#guide dog

[newyorkthegoldenage]

A typical New York scene on Sixth Avenue, 1959. Two blind pan-handlers on a city street, the man playing the accordion, the woman holding a cup. A dwarf drops a coin in the cup as he passes. A guide dog stands next the blind man.

Photo: André Kertész via the J. Paul Getty Museum

[thepastisalreadywritten]

Michael Hingson was in Tower One of the World Trade Center on the morning of 11 September 2001.

What sets his story apart is that Hingson is blind and was guided to safety by his guide dog, Roselle.

They were on the 78th floor when the plane hit.

Despite the chaos, Roselle remained calm, leading Hingson and several others down 1,463 steps to safety. The descent took about an hour.

Remarkably, just moments after they exited the building, Tower Two collapsed, covering them in debris. Both survived.

Hingson later said:

"While everyone ran in panic, Roselle remained totally focused on her job, while debris fell around us, and even hit us, Roselle stayed calm."

Once clear, Roselle led her owner to the safety of a subway station, where they helped a woman who had been blinded by falling debris.

Once they arrived home, Roselle immediately began playing with her retired guide dog predecessor, Linnie, as if nothing important had happened.

Hingson's story became widely known as an extraordinary tale of trust, teamwork, and the human-animal bond.

He later wrote a memoir, "Thunder Dog," detailing his experience.

In 2004, Roselle was diagnosed with immune-mediated thrombocytopenia, but medications were able to control the condition.

In March 2007, she retired from guiding after it was discovered that the medication was beginning to damage her kidneys.

Roselle passed away on 26 June 2011 at age 13.

Roselle (March 12, 1998 - June 26, 2011)

[bookishbrigitta]

In the spirit of this awesome post about characters with mobility aids and @heart-0f-a-rebel16's tags of cane users Kallus and Kanan, I humbly submit...

Look, other people on this site draw or paint or are willing to pay for Photoshop or have the time to relearn open source Photoshop competitors...I do not. If you fall into any of those categories, feel free to put your own, more polished, spin on this!

[beranibear]

Things that make me happy in Melbourne (feat. cow in tree)

[ireadwithmyears]

Me and my guide dog went on a walk today, which in itself, embarrassingly, is a big accomplishment considering it’s winter, and the snow making everything look white plus the sun shining in my eyes really defeats any remaining vision I have and makes me nervous. But on the second sidewalk past my house, there was a giant snowbank that blocked the entrance to the sidewalk so we kind of just ... walked on the side of the road until my dog was able to find an opening and guide me onto the sidewalk, which, in retrospect, felt really unsafe despite the fact that we are in a residential area. I’m usually not that person, but, time to call the town and complain 🙃

[stclements]

[asdpawprint]

Owner training my first service dog continues to involve trial and error, even long past the "in training" phase.

My dog will be 8 years old this summer and has been working for just over 4 years. Often, our teamwork is smooth and comfortable. Occasionally, I learn something new about training and discover a way I've accidentally relied on management, then we struggle for a bit while trying to improve that. But the trial and error has not been limited to my training skills; his tasks have been trial and error too! I've completely retrained his alerts multiple times over the years to change the alert behaviors, while I discovered through experience which behaviors help or hinder their intended purpose.

We've been working towards more generalized leading tasks for a while now. It started just for fun, after I developed a new special interest in guide dogs and discovered one of my favorite books (Forward Together: An Inside Look at Guide Dog Training by Christie Bane). But the better my dog got at it, the more I realized it was actually surprisingly helpful! I hadn't realized how much energy I was spending on navigating entirely by sight until I experienced a difference during a training session!

Today, our teamwork was smooth, as it usually is. But there was something new: today, for the first time, his leading tasks were smooth too! (Fun coincidence that it happens to be on International Guide Dog Day!) Every "forward!" promptly brought a steady pull, he recognized all the targets to aim for (including a staircase he hadn't previously been introduced to as a target), and he didn’t wander off the line to sniff at all. It was smooth and easy, and the feeling of relief was incredible!

