# I'm interested in getting a guide dog.

Category: Animal House

## Post 1 by Austin's Angel (move over school!) on Monday, 28-Jul-2008 17:45:46

As the title says, i am interested in getting a guide dog soon. Right now i'm just looking at my options as to what kind of centers there are and how they do there training. if anyone has any tips, or any recommendations for centers or anything else I should know, please feel free to poste here.
I appreciate it very much.
Yvonne

## Post 2 by wild orca (Zone BBS Addict) on Tuesday, 29-Jul-2008 0:28:18

Hi Yvonne:
I got my dog from Guide Dogs of America. Their in Southern California, and are a small school. I like them very much, but it depends on what your looking for in a school. If you don't want to go to far from home, look in to schools that might be near your area. If you like being around a lot of people, then you might want to go to a big school. It depends on you. Good luck, and I hope you find a school that works for you.
Kim and Voyager

## Post 3 by Reyami (I've broken five thousand! any more awards going?) on Tuesday, 29-Jul-2008 5:46:57

Yuppers, you get the final say in what schoolyou'd like to attend. I went to guide Dogs for the bLind in Boring, Oregon ot get my first dog Steven, nd now my second guide Ditra. I chose that school because I feel i learn better in a smaller class environment.

## Post 4 by OrangeDolphinSpirit (Despite the cost of living, have you noticed how popular it remains?) on Wednesday, 30-Jul-2008 15:56:19

Of course I'm going to be biased about GDB, because that's where I got Flip, but I think there's a guide dog school survey on the GDUI web site you could look at to get a better idea of what they all do.
Oh yeah, there still is. Here's the exact link.
I liked GDB for a lot of reasons. The food was wonderful and the service stellar! There are two campuses, the one at Boring, Oregon, and the one at San Rafael, California. I went to San Rafael, so I can only tell you about that campus, but I hear that Oregon's classes are smaller and are a lot lower key than San Rafael. We got to work in San Francisco and I loved the crazy, crowded streets for working my dog. It really showed me what he could do! Gresham, Oregon, which is the equivalent to San Francisco, I guess, isn't as crazy and crowded as San Francisco, so who knows. If you think you'd prefer the busier city atmosphere--and you choose GDB, of course--then you might consider going to SR. If you prefer a quieter, laid back environment, Boring would be your best bet.
Anyway, when I first applied to schools, I chose GDB and the Seeing Eye, for their reputations. I wanted a school that had good followup services, in case I ever needed an instructor to come out and work with me. In the end, I chose GDB because of the veterinary stipend we get every year. One day I will be able to repay them, but for now, I can't quite pay the vet costs out of my own pocket. I can only imagine what it would have been like going to the Seeing Eye, because You pay $150 for your first dog and $50 for every dog after, and there is no official vet assistance.
Hope that helps!
-- Allie

## Post 5 by tunedtochords (Zone BBS is my Life) on Friday, 01-Aug-2008 2:24:19

I chose the seeing eye in Morristown, New Jersey. I live on the East coast and wasn't really interested in going across the country to get a guide dog. Secondly, I liked the no puppy raiser contact policy that TSE has. (Don't get me wrong; I love and appreciate puppy raisers; I think they do great things and I'm indebted to them forever, Etc. But a graduation ceremony and meeting the raisers... not my thing.) I also like (okay, love) TSE's ownership policy. I owned my dog the second I left the campus, and that was that. No contracts with retirement clauses or 1-year (or 2-year) ownership clauses. She was mine, and that was that. Yes, I had to pay $150, but really, in the grand scheme of things, that isn't that much. Plus, you can pay the amount in installments for as long as you need to. You do get reimbursed for vet costs for the first year, as well as six months' worth of flea/tic and heartworm preventitive. City training is done in New York City, and, well, you can't really get much more crowded and complex than that. I also like the fact that TSE's breeding program is entirely internal; that is, they don't take in rescue dogs, and very, very rarely do they take donated dogs. I also love that there is more of a choice (or a surprise, I guess) in what breed you'll get. Several schools (I'm thinking of GEB and GDB off the top of my head) train mostly labs. TSE does a pretty even split of labs, golden retrievers, lab/golden crosses and german shepherds.
But. Yes. It all depends on what you want in a school. If you're looking for a smaller school, GDF on Long Island is a great option.

## Post 6 by tyger_lillee84 (I can't call it a day til I enter the zone BBS) on Monday, 11-Aug-2008 15:48:25

I'm also interested in getting a guide dog. I live on the east coast, and would like to know more about my options of schools to go to. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each school. If anyone can help, thanks lots!!!!!!!

## Post 7 by Reyami (I've broken five thousand! any more awards going?) on Monday, 11-Aug-2008 17:15:59

i know guiding Eyes, and the Seeing Eye are on the East coast, and i've had a friend or two go to Southeastern Guide Dogs, but one of them had a bad expeience with that school. Not saying youwould have one, but you'll get differing opinions about each school from everyone. so, justgo on the web and look them up. Call the admissions department and ask for information before considering what school you would like to attend.

