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According to data extracted by the ONCE Foundation, it is estimated that each year around 140 dogs become guide dogs to support blind people or those with a serious visual impairment. These animals are specially trained to avoid all kinds of obstacles or unevenness in the ground, to find free seats in public transport … In short, to make life easier for their owner.
Not just any dog can become a guide, there are certain breeds that fulfill this task better than others. Among the most suitable dogs for this are the German Shepherd , the Golden Retriever and the Labrador ; races that due to their docile character and their great intelligence have a greater predisposition for learning.
The learning process to become a guide dog is not at all easy and begins practically from birth. The main objective is to provide them with a basic education and socialization, for which they are assigned a host family with whom they will live for a year once they have completed two months. The selection criteria for the ideal family include aspects such as the environment in which they will live, the availability or the number of members of the same.
Once these twelve months of reception are over, the animal has to leave the home to begin its training in a specialized center. One of the most important in our country is the ONCE Foundation for the guide dog. In these centers the dogs receive training for about a year, and in this period of time they learn not to jerk, accept the harness and avoid obstacles, among other things. Once the training is finished, the dogs are ready to become authentic guides at just two years of age.
The last step is to select a user taking into account factors such as the speed of the step, the height or the weight, both of the dog and the person, with the aim of achieving a perfect union between the two. This aspect is fundamental, since from the moment of its adoption, they will live together 24 hours a day. Once the physical conditions of the animal are diminished (around 8-10 years of age), it is considered that the dog’s work as a guide has finished, so in this case it will have to return to the center waiting to find a new family or continue with its owner as a pet.
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