I had no idea 4 years ago that I'd benefit from generalized leading tasks like this. I had no idea even 1 year ago! But today confirmed that it will be a very high priority to teach to my future successor dogs.

[felixcosm]

Me: I'm normal about the new song

Me five minutes later: THAT GHOST GIVE IT UP WHAT ARE YOU SOME KIND OF ANIMAL THEY SEWED THESE WINGS INTO YOUR SPINE THEY WON'T HOLD UP WHY WON'T YOU LEARN WHY WON'T I

[adventuringblind]

Ranting to the wind but genuinely something i was worried about coming to guide dog training was that I can navigate really well in places that I know. I don't use a cane if I know the place well enough.

I thought I might be questioned or poked at because that's what I'm so used to. All the usual questions about if I'm actually blind or not.

But I've not gotten a single one. Only a couple questions that were curiosity because of conversation about how I see the world and the cause and I was given room to decline answering if I wanted. It's been such a change of pace that I'm scared to go back to the real world now after being in a school surrounded by people thar understand me.

I've waited six years to finally get a guide dog. To have more independence. But I feel like when I go back to work people will questions and I'll be treated differently because all the sudden my disability is being hidden. I'm using accommodations I should've been using earlier (like screen readers) when I was scared I'd be singled out. Blame it on trauma from previous jobs and me peers who did genuinely tell me I was lying and faking (my optic nerve scans say otherwise lol).

It's honestly ridiculous that people only believe what they can see and as someone who is blind, it's a wild concept to me. I shouldn't be this nervous to go home and have to deal with scrutiny. I shouldn't be unfair to prove anything.

[workingflooff]

This is your PSA that just because someone is using a guide handle on their service dog and can see does not mean they are faking being blind.

Many people who are not blind utilize guide tasks, including autistic people who have a hard time with sensory input and need to be guided out of situations or people with fatigue who need help with FMP (which kind of looks like guide).

And also many people who are actually legally blind, still have remaining vision and them using that remaining vision, does not negate the fact that they are still blind.

So maybe don’t assume the worst and make assumptions about people in public they could literally just be using the task that helps there disability the most whether or not that is blindness. 



[genderfluid-goblin]

IM A GERMAN SHEPHERD GUIDE DOG GUYS YIPPEEE

yay yay yay yay

[chihuahuawashere]

Guide dog!

As kids Perona and Kuina tried everything they can to make sure that Zoro doesn’t get lost. As big sisters it was their duty to make sure that their little brother is safe.

But they didn’t realize how hard the job will be. He’ll be practicing with his wooden swords one second and in the blink of an eye his gone. Literally /poof/ and the girls panic every single time. And don’t get then wrong they really tried everything.

They tried teaching him how to read a map and how to tell form his left to his right but nothing really seems to click for him. It’s like his brain was switched on backwards or there was no switch in that part of his brain.

Which was so confusing to them because he’s a really smart kid academically from reading to writing to math but this one life skill that he needs in order to survive isn’t working and it’s making his sisters more and more worried as they get older.

One day when Perona and Kuina had to wash the clothes in the river zoro really did wonder off and he was deep into the woods. And it took /hours/ to try and find him and once the sun has long set and it was dark dark they finally found Zoro chilling with some birds. And Perona had had enough she yelled “He just doesn’t want to walk in a straight line! It’s so simple” she really snapped at him for it. She thought that this was a cruel running joke and was over it.

And zoro being the baby brother was really shocked up by with and didn’t talk for a whole week after that. Honestly was just too scared to miss up and get yelled at again.

Kuina as the older sister scolded her and made her apologize and made Zoro apologize for running off (again)

But they were back at square one again. And honest to god they really tried everything they tired: 

At first it was holding on to one of their hands as they walk but he’ll get embarrassed and let go and wonder off

They’ll even from a line and hold onto rope kinda of like a kindergarten line (Kuina in the front Zoro in the middle and Perona in the back) but Zoro would still wonder off.

