A blind man lets his dog look for a seat on the train – in vain. Now he tweets about his experiences – on behalf of his loyal companion.
- A former doctor from London has gone blind from an eye disease.
- The blind man tries to lead a normal life with his guide dog.
- A situation on a train stunned him – he made an appeal to people via Twitter.
Frankfurt / London – Fast starting, sudden braking and hardly any opportunity to hold on: Standing in a packed train is really not pleasant for anyone. It’s hard to imagine how it must feel when you can’t even see something. A former doctor experienced this firsthand in London.
Dr. Amit Patel is 37 years old, owns a dog named Kika and often uses public transport in the English capital, London . What’s special: Amit Patel is blind, Kika is his guide dog *. In 2012, the then practicing doctor fell ill with keratoconus, an eye disease that caused the then 29-year-old to lose his eyesight. Today Patel hardly sees anything. He depends on Kika the dog. But he still takes the train. It is not always easy for a man. One incident sticks in his mind, reports Bunte.de.
A blind man is looking for a seat on the train – a little later he is crying
Amit Patel remembers a train ride from the district of New Eltham in southeast London Waterloo Station East, he reported on his Twitter the channel. According to his own statement, it was pouring rain outside. With wise foresight, Patel went with the dog Kika to the end of the platform to get straight into the handicapped compartment. But what he experienced after boarding the train made him “stunned”, as he wrote on Twitter.
When he arrived on the train he told his dog “Find a seat”. But none of the seated passengers on the train made to get up and let the blind man take his seat. So Amit Patel stood with her back to the doors. Always worried about losing your footing on the wet, slippery floor and falling. And Kika, too, is sliding back and forth on the rain-soaked floor. By feeling that Kika is also suffering from the situation, the man wrestles with tears.
| Degree of visual impairment | Frequency (according to DBSV secured lower limit) |
|---|---|
| blind people | 76,740 people in Germany |
| severely visually impaired people | 51,094 people in Germany |
| visually impaired people | 452,930 people in Germany |
| Source: Federal Statistical Office |
Guide dog Kika Twitter account: An appeal for more consideration for fellow human beings and animals
On Twitter, the 37-year-old warns that such situations are not easy for the dog Kika either. “It is hard work for them to guide their master”, writes the former doctor from London . “She takes care of me every day and I feel helpless.” This helplessness described is especially bad for him when the dog Kika has to suffer from it.
Dad had to stand with his back against the doors whilst trying not to slip & I was sliding all over the place as the floor was wet. Have some humanity people! @GuidedogsLondon @GuidedogsLondon @Se_Railway @transportforall pic.twitter.com/aXZ8wQbFi2
— Kika 🇬🇧 (@Kika_GuideDog) March 27, 2018
Thanks to Kika, Amit Patel tries to lead a relatively normal life despite his visual impairment. But incidents like the one on the train led him to draw attention to the situation of many people with disabilities. “I’m tired of being ignored,” he said to the “Mail Online”. Together with his wife, Patel decided to set up a Twitter account for dog Kika. Kika therefore often wears an action cam on excursions and trips on public transport in order to share their experiences with the world.
Together with his guide dog, Amit Patel draws attention to grievances
Via Kika’s Twitter channel, the Patel family appeals to everyone to be more considerate of their fellow human beings and animals – especially people with disabilities *. In addition to situations like on the train , it would happen again and again that he and Kika were pushed away and hit with umbrellas or bags.
Together with his wife and dog , the blind man of all people pursues the great desire to open people’s eyes and draw attention to these grievances. Because one thing is clear: Many things from everyday life, not just taking the train , pose great problems for people with disabilities every day. (Yannick Wenig) * fnp.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital network.
