I am going to comment on this digest in total. I enjoyed the discussion and input!
I don't live in Australia. I live in the U.S. Guide dogs are provided free to blind people. However, the total cost can be upwards of $30,000 for that dog to be trained.
A lot goes into the training of a guide dog. Yes, some people have particular breeds in mind that they want, but I trust the school.
I put on my application, for example, that I wanted a labradoodle. I got my goldador. Why? Because she was a better match for me.
We're not talking pet here, we're talking guide dog, a dog that we entrust our lives to. I work and needed a dog ASAP. If I had waited for the perfect match that would be a labradoodle, it could have taken years. I wanted a guide dog, not a pet!
It would be totally irresponsible and deplorable for me to go to a school, demand a breed, when all I want is a pet. Unethical! Too much training and care and cash going for a dog I want as a pet. So to say if any blind person wanting a labradoodle can go to a guide dog school and get one is ludicrous!
In my case, when it comes time to retire my current guide, I will be retired myself. I won't be using a guide dog in the same way I have for the past 35 years. I am thinking and wondering if I could get a pet, but train it to specific things. However, I don't have the know-how to do the training.
Also, I have heard, and it is not substantiated, that Australia is using far fewer lab/poodle crosses than they have in the past and that here in the US, they are much more widely used. My question is, why has Australia diminished their usage of the labradoodle? To call a breed of dog a service dog is so ridiculous! Why should someone who wants a pet or wants to make money breeding a dog have a dog with the name "service dog." A service dog can be of any breed and that's as it should be.
So many of us are interested in a breed because of the way it looks. There are lots of labradoodles falling through the cracks, they shed, they look more labby than poodley. If we truly want labradoodles, then these dogs should be acceptable to us, right? However, many of these dogs are not salable. It's sad.
That is absolutely true, many have purchased fine lab/poodle mixes only to find that they are allergic to it.
I have had lab guide dogs and golden guide dogs, and 2 goldadors, as well as a smooth collie. In truth, I like the pure lab. Adding a golden to the mix kind of has made a mooshier goofier and less serious dog. Now this is just my opinion. And I am quick to add, I love my goldador with all my heart, she has such a gentle soul. Do I sound like I'm talking out of both sides of my mouth! I suppose so, but my experience is that that particular crossing sturdied up the golden and mooshed down the lab. And I loved my golden dog with all my heart as well.
I got so many people coming over to me when I had my smooth collie, it was unbelievable. So, you can get attention drawn to you with lots of different breeds. I also like that aspect. I am a little shy and it is a beautiful ice-breaker. But a labradoodle isn't the only ice-breaker.
I admit, I was in love with the name, the feel of the one I saw, the whole mystique. As a pet, and even a pet that might give me some assistance, it has been fun for me to delve into what I might get. Something to daydream about, like building the perfect house or formulating the recipe for the perfect chocolate brownies. I love things I've heard about the labradoodle, and I am like Joe Q. Public, I want a poodley one that doesn't shed. But my heart breaks knowing that these dogs are commanding huge prices while the ones more labrador are being dismissed.
As was mentioned with the Jack Russell, often prices are dictated by the trend, wait a few years and the price drops. But don't we love instant gratification? I do!
For those of you interested in donating dogs: I have a few suggestions. I am not an authority/expert. I'm a guide dog handler.
Google guide dog schools, you'll come up with a bunch of them. Most have puppy departments and that info is available on the web, if not, call the school directly.
Right now, I think the school I have been going to has their own labradoodle breeding program, but they do take donations sometimes. When I asked 3 years ago, I was told that a donated dog needed a 5-generation check. I don't know the correct terminology, but sire and dam had to be checked back for five generations for health and such. Many people wanting to donate can't provide that info.
If a school rejects your donation, you can be helpful by donating the money you received for one of your puppies. Again, that would be greatly appreciated. At the school where I got Heidi, if you give them six thousand dollars, you can sponsor a dog, you can name it, pick the breed and sex (from what I understand). You get info about your dog as it goes through the training process.
Giving money is a great way if giving a dog isn't an option, and non-breeders and wanna-bes like me can do that as well. I don't have six thousand, but I can give $5 or $10 or...you get the drift.
While at school I was given free transportation to and from, free boarding, free meals and training. There is a staff to support. My school is starting to branch out and train dogs for wheelchair users...to train guide dog users with GPS equipment.
A guide dog school is like a college! We all have different reasons why we chose the school or college we went to and we are proud of our schools.
my particular school was
http://www.guidedog.org
http://www.gdui.org
will tell you of other schools in the country.
Assistance dog schools can be googled as well.
The bottom line is, no matter what breed we wind up with, no matter what school we contribute to or go to, we should be responsible owners, trainers, contributors, and do your homework. I love the discussion that has taken place here. So many of us on the same page, even different pages, so much to think about.
A pet is wonderful and invaluable, and so is a service dog. I draw a clear line between my Heidi, my guide dogand working dog and my Chihuahua, my pet. And I want to add, that I am seriously thinking of doing the therapy dog thing with Heidi, because although I am looking forward to retirement, she isn't. She loves going to work every day. I've joked that I'd like to rent her to a dog lover who could pick her up from my house every day and bring her home at night. That way she'd be fulfilled and I'd make some money.
Dogs can assist in so many different ways, not just the blind. We're talking on things that our lives are dependent on, not just a dog that is loved and pampered and you miss it when you're not near it. There is such a difference between a dog that your life depends on and a pet. Yes, there are lines where the distinction blurs and your pet can assist or your assistance dog acts like a pet, of course. But I'm talking about dogs like Andy that are clearly more than a pet. And yes, different dogs are good for different things, as Shari has pointed out. I know about guide dogs, so I can wave their banner with more authority, and Shari knows about assistance dogs more than I do. But she is so right: A sniffy dog is not a good guide dog, and my dog may possess traits that wouldn't work for her. GDF, where I got my guide dog, partners with other organizations. In my class there was a dog that had been trained as an assistance dog, didn't cut it, and was then trained as a guide dog. Many guide dogs have had career changes and are now dogs working with sighted wheelchair users or various agencies such as ATF.
So many of the replies really rocked!
-Cay-
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