Raising dogs with a goal in sight
Twice a month Gillian walks down the stairs at Carter Memorial United Methodist Church in Needham, sniffing wildly.
The large basement is a meeting spot for Gillian and about 20 of her fellow puppies, and their raisers, participating in a Guiding Eyes for the Blind program. The young dogs live with volunteer families for about a year, beginning at 10 weeks of age, and once matured take the organization's "In for Training Test," the canine equivalent of a college entrance exam. Puppies who score well will go to a school in New York, where they are trained to be guide dogs for the blind.
The ones who fall short of the stringent requirements for guide dogs may be chosen for other areas of employment, with search and rescue teams or the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
If the puppies are not invited to participate in any formal education, they can remain with their volunteer families as a pet, although the raisers are not required or expected to keep them.
"Our dogs are purpose-bred dogs," said Linda Damato, with the nonprofit Guiding Eyes organization. "They love to work, and have a lot of confidence."
The O'Connell family of Needham has been raising Gillian for the past year. Next month is her long-awaited training exam.
"I'm very confident she'll be chosen for something," said Jane O'Connell, who has happily juggled the responsibilities of her three kids, husband, and job as co-owner of Take Two Tenniswear, a traveling pro shop. The family also has a 7-year-old Labrador retriever named Maggie.
"My parents were real dog people," said O'Connell. "As kids we would ski at Sunday River - our dog used to run under the chairlift to meet us at the top and we'd all ski down together."
O'Connell's marriage, in fact, can be attributed to a four-legged creature.
Years ago her future husband often spent time with his best friend, who had just gotten married. One day, the couple instructed Brian O'Connell to take their dog for a walk at the Head of the Charles regatta, insisting that he'd "meet a chick."
That afternoon he met Jane. And for a wedding present, the same friends gave them their first dog.
Jane O'Connell learned about Guiding Eyes for the Blind two years ago when she attended a YMCA banquet at the Carter Memorial church and saw a poster advertising the program.
"The following year it caught my eye again and I knew this was something that we could do as a family," she said.
Guiding Eyes for the Blind was founded in 1954 to provide trained dogs capable of enriching the lives of blind and visually impaired people. The school has graduated more than 6,500 guide dog teams. The organization is headquartered in Yorktown Heights, N.Y., about 45 miles north of Manhattan, with its training and canine development centers not far away, but it also has chapters in 11 states. Massachusetts has two chapters, one in Kingston and one in Needham, which draw raisers from across the state and Rhode Island.
It costs Guiding Eyes upwards of $45,000 to breed, raise and train each guide dog.
Most of the puppies are Labrador retrievers, although a few golden retrievers and German shepherds are used. They are selectively bred for a serene disposition, confidence, intelligence, willingness to work, general good health, and ability to take responsibility and initiative.
The organization foots the bill for regular check-ups and vaccinations, and provides a crate. The raisers pay for food. Veterinarians usually pick up medical bills as a good-will service. In some cases the fee can be tax-deductible. The fully trained dogs are donated to their recipients.
Potential raisers are first asked to attend a few classes to get an idea of what's expected. Next, they're required to take a dog for the weekend, to ensure they understand what goes into daily care for a puppy.
O'Connell says there's a huge difference between the behaviors of Maggie and Gillian, who is also a Lab.
"Gillian looks me in the eye when I speak to her, and knows she has a job," said O'Connell. By 10 weeks of age Guiding Eyes puppies already know their name and how to sit and stay down. The raisers are required to have occasional weeklong dog swaps to ensure that the training is consistent.
"The last dog that came to our home was an 8-month-old black Labrador retriever named Jane," said O'Connell. "When I had to go around yelling, 'Jane come, Jane, sit,' I think that everyone in the parking lot thought that I was crazy."
Now that the O'Connells have had a year of Guiding Eyes basic puppy care under their belts, they say that there are a few things that they'd do differently if they ever raise another pet - like not letting their dog sit in the front seat of their car.
"Guiding Eyes has the dogs sit on the floor of the car as soon as they get in," said O'Connell. "My pet Maggie gets in and out of the back seat, jumps around, and has her head out the window - they don't need that."
Colleen O'Connell, a sixth-grader at Monsignor Haddad Middle School in Needham, walks Gillian before and after school and has attended all of the training sessions with her mother and Gillian. Each class lasts for about an hour and includes lessons about stairs, (pups must not bound up and down the stairs, but walk slowly and sure-footed), sitting and staying, as well as tips for the raisers on such topics as nail clipping and ear cleaning.
"We're taught to show them the basics, but we're not trainers," said Jane O'Connell.
Raisers teach the dogs things like how to sit in front of a closed door.
"When we're outside in public, like at Needham Town Hall where the door is electric, Gillian will sit in front of the door until it opens," said O'Connell.
When outside, Gillian wears a "Guiding Eyes" coat. "As soon as the coat goes on, her demeanor is different, and she knows it's time to work," said O'Connell.
Colleen said that ever since Gillian moved in with the family she has been trying to prepare herself for the day that the dog will leave - a time that is fast approaching.
"I know that she's going to go to someone special who needs her," said Colleen. The family acknowledges that having Maggie has helped them avoid pouring all of their emotions into Gillian.
Jane O'Connell likens the experience of raising a potential guide dog for a year to having a child grow up, go to college, and move away.
"I want Gillian to pass her test and succeed; I know that also means giving her up," she said.
For more information on Guiding Eyes for the Blind, visit cdc.guidingeyes.org.
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