## Post 8 by tunedtochords (Zone BBS is my Life) on Monday, 11-Aug-2008 22:54:13

As far as east coast schools go, I'd recommend The Seeing Eye or the guide dog foundation. What do you want to know about the schools? "advantages" and "disadvantages" mean different things to different people. For example, TSE asks that you pay $150 for your first dog, and a lot of people view that as a disadvantage, but I don't, as I receive full ownership of my dog, no questions asked. A lot of people view GDB's mandatory follow-up and vet stipend as advantages, but I view them as disadvantages, as I don't like the idea of big brother guide dog school watching over my shoulder. (I'm not saying that they *do* watch over your shoulder; like I said, lots of people like the mandatory followup and things of that nature. It's just not for me.) There are other similar examples, so what do you want to know?

## Post 9 by tyger_lillee84 (I can't call it a day til I enter the zone BBS) on Wednesday, 13-Aug-2008 12:11:32

What are the class sizes at both schools like? Do you get more training at one than the other? How about the living quarters? Thanks!!

## Post 10 by tunedtochords (Zone BBS is my Life) on Wednesday, 13-Aug-2008 14:18:53

The Seeing Eye's class size ranges from 18-24 people, but there are at least 5 instructors in class and the larger class is divided up between those instructors. There are never more than 5 people per instructor. At GDF, there are usually 2 instructors on class and class sizes ranges from 8-12 people. So pretty much the same ratio. The training programs are pretty similar. GDF's training is done in a variety of towns on Long Island with a trip into Flushing to do city work, while TSE does the majority of training in Morristown with a trip into Manhattan for city work. I've only trained at TSE, but from what I've gathered from friends who have attended GDF, I feel that TSE's city training is more extensive. GDF breeds primarily labs, goldens and lab/golden crosses with some standard poodles and lab/poodle crosses thrown in. They are reintroducing herding breeds including German shepherd dogs and smooth-coated collies, but this process, according to them, will be slow. TSE has a long-standing german shepherd dog breeding program that makes up a third of their stock. They also breed labs, goldens and lab/golden crosses and have a few boxers for those with allergies.

## Post 11 by tyger_lillee84 (I can't call it a day til I enter the zone BBS) on Wednesday, 13-Aug-2008 15:59:01

Ok, I'm leaning towards seeing eye. They seem way more friendly, and seem to care more about the individual. I'm going to go see each school before I commit to one.

## Post 12 by guitargod1 (I'm going for the prolific poster awards!) on Thursday, 14-Aug-2008 0:33:28

Seeing eye was fantastic. Great school, great instructors, my dog is amazing. The living quarters and food were top notch. Training in the city was a great final test! And the full ownership is a definat advantage in my opinion.

## Post 13 by Geek Girl (The Sexiest Geek you will ever find!) on Thursday, 14-Aug-2008 9:10:34

I am agreement that Seeing Eye is the best. For the reasons that tunedtochords listed, great school. I recieved my second dog from Seeing Eye and she is very good, I was very very well impressed at the difference in training compared to schools. I attended GDB for my first pup, and although good, not the same as my SE dog. I have many many many reasons for changing school, those of which if you are interested in hearing you can ask, email or something to find out why. I can not say enough good things about SE, but because I have experience with both big schools. For the lifestyle I live I feel like my 30 days of training were much better spent at the SE, I felt like I came home with a better experience, that I could new dog new handler issues much better, and that the training was much better, and I felt that SE expected alot more from me. But if you are only going to use yoru dog for certain tasks and or you do not get out much, then maybe a school that trains better for those things is better for you. good luck in yoru search.
Marsha

## Post 14 by Austin's Angel (move over school!) on Thursday, 14-Aug-2008 17:07:46

I've applied for GDB, but i'm not done researching, at this time, I'm not able to afford the 150 dollars if I did want to go to seeing eye.

## Post 15 by tunedtochords (Zone BBS is my Life) on Friday, 15-Aug-2008 12:32:53

You don't have to pay the $150 up front. You can pay it out in installments. No one at TSE wants you to not apply because of lack of funds. If you can only afford 15 dollars a month, then it'll take 10 months to pay. If you can only aford 5 dollars a month, then it'll take... however long that takes (ha, sorry, I'm not really awake yet).

## Post 16 by Reyami (I've broken five thousand! any more awards going?) on Friday, 15-Aug-2008 14:14:53

Uh ... two and a half years/?

## Post 17 by tunedtochords (Zone BBS is my Life) on Friday, 15-Aug-2008 21:28:01

Ha, possibly. Whatever the case, the point was that they don't care when/how you pay.

## Post 18 by LP08 (Veteran Zoner) on Saturday, 16-Aug-2008 20:30:29

I went to TSE for my dog. I would recomend that school to anyone. I liked the amount of Traffic work that TSE dogs are exposed to. I also like that you get to go to New York for a day and really see how your dog is going to do in big cities. I heard someone say if your dog works well in New York city then you can work anywhere.