November 26th, 2018

Disability Awareness Evening

These evening both packs were lucky enough to have a visit from Carol and Wilson.  Wilson is her 4th dog - but first male dog she has had.Carol is an ambassador for the National Institute for the Blind.  Carol talked to cubs about the training a guide dog needs to go through before they live with blind person.
 
When puppies are ready to leave their mothers they go and live with a puppy walker.  Puppy walkers help house train the puppy’s teach them obedience and socialise them.  They take the puppies onto trains, buses, into supermarkets and some even get to attend parties.
 
They stay with their puppy walkers until they are about a year old.  It is at this point they attend Guide Dog School for about 15 months.  They learn how to guide a person outdoors, cope with traffic and watch for obstacles.  Wilson was a gold star pupil.
 
Once training is completed, puppies are matched with their new owners.  A further 10 days’ worth of training is then undertaken with their new owners so they can get used to one another.
 
The cubs also asked some very interesting questions:-

• How do you tell the time?
• Do you drive?
• Does Wilson get stressed?
• How long have you been blind for?
• Can you use the oven?
• Can you read Braille?
• Do you play with Wilson?

The cubs then got an opportunity to pet Wilson – much enjoyed by everyone.
 
It must be noted that the cubs were exceptionally well behaved tonight – Well Done Cubs.
 
Next week both packs will be ice skating at Cribbs Causeway – please check your emails for your OSM invite – more information will be sent out this week.