Category: Animal House
So i know i want to get a guide dog after i graduate high school, (about two years), and my mobility instructor thinks it's a good idea.
Only problem, i don't know which school i would be able to go to, because i don't know about too many. Also, what is a good time to apply for each school?
I'm sure you Have heard of guide dogs of America? A school for what
If your goal is to get a guide dog after you graduate, perhaps you should start applying to schools the fall or winter before you graduate so that you can get into a summer class. Also, be sure that you want to do something after high school so that your dog will be put to use. Will you be working, volunteering a lot, or going to college or trade school?
As for what school you should go to, only you can really decide based on your wants and needs. Do you care how rigorous the application process is? Does location of the school matter to you? Do you need a certain breed of dog? Would you like the school to assist with veterinary costs? Do you want to leave the school having full ownership of your dog? Do you want to have a graduation ceremony and meet/develop a relationship with your puppy-raisers?
I could tell you that you need to figure out what is most important to you, then do some research from their. But I was the other way around. I just started looking on schools' websites and making a list of things that stood out to me. I wanted a graduation ceremony and wanted to meet my puppy's raisers. I wanted the assistance with veterinary costs. I also appreciated certain schools for the abundance of information they offered on their websites. When I realized there were schools in New York, I knew that I wanted a dog from there.
I highly recommend you to look around. Check out the websites for the schools closest to you, and/or check out the Seeing Eye, Guiding Eyes, and Guide Dogs for the Blind. Make phone calls and ask questions. Get a feel of how the staff treat you and their attitudes. You have plenty of time to do some research and exploration. Use it and do it.
Also keep in mind, do you plan to move anyware or are you going to stay in one place. You need to know an area reasonably well before you get a dog, infact one of the requirements with a lot of schools is you have to know routes to places. I'm not sure if all schools do this but I know a few do.
What all the posters said is true. Do your research. Do you want to go to a small school like Guide Dogs of America? Or a large school like Guide Dogs for the blind. I've had three guides from Guide Dogs of America, and I felt most comfortable in a small school setting. Also, I liked the fact that they gave you full ownership of the dog. However, that may be something you don't want. The one thing I tell people when they ask me what school they should go to, is based on their research, choose the school that best fits their needs and wants.
Good luck