on leash and she never pulled the leash. She can be rough at times, she loves other dogs and when she sees friends she still gets very excited. If my mum stops Shara stops, if she is running without leash and my mum stops she stops to see what she does. We were on a steep trail and I stopped and warned my mum about one obstacle, Shara stopped and looked at her until she overcame the obstacle. In my mind I never came to terms matching my history with labs and labs as guide dogs. But now I can see and I’ll never stop to be amazed and thankful for how Shara is protecting my mum. We need to learn to trust our dogs. Thank you Trisha and all for this wonderful village
What an interesting post! Thank you for sharing Laura and Kyle’s story.
I am very interested in unpacking the differences between service dogs, therapy dogs, and emotional support dogs. My 11yo Malamute/ husky mix, Mishka, and I just passed our Pet Partner therapy team evaluation, and it’s been fascinating to learn about all of the work that therapy animals do and how this differs from service animals.
Interesting study (and subsequent book) out of Duke: “Duke Puppy Kindergarten: The New Science of Raising a Great Dog.”
Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods are studying how the canine mind develops and what makes a successful service dog. They are attempting to identify markers that might predict which dogs will make great service dogs hopefully without waiting the two or more years to find out. (I also love that their first study group was 101 puppies.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/04/science/puppy-kindergarten-duke.html?unlocked_article_code=1.JE4.ClgC.2NcpLst4OvLn&smid=url-share
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– ALLEN M. SCHOEN, MS, DVM, author of Kindred Spirits: How the Remarkable Bond Between Humans and Animals Can Change the Way We Live
Healing Companions – Jane Miller, author
The role that service dogs can play in the lives of people with invisible disabilities has started to receive national media attention in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, and on Oprah. Service dogs have been assisting the blind, the hearing impaired and those in wheelchairs and with other disabilities for decades. More recently, they’ve helped many veterans returning from combat to overcome the effects of PTSD, and return to more fulfilling lives.
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