One of Candy’s good friends Nicole was on the Board for several years. She told us about the event that Guide Dogs of America was going to have this weekend. I was very excited as I have a Mama of the seeing eye dogs. My yellow lab is so beautiful and loving.

So off we went with cash and credit card! They held the event up in Sylmar. It wasn’t too bad of a drive. Both Candy and I thought it was incredibly organized! We were impressed. They had so many baskets and great giveaways. Candy always the smart one had stickers with her name and number so all she had to do was to put a sticker down.

There were so many volunteers there it was just amazing.  They also had every kind of guide dog there. For me, I was in yellow lab heaven!!! All sizes and ages!! The puppies of course were SO cute… we all learned a lot about Guide Dogs of America. I met a lady holding a puppy and she had told me that it was her 6th time to foster!! Wow, such dedication. Another lady asked her isn’t it hard to give them away after? She said, yes, we get so attached but then they do it again!  There is a picture of a black and tan lab, I had never heard or seen one! The Mama is a yellow lab and both parents carried the recessive gene! This one in the picture is already working!

I thought I’d post some of the common questions in case anyone would like to foster a puppy for Guide Dogs of America! Next year we would offer a FREE Reiki session for their auction now that we know they have this yearly event!

Q. How long does it take to train a guide dog? A. About 6 mos with a trainer, then and additional 4 weeks in class with its blind partner.

Q. What breeds of dogs are used? A. Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers and German Shepherds are the main breeds.

Q. How many guides are working at the present time? A. Approx 7000 in the US.

Q. What is the cost of training a guide dog? A. Approximately $38,000.  There is no charge to the blind person for the dog, the four week residential training, special harness and leash or follow up.

One of the fun things they had there was puppy kisses.  Of course I had to get a puppy kiss from a yellow lab who was going to grow up and be a service dog!

Check them out if you are interested. www.guidedogsofamerica.org