Peril of hounded UK guide dogs
TWELVE guide dogs are attacked every month, a shocking report has revealed. Most are savaged by dogs off the lead and the cost of helping them and their owners recover has topped £1.3million since 2010, says Guide Dogs For The Blind.
That could have been used to train up 26 dogs. Now the charity is urging owners to help prevent these attacks.
Carol Warner, the charity’s director of canine services, said: “Attacks can destroy confidence in a moment. We hope the public will get behind our Take The Lead campaign to help keep guide dogs safe.
“Simply putting your dog on the lead could not only help prevent attacks, but could avoid any kind of dog distraction that might endanger a guide dog owner.”
One victim was Innis, a retriever cross paired with project manager Wayne Thompson, 47, in 2016. Just three months later the dog was attacked in Lichfield town centre, Staffs.
Wayne, diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition at 17, said: “Innis started howling horribly. A Staffordshire bull terrier had its jaws around his side. A passer-by managed to force the dog to release its grip. I was in a state of shock.” Bleeding badly, Innis was rushed to the vet’s. The physical wounds weren’t life-threatening but the psychological ones were harder to heal.
Dad-of-two Wayne added: “Other dogs would have a little snap, which stressed him. I was offered counselling but thought I’d be fine. But I wasn’t and a few months later I realised I wasn’t coping. I’ve been on anti-depressants to this day.”
Innis was taken back for retraining and a rehab programme, which helped.
But last October a German Shepherd attacked him, several more dogs snapped at him and Innis became so stressed he had to be retired and rehomed as a pet.
“It was heartbreaking,” Wayne said. “We had to say goodbye to the hero dog who’d given me my independence back.”
It takes up to 18 months and £50,000 to train a guide dog. The Staffie’s owner was fined £40. Angry Wayne said: “If someone trashed a £50,000 car they’d get a massive fine and probably jail – but because Innis is ‘just a dog’, the penalty was laughable.” Wayne has a new guide – labrador/ retriever cross Milton. But he is still bitter and added: “Considering the money and effort that went into making Innis an amazing guide dog, it’s such a terrible waste.”