Training classes are something many dogs will experience at one time or another. It’s to be expected that some dogs will find them easier than others. But as it turns out, you can teach an old rescue dog new tricks.
A blind rescue dog in the UK surprised her dog mom by passing her not only her Kennel Club bronze and silver awards with flying colors, but her gold award too.
Misty’s dog mom Lisa Tyson rescued the Border Collie from Lily’s Border Collie Lifeline in Wales when she was five months old. Now six years old, Misty was born with just one eye. She later lost the rest of her vision when she was about a year old.
Going for Gold
Losing her sense of sight has not affected Misty, however. Lisa began taking her to classes at Pawsome Dog Training not long after bringing her home, and she passed her bronze and silver awards without too much difficulty.
“We weren’t sure if she would get to gold with her being completely blind,” explained Pawsome Dog Training’s Melanie Sharing to The Cumberland News, “We were working towards the gold. We had to do a few things slightly differently.
One of the challenges for the Kennel Club Good Citizen gold award is for the parent to successfully send their dog to their bed or mat from ten paces away. But this would be difficult for Misty and Lisa so they had to change the exercise to revolve around scent rather than sight.
“I was over the moon when Misty passed gold,” said Lisa. “I have to admit there were a few tears as I was very proud of my special girl”.
Living With a Blind Dog
Living with a blind dog can take some getting used to for even a seasoned dog parent. However, dogs adjust to their lack of sight, and so do their parents.
Blind dogs can live regular, happy lives, and can do almost anything any other dog can do. They’ll learn to get around quickly, and experts recommend not babying them or carrying them around too much.
Of course, it’s important to ensure that your home is safe for a blind dog too. Get down to their level and see if there’s anything dangerous that they could trip on or fall into. And take extra care when it comes to stairs too.