From having a backpack leash on him. (He takes it off and runs) he thinks that there to stupid looking

Trying tie rope on one hand and tying to one of there own hands (he CHEWS off the rope) and runs

They even had a backpack with a hole in it. And with the hole had dirt rocks dried petals anything so that when he ran off there’d be a trail behind him. It kinda of worked until he took it and the trail ran cold.

They even tried making little cards for him to carry and when he was lost to give it to someone so they can help him find his way back home. It’ll have his name his sisters name and their address. But that never worked because zoro was to prideful to admit when he was wrong

At this point Kuina and Perona were 15 and Zoro was 14 and he was getting really tired of his village and was looking for a was to run away any minute. And they still haven’t found a way to keep Zoro from getting lost.

That was until one day when Perona and Kuina were walking back home after being done grocery shopping they heard barking and splashing. Turns out some evil little kids were trying to drown a puppy in the river. Perona and Kuina dropped their bags and chased after the boys. Perona isn’t afraid to square up with and elementary schoolers.

While Perona was WWE body slamming the kids into one another Kuina ran into the river to safe the mutt. Once the kids were crying their way back to mommy Perona grabbing all the bags so Kuina can carry the tried wet pup back home.

To their surprise Zoro actually stayed home for once instead of running off. And he’s sure glad he did! He got to see a doggy! After helping Kuina wash him off and helping Perona make some food for the puppy they decided to keep the doggo.

But instead of imprinting on Kuina the pup imprinted on Zoro! But the dog acted just like he older sisters. Also tugging on Zoros shirt to go one way or bumping them head on Zoros leg to go another way and even fact snapping it get Zoros attention. And making sure that he followed his sisters.

It was like the dog /knew/ that zoro couldn’t walk in a straight line. And soon after the little puper became Zoros guide dog! And Perona and Kuina never really had to worry so much about him. They still worry don’t get them wrong! But they have one less thing to worry about now!

[razzek]

I keep expecting to find her but she's gone. No dog toys moved around, no doggo sprawled out in a random place to trip over. She does her little Petey Patrol and comes to check on me in the bathroom (hoping for a treat from the closet in there) but no big ears peeking around the door.

Her birthday was in about a week. I was going to make her some dog ice cream that sounded awful but I think she would have loved it. I thought about making it sooner but didn't get the chance.

I know most of you love your pets, but you will never have a dog that's saved your life multiple times. She was on stage with me when I finally got that worthless degree I worked so hard for. She led me through Washington DC last year and only fussed about the rain a little. We went to Carlsbad Caverns just a few weeks after I came home from the school with her. She's been by my side all day, every day, everywhere I went for 11 years. She guided me to Walgreens one last time just two days ago and poked her snoot over the counter for a treat.

I'm all by myself for real now for the first time in over a decade. No dog snores or grumbles, nobody to talk to about nothing, no one to make me go outside and look at the sky at midnight. I miss her so damn much.

[barleyteanghibli]

Awhile back I talked about creating a discord server for blind and visually impaired young adults, and, well… I finally did! There’s not enough spaces for blind people and I wanted to make one I’d want to be in.

[disabled-sysboxes]

[TEXT ID: this system is blind and uses a white cane]

[IMG ID: a white, rectangular box with a square of red with an icon of somene using a white cane on the left, and the text 'this system is blind and uses a white cane' on the right.]

[TEXT ID: this system is blind and uses a guide dog]

[IMG ID: a white, rectangular box with a square of red with an icon of a guide dog on the left, and the text 'this system is blind and uses a guide dog' on the right.]

[TEXT ID: this system is blind and uses braille]

[IMG ID: a white, rectangular box with a square of red with an icon of a hand touching braille on the left, and the text 'this system is blind and uses braille' on the right.]

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