Who can explain in detail the current situation of guide dogs in China?

The starting point of guide dogs in China

Things related to the Olympic Games are particularly easy to attract attention, and Wang Jingyu's guide dogs are one of them. On the street outside the gate of Dalian Medical University, when seeing the guide dogs being taken out for training, someone asked, "Is this the Paralympic Games mentioned in the newspaper?" This makes Wang Jingyu a little helpless. In fact, although seeing foreign athletes with guide dogs at the Athens Paralympic Games is one of the reasons for their actions, it is obvious that there is no need for guide dogs because of the Olympic Games. "The Japanese began to try from 1938, and the training was successful 1957, which took 19 years." Doctor of Animal Behavior, who graduated from Hiroshima University, said that he didn't expect to be called "the father of guide dogs in China" when he started his business in China in 2004.

Zhang Dehong's experience

Zhang Dehong, a 63-year-old blind man in Jinzhou District, Dalian, was one of the first beneficiaries of Wang Jingyu. On the afternoon of August 23rd, Zhang Dehong cheerfully fitted his guide dog "Benben" with a special door saddle, and wanted to show reporters his homework twice a day-from the hospital to a roadside garden activity more than 0/00 meters away from/kloc.

Although the Tuina Hospital opened in Zhang Dehong is on a pedestrian street, the store under renovation next door has piled up the removed shelves all over the floor, and occasionally there are bicycles lying around. These are the places where "running" plays a role. After 50 meters, the pedestrian street was cut off by a road, and the exit was a row of aluminum alloy railings, leaving only a few winding passages for only one person to walk through. This kind of facility that blocks bicycles from entering and leaving is not inconvenient for the blind, and it is not difficult for them to touch the handrails. However, the narrow passage blocked the owner's "stupid" work on the left. Guide dogs are not used to walking behind their owners. "In the beginning, it regarded this as an insurmountable obstacle and blocked me from the door. I walked over and couldn't even pull. " Zhang Dehong said. More often, "running" is used to it.

The remaining 50 meters of two-lane pony road is not only parked everywhere, but also the sidewalk is narrow and uneven. "Benben" led the owner almost in the middle of the road, and all kinds of cars passed by. On the side of the road, "running" sometimes doesn't stop obviously as required. Fortunately, Zhang Dehong is so used to this road that the blind are very sensitive to the slight ups and downs of the saddle on the guide dog's back. Under the guidance of Benben, Zhang Dehong walked around the small multi-step garden freely, took off his saddle confidently and let Benben relax in the grass.

Hearing the bell disappear, Zhang Dehong felt uