All:
I have been asked by several people, both off list and on, to clarify my
posting regarding the viability of guide dogs in India. Please read my entire
post below, before commenting as this is not a simple question. It is a long
post but I don't post that often so I'll make up here for lost time.
To have an enlightened discussion about whether or not guide dogs as an aide
to independent mobility by blind people is a viable option in the Indian
context, some facts about guide dogs and guide dog training must be
understood. There are many misnomers perpetuated by popular media, about what
guide dogs for the blind can and can't do and how guide dogs and their blind
handlers interact. Many people, both blind and sighted, believe that a guide
dog is responsible for taking a blind person to their destination rather like a
sighted companion. Stories abound of the heroic guide dog who saved its blind
owner from some tragedy. In reality, a guide dog responds to commands given by
its blind handler such as left, right, forward etc, as part of a progressive
set of directions from one place to another. The blind person must always know
where he or she is going and must remain oriented to the environment at all
times. At no time does a guide dog assume responsibility for "taking" a blind
person from one place to another. It is therefore manditory that the blind
handler be trained in and practice good mobility and orientation skills in
order to use a dog effectively. Using a dog does not substitute for mobility
training, quite the opposite. Anyone contemplating training with a guide dog
must have above-average mobility skills before any training can begin. Many
people make the mistake of believing that having a dog will make this
requirement unnecessary.
At present, the cost of training a guide dog is about fifty thousand US
dollars, that is within the US economy and taking into account current labor
costs etc. The suitability of a particular dog for guide work begins with the
breeding process. Genetics, temperment and other profiling are factors in
determining whether a dog is right for this work. Although donated dogs are
occasionally trained for work as guides, the vast majority are bred at the
training schools and given to families to raise. The job of puppy-raising
families is to acquaint the dog with typical environments it will encounter
throughout its working life. The dog is socialized within the family and local
community, taken into public, and must demonstrate certain qualities of
temperment and behavior necessary for a guide dog. During this time the
pupppies are assessed to ensure they are developing the required skills and
behaviors. When they are about eighteen months old they are taken to the
training school where they begin learning how to become a guide. During this
process they are constantly assessed as to whether they should remain in the
program. A substantial number of dogs each year are removed from the program
due to one or another reason and they are given to local families where they
make excellent pets. Some even become therapy dogs or assume a service that is
less stressful or demanding. During the training period the dog is also
evaluated to determine what type of person would be the best match for that
dog. Careful records are kept on all of these aspects so that the best
possible pairing can take place.
All of this explanation is to say that as one person correctly said in his
posting to the list these are not pets. One does not go to a shop, pick out a
dog he likes and have it trained.
A person who is qualified to train guide dogs through a recognized school must
first complete a two year apprenticeship before applying to be a trainer with
that school. They must understand both dogs and people and they must
understand how dogs can supplement the independent travel of blind people. It
is not enough that someone has been a dog trainer of police dogs, therapy dogs
or service dogs such as what paralyzed people have. In fact, many of the
attributes desirable in guide dogs are opposite of those required in these
other fields. For example, a police dog is trained to obey its owner and show
aggression to a criminal or provide protection in the case of security details.
Aggression on the part of a guide dog on the other hand is almost always
inappropriate and can land the blind owner in a lot of difficulty. But another
aspect of guide work which is different than any other work dogs do is known as
"intelligent disobedience." If you as the blind handler tell your dog to go
forward and the dog knows it isn't safe, the dog is trained to disobey that
command. In order to do this successfully, a dog must have the right
combination of initiative and confidence to disobey its handler yet remain
docile enough to be responsive to commands. To what degree the knowledge and
skill a person has in training other types of working dogs is transferable to
guide work is beyond the scope of this post. But suffice it to say that
competence in training dogs as guides for blind people is not achieved by
reading "procedures," academic tomes or other literature. It is a specialized
area of dog training. The life of the blind handler will depend on this
training being successful.
An often ignored aspect of this question is the welfare of dogs who might be
trained as guides in very stressful environments. India presents unique
circumstances that introduce hazzards for dogs. In my observation, Indian
society is quite hostile to dogs on the whole. Many including myself, would
say that subjecting a highly trained, sensative dog to the kind of meanness
found in India's streets is irresponsible. The excessive crowding on railway
platforms is only one example where the human environment as it is today could
be perilous for a dog who is, afterall, closer to the ground than we are and
likely to be kicked, stepped on, and otherwise abused without your knowledge or
ability for recourse or to identify the perpetrater. Daily or even occasional
exposure to these conditions can make an otherwise well-behaved dog traumatized
and aggressive, and for good reason. Vetri has correctly stated that even in
the US there is sufficient rubbish in the street to interest a dog with a
scavenging nature but it is nowhere near the amount or variety as we have here
in India. Loose dogs are another reality that must be acknowledged. Dogs
operate in packs and when a strange dog enters their midst they respond with
aggression and attack.
One of the most important functions of a guide dog is keeping its blind handler
safe in traffic. As you know, the traffic conditions here in India are some of
the most dangerous and chaotic in the world. I don't honestly know how or if a
dog could be trained to work safely in the traffic conditions we have here.
Only someone who has been trained to assess traffic conditions in the context
of guide dog work can say whether or not it is viable. When a blind person is
walking on the street people interfere by grabbing a person's arm or in some
way attempting to assert their control, to prevent this or that catastrophe,
real or imagined. This sort of interference on the part of the public can be
devastating for a guide dog and result in its losing confidence in its
abilities as a guide. A dog who is not confident is not safe.
The sheer lack of space in restaurants, on trains and buses and so forth in
countries like India is another factor that put dogs at risk for injury.
Many, many people in India are not only hostile towards dogs but are truly
afraid of them. No amount of public education is going to change the mind of
someone who was attacked as a child or has a belief that dogs will somehow
contaminate their environment. The question must be considered of how this
reality would impact one's relationship with potential or current employers,
perspective or current customers, etc.
As when anything new is introduced into a society, massive amounts of public
and private education must be done so the public, police and others understand
what that thing is, how it works and why it is there. Guide dogs first
appeared in the US in 1929 and even today discrimination is rampant. The
advantage in places like North America is that there are municipal, state and
federal laws designed to protect the rights of guide dogs and their blind
handlers and for the most part, these laws are enforced. But this does not
prevent discrimination from happening. I should know. During my tenure as a
guide dog handler in the US I had to file countless complaints and one lawsuit
because of discrimination. Public education campaigns are conducted by the
guide dog schools and consumer organizations continuously with no end in sight
any time soon. It is debatable as to whether things are getting better or
worse with regard to guide dog discrimination.
If this is the state of affairs in a country with a presence of guide dogs
since 1929 and one where dogs are generally respected and integrated well into
society, how can there be any realistic expectation that any similar law would
be upheld by the courts of this country? We are all aware of how laws are
enforced in this country. The biggest difference is that in Europe or North
America the public is likely to support you in a conflict situation. In India,
they would stand by and watch the show for their own amusement. No law will
help you when someone throws a stone at your dog to see if they can make it
drag you into traffic. Sorry folks, that is the way it is.
The education and accountability campaigns to be undertaken if guide dogs were
introduced in India would be massive, expensive and ultimately unproductive.
The first people to begin traveling with guide dogs would enjoy no respite from
interference and scrutiny. The slightest mistake or problem would be magnified
out of all proportion by a media that thrives on sensation and controversy.
You would spend all your time fending off interference by both the
well-intentioned as well as the malevolent. The stress of this on a person is
one thing, but the stress on a dog is quite another.
In addition to the costs of training a guide dog, there are ongoing expenses to
consider. Guide dogs have strict dietary needs. They are not fed people food.
If this is done, the next time you visit a restaurant with your dog I suspect
you will have some explaining to do to the people at the table next to yours.
A dog must be groomed every day and receive regular veternary care. Daily
obedience routines must be maintained especially for young dogs.
Govind Reddy is correct that comparing life for blind people in India with that
of other countries in this context is not helpful. In response to Rahul
Bajaj's assertion that blind people in places like the US have better lives
than those in India, I believe the quality of one's life is largely determined
by internal factors and that although external environments can play a large
role in one's quality of life the ultimate responsibility for the quality of
our lives is held by each one of us as individuals. Anand Sharma's statements
about "uncivilized people" being cause for concern are correct. The bitter
irony is, that the scenario he describes of someone deliberately parking his
car below your steps for you to trip over is exactly the kind of situation
guide dogs are meant to minimize.
I believe the question going forward is not whether or not guide dogs are a
viable mobility option for blind people in India. This discussion leads us to
a bigger, much more important question of how can we maximize the options for
independent mobility we have and develop new one's if the one's available now
aren't good enough. What is missing in our current skills of mobility and what
can be done to enhance independent travel?
It is no accident that this discussion is taking place just prior to the
November meeting in Trivandrum where options for the future can be discussed
and debated in person. Here are some things to consider.
To determine once and for all whether or not guide dogs are a viable option for
India, one or a combination of the blindness organizations should undertake a
study in which those with a high level of knowledge and hands-on experience
with training guide dogs are brought to India and consulted about whether dogs
could be used safely and effectively. I reiterate that when I say safely I
mean for the dog as well as for the blind handler. If it can be done then the
study should articulate under what circumstances and with what modifications to
current training it can be done. Competent consultants should come to India to
give an opinion. And, if the trainer who has been mentioned wants to raise
dogs for possible work as guides she should go abroad for proper training. If
it can't be done then they should articulate the reasons why it can't be done
and put the matter to rest.
Several years ago Joyce Kane of the National Federation of the Blind of the
United States visited India accompanied by her guide dog. I don't know much
about her visit but engaging with her about her experiences would be
informative, keeping in mind that she was a visitor here for a short time and
was in India as an official guest. Her experiences will reflect this fact.
My observation over the years is that proficiency of mobility and cane travel
among blind people is uneven. Some people have mastered advanced skills of
orientation and mobility while others have not. Whether this is do to a lack
of standardized training or other factors I don't know. Part of the problem is
that the environment in which people learn their mobility skills is a difficult
one and the potential to be independently mobile is hard to achieve. Afterall,
if you are trying to teach someone to analyze traffic at a signal but no one
bothers to stop at the signal or remain on the correct side of the road the
exercise of teaching traffic analysis is pointless and proficiency can not be
expected. Those of us who travel both in India and Europe modify the
independence strategies we use for a continuum of environmental factors, at
least I do. Others can comment as to their own experiences.
I do think the time has come for this group to evaluate what exists for
mobility training and discuss what might be done to make things better. Is it
dogs? Is it technology? Is it improved training? A combination of these? Is
it something else? I have noticed that echo-location training is on the
Trivandrum agenda and while the practice seems a bit anti-social to me it is
certainly worth considering as one part of an overall mobility strategy.
Whatever the outcome, the biggest thing I have observed that is missing is how
to obtain and use personal power effectively. There are blind people in the
world who have no mobility training or aides whatsoever but assume the rights
and responsibilities of self determination anyway. There are also people who
have all the advantages of mobility aides and services and remain dependent.
So the difference is not just external.
Finally, I was asked by several people to comment about my own experience as a
guide dog handler for over ten years in the US. I had a very successful
partnership with a wonderful black Labrador named Harvey. We had many
memorable experiences together and he died of old age in 1996 after a grand and
fulfilled life. So why didn't I get another dog? Even in the US people
interfere, discriminate and behave ignorantly and I found it intolerable. I
would never subject a dog or other animal to the kind of hostility and creulty
found in India's streets simply for my own gain. To promote some notion of
independence at the expense of another creature is inhumane and in itself, a
criminal act.
Madhu Singhal inquired about other countries in Asia where guide dogs are used.
To my knowledge, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea have successful guide dog
programs. There are schools throughout western Europe, North America,
Australia and South Africa as well. Acceptance of dogs as a legitimate part of
society tends to take place in countries that have moved beyond survival and
become prosperous. This kind of acceptance is necessary for a successfull
guide dog program.
The unfortunate irony is that countries such as India are exactly the place
where the type of assistance provided by a guide dog is the most needed. If it
was not for the human element and all the destructiveness it brings the concept
might be workable. And, if you think I have more concern for the dogs in this
equasion than for the people, you are right.
As always, comments on or off the list are welcome.
Jean
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