All About My Time at Guide Dogs for the Blind | Life After Sight Loss
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- Опубликовано: 9 июл 2024
- So, this one is a long one! In this video, I discuss my experience with Guide Dogs for the Blind from application to graduation. I'l cover the following:
Application process
Traveling
Facilities
Dog Day
Training
My Trainer
THE FOOD!
And More...
As I said, this one is long, so feel free to chunk it up. And, thanks so much for taking the time to watch it!
LINKS I MENTIONED IN THE VIDEO:
Walking in Portland: • Walking in Downtown Po...
Walking on a Trail: • Traveling On A Trail i...
Got questions? Have a thought? Feel free to share in the comments below!
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DISCLIAMER: All the information found in this video or through lifeaftersightloss.com is intended for informational and educational purposes only. If you are in need of professional, medical or legal advice, please seek out a specialist in your area. Thank you!
TIP: notify the airline ahead of time and request bulkhead seating right behind first class window seat. This gives your dog a lot of room to wrap around in the corner and it's beneficial especially on long flights.
I really wished iPhones were available when I first got my dog to document my process. Great work.
Such an amazing story! I have been considering a guide dog since I went blind 4 1/2 years ago. I still have not made up my mind, there’s just so much to consider. Thank you so much for sharing!
There sure is a lot to consider. I wouldn't anyone to rush into getting a guide dog. But, they are wonderful partners! Best of luck!
Thanks for sharing! As a Service Dog trainer of many years, including guide dogs, love seeing relationships grow with Service Dog teams. I am also a handler now as well, but still train Service Dogs for others as well. GDB is an amazing organization! Thanks for sharing!
That's great! Thanks for what you have done and continue to do!
@@LifeAfterSightLoss It is my absolute pleasure! I have seen the evolution of different things Service Dogs can do for their handlers over the years and it's AWESOME!
I'm looking to get a guide dog, and I have watched your other videos about it. Thank you so so much for sharing!
Congratulations on this incredible journey. I received my first guide dog from GDB, and while I'll not be going back there (not due to any negative experience with them), they are still so dear to my hett. They'd be my first choice any time, and I definitely still recommend them. Thank you so much for sharing this with us. I love all things guide dog related.
Wow thanks for sharing! I just sent my first puppy off to campus to be trained. Fingers crossed he graduates!!
Not to sound corny, but What a Blessing for you, your family, and of course for Koa! I just lost a beloved pet 6 days ago to geriatric kidney failure [I rescued her and her litter mates from a garbage dump back in 2002, so I really choked up when you acknowledged the puppy raiser family. I cannot imagine how tough it would be to invest so much time, effort, and love, only to then hand them over to someone else. I have had to do exactly that as a rescue/foster pet volunteer. But what a generous, selfless gift! the puppy raisers offer! I wish you all only the very best. Please spoil Koa just a little for me, ok? ;-))
Fantastic step by step for everyone looking into a dog
Fantastic video! I am filing this information away in case I lose sight in my "good" eye. It sounds you got much more than a guide dog and training. Having the puppy raisers at graduation is such a nice touch, both for you and for them.
Great video, great to see you both got on so quickly!, even though you both had a bit of a clash to begin with!😊
Good luck with him and I’m looking forward to hearing about all your adventures. 😊
Hey Derek! Awesome, awesome video! Great information. Keep up the good work.
Heya again, fellow teammate!
I’m so glad you included Koa’s “dog day” video clip because I loved getting to see that moment. Your room looked just like mine and was arranged the same way! So cool! Aaaaw, I miss our Oddball gang. That was one of my favorite memories of guide dog school because the three of us got to chat, joke around, and, of course, sing Flight of the Conchords songs, haha! The dorms really were nice. Although, that hallway made everyone’s footsteps so loud, haha! Did you hear Calvin knock my suitcase over at 3:30am on that day we all left? It was so so so loud! Calvin got excited and jumped on my suitcase and made it boom onto the floor in the hallway.
I’m so grateful I got to be your training partner and that we got to work with Kate and Kody Jo. Kate challenged me that same way and I loved it too. We were there to learn and I wanted as much info as I could get. As hard as we all worked it was still two of the most fun weeks of my life. GDB was like the most fun summer camp ever.
Loved the video and hearing your perspective. Calvin was sitting beside me watching the video. I’m pretty sure he recognized your voice because his ears perked up and he licked my iPad screen. So Calvin definitely says hello!
Hope L Hey Hope it’s Caleb! I’m glad you and Calvin are doing so well. Grit and I are getting used to my wild environment in high school and in marching band. I’ve missed our class so much since I’ve left. Everyone in our class made my experience so much fun and I’ve missed all of you guys. It’s so awesome to hear about everyone’s dogs and their new lives, and I hope we all stay in touch!
Caleb Snapp hey! It’s great to hear from you! So glad you and Grit are settling in nicely and he’s doing well at your high school. I was so glad to have you as part of my experience at GDB. Our group was amazing and I don’t think The Oregon campus will ever be same without us, haha! Definitely stay in touch. 💜 I’m really glad to hear from you, Caleb!
Hey Caleb! So glad to hear things are going well with you and Grit. I'm sure high school and marching band is a lot of fun with your new buddy! Sure do miss our class as well. I still talk about it with my family a lot. Wishing you the best!
I really enjoyed listening to that Derek - Thank you. It will be interesting ( for me anyway lol) to see how or if the training you experienced differs from the training here in th UK when I go get my dog. very much looking forward to the next vid. have a f=great weekend
Awesome video, this was so interesting and informative. Thank you for sharing with us :-) Matt
Great video. #IAmGDB my guide retired last year but I went to the CA campus. Very happy for you and Koa
Awesome video!
Great, informative video, Derek! I was in your class, and my guide Marybeth freaked out at the sound of both your voice and Kate’s, lol!
Hey Emily! Great to hear from you. Thanks for watching. And, so glad to hear Mary Bethe Hasn't forgotten us! lol...
I’m hopefully getting my first guide dog from GDB soon, but first im getting O&M training and am applying to the GDB Orientation and Mobility Immersion program to improve my skills I’ll need to work with a guide dog
Great video :-) you may want to talk about the clicker and how that works for teaching the dog stuff. It is so much faster to do it that way then the old way.
This is so helpful because I am going there very soon thank you so much 😁
You’re welcome 😊
Love the video. You gave a great insight in how getting a guide dog works for you.
I’m thinking of getting in touch with guide dogs uk to talk about the possibility of getting a dog. I’ve been told the average wait time is about 18 months in my area. And I’m still not totally sure though having a guide dog would encourage me to go out daily (currently I don’t go out daily simply because I don’t always have a reason to go out and walking without a dog (its about 29 months since my pet dog Tippy crossed the rainbow bridge and she helped me stay active the first six months after having my sight loss confirmed and diagnosed- walking is definitely not the same without her) it’s only three years since I lost most of my sight).
Though I have no intention of getting a guide dog, a good friend of mine does. I shared your videos with her, and maybe you have a new subscriber! 👍🏽❤️
Thanks so much! Hope I can be helpful!
Oh I’m sorry Derek I was also wondering I just got my self the Apple Watch series by and for the most part it’s working quite well for me but I got the cellular version so I could make and receive calls does this have a voice caller ID on it because if it does I haven’t located it yet
What a fantastic video and review!! Thank you Derek. I had no idea what was involved with guide dog training and ownership and this video was really informative and enjoyable. You and Koa seem to be a natural wonderful team. All the best to you and Koa. Question: do you have to “qualify to get a guide dog? ie. level of sight loss? Etc. Thanks
Hey there! Thanks for the kind words. As far as qualifying, you have to be at least legally blind. Beyond that, you need to have good O and M skills and get around on your own on a regular basis. Hope that helps!
Life After Sight Loss it does! Thanks!
Thank you for this informative video. I have begun the application process and there hasn’t been a whole lot of video or online information.
Do they give you a packing list for what you should bring? Do you need to purchase anything for your dog ahead of going to GDB?
Hi there Dera! Thanks for the comment! As for packing, they didn't really give a list per say. But, think about what you might need to live somewhere else for two weeks. You can do laundry so you don't have to pack tons of clothes. And, they provide meals which are great. And, when I was there, they would make a run every once in a while to the store and pick things up if you needed them (that you would pay for of course!) And, I'm sure you'll have the chance to purchase things while there so a little spending money helps. And, you don't have to get anything for your dog before you go. I took a couple of bandana for him to wear, but not required. Hope that helps!
Kota yes I do have a question I’m physically disabled and legally blind and I can’t leave my home with the exception of doctors appointments because I can’t get Transportation in that case how would I go about getting either a service dog or a guide dog I recently lost a dog that was given to me that was trained to be my service dog I had her for five long years I believe and I would really like to look back into getting another dog and preferably a much better trainer
Hi there. I’m glad you had such a great experience. Thank you for making a video and describing The process in such detail. I was wondering if you were allowed to take Coa with you when you and the other student went to get milkshakes or could you only take him off campus when you were the trainer?
Hi there! Thanks for the kind words. As for your question: No, we couldn't take our dogs with us when we went off campus during training. We weren't yet graduated and "official" if you will. But, there was a resident advisor on campus who made sure they were taken care of while we were gone. Thanks for the comment!
Hi. I hope you don’t mind me asking this question. Since you got your dog from GDB I read on the website that it says they offer an annual stipend for veterinary care, does that mean that they will automatically go ahead and take care of the cost of your vet care, or do they supply you it IF you need it?
Hey! Great question! They do have a program to help you with vet costs. You basically call them when you have a vet visit and let them know what is happening. They will authorize it from there and you send in the vet receipt and a form to get reimbursed (if they approve). They are great to work with and have handled everything for me so far. GDB is the best!
May I ask something unrelated to guide dogs here? I'm still watch and I see you have such wonderful sound quality even in some rather noisy environments. May I ask what equipment you use? Camera, microphone, etc? Is this wonderful quality built into your camera? Fantastic job with it. I know quality matters, and being blind myself, I love great sound quality.
Sirena Rayleeta Lind well thank you for the kind words! I do take audio and video quality very seriously. In most of my videos I use a DSLR and an external mic. I always edit the audio so it can sound as good as possible. Even if I just record on my phone I try to make it sound good. Thanks for noticing!☺️
Life After Sight Loss You're so welcome. I bungled the audio in one of my own videos a bit by messing too much with the volume. Oops. Usually I think I get it right, but I'm definitely on the lookout for a way to film while I'm out and about without a microphone with a cable so long I could string a Christmas tree with it. LOL! Currently I record my videos on my phone. When I plug my mic in however, I need to use my braille display to navigate because I can't hear the audio. As you can imagine, it makes trying to film while out and about a bit difficult unless I want to forego the external microphone. I edit my own videos in iMovie, and currently I'm not sure how to cut audio out of a video, edit it elsewhere and then put it back in the video, so I have to rely on getting it as right as I can the first time. Which can be a challenge. So I definitely notice. Would you recommend any particular camera? And I'll google this, but I'm going to sound so uneducated right now and ask what a DSLR is? I'm sure I know, because it sounds familiar, but I'm still fairly new to all of this. Sorry for the huge paragraph and the typos in my first comments. I tend to type too fast for my braille display to keep up with so doing this one on my keyboard instead. LOL.
This was a great video! I went to guide dogs for the blind for a workshop to see if I wanted a guide dog and I do, but for me at the moment a program dog isn’t right for me. I’m going to try to train my Hazel to be my guide/service dog. If you want to check out that vlog, it will be at the link below.xx Chelsey
Vlog 61 Walking with a Guide Dog is amazing!
ruclips.net/video/ojai-iwyH8o/видео.html
I just want to know, if you work, how did you ask for free time from your job. I am facing that dilema right know on how to ask for free time for training.
Marcopr2007 that’s a great question! Currently, I am not working at a job or I would need to ask off for work. However, in the past I have had to do this. It’s different for everyone and each job. It really depends on what you do. But I think the best thing is to be completely honest and upfront with your supervisors and let them know how much this dog is going to help you. And, depending on your job, I will try to be as proactive as possible and offer ways of you continuing to do your job as much as possible. Obviously in some situations this will be impossible, but if you show that you are still wanting to do your job that will at least show them your mindset going forward. Best of luck and I hope this helps!
Did they tell you that the level of your vision has to be more than a certain amount mine is 20/1200
Hi there! You have to at least be legally blind which in the United States is 20 over 200. But, after that, it’s a case by case basis. Best of luck!
I am a monthly $$ contributor to GDB. Why did you go with GDB our here in the west vs another closer to home?
Hey! First, thanks for your support of GDB! I initially looked at GDB because they have a two week program. Then, I saw a lot of other great things about them, like their great support after graduation. And, I knew a few people that went there so that helped. Location wasn't a huge factor for me. I enjoy traveling. Thanks for asking!
@@LifeAfterSightLoss Derek: Joy Ross also got her current guide dog there. Good to know I picked a good Guide Dog School.