Dexter, the trainee Guide Dog for the Blind sponsored by Alasdair Morrison & Partners is progressing well at training school. His trainer Sam says he's a very sweet dog and is always up for a cuddle. He loves to bond with the people around him as he’s such an affectionate dog.
Since the last Pupdate, Sam has introduced Dexter to his training harness. She started off by asking Dexter to put his head through something circular, like a hula hoop, using his favourite treats to create a positive association. This progressed to asking him to place his head through the brown training harness and eventually to put it on completely.
The next stage was to encourage him to pull gently whilst wearing the harness to create guiding tension, which can be unusual for dogs to get used to. Dexter soon picked this up and he now walks in his harness completely unfazed. It’s important for dogs to guide with the correct tension it means that they can navigate their owner confidently around obstacles without pulling too strongly.
Recently Dexter’s been learning guiding routes in quiet locations so he can focus and become familiar with local areas. Distractions are something that Sam is working on with Dexter and he’s steadily improving. Dexter still needs to improve on toys; he loves them so it’s a little more challenging for him.
Dexter’s also been working on kerbs he is now guiding me to them and whilst out on training walks: it’s a work in progress but it’s going well. This is an important skill as it indicates to a person with a visual impairment that there is a step coming up.
Looking ahead, Sam will be focusing on building Dexter’s confidence with the skills he’s developing. I’ll also be working on his distractions and overcoming these in real-life situations. She'll be doing more training in busier places to help him to build his skill set.
Dexter is a great dog! He’ll suit someone who will give him lots of affection, as he loves people and builds a great bond with those around him. I believe he would do well in a home either with a single person or with a family, he’s quite versatile.
Thank you for reading all about Dexter. We hope you enjoyed his Pupdate and we'll see you next year for more news about Dexter and his training!
