For a person with a visual impairment, getting around outside their home can be challenging. Curbs, stairs, streets without sidewalks, and intersections with heavy traffic are just a few things that can be hazardous to navigate. Specialized training that teaches the use of a white cane and the skills needed to travel safely to a destination (called orientation and mobility training) is one option for traveling independently. Another, lesser used choice is a guide dog. If a person decides they would like to work with a dog, how do they get one?

There are 16 guide dog schools scattered around the country. The closest one to Missoula is the Oregon campus of Guide Dogs for The Blind. Basic qualifications for admission include legal blindness, being age 18 or older and a citizen or legal resident of the US. Typically, applications ask about the applicant’s planned use of the dog, usual schedule and travel habits, previous history as a guide dog user, health status, and orientation and mobility (O&M) training. The next step is usually a phone interview where the person is queried in greater depth about responses on their application, living situation, family support and financial resources for the care of the dog. Forms are sent to physicians to understand the person’s vision loss and physical ability to work with a guide dog. An extremely important component of the assessment is the demonstration of orientation and mobility (O&M) skills by the potential handler.

This is done through a home visit by somebody from the school or by video that shows the applicant navigating a route with a white cane.

Once the admissions process is complete, the school places the applicant on a wait list while it looks for a suitable match. Currently, the wait times at most major US schools are around a year but can be longer. When the school identifies a match, the applicant goes to the school for training with their new dog. The training lasts two to four weeks. The new handler learns how to travel with the dog along streets, on public transit, inside buildings, and to use elevators and escalators. Trainers also Instruct students on feeding, relieving the dog, grooming and dealing with behavior issues. While the cost of raising and training a guide dog is often estimated at $50K to $70K, most schools do not charge the handlers anything.

When the new guide dog team arrives home, the handler introduces the dog to its new life, teaches it frequently used routes, and figures out how to customize the dog’s training as needed. The new handler also faces the challenges of people wanting to pet the dog and businesses refusing to allow the dog in. Dogs in harness should be left alone as they are working, and all their focus should be on their handler. And businesses that typically allow the public in are prohibited by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) from denying access to a legitimate service dog. If you encounter a guide or other service dog in the community, please let it do its work. The handler is relying on that animal for help and its attention must not be compromised. And if you see a service dog lying under a table in a restaurant or in line with you at the store, know that it has the right to be there. Those of us with service dogs thank you.

You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back. The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) knows that blindness is not the characteristic that defines you or your future.

To contact the Missoula chapter of the NFB, email us at missoulachapter@nfbmt.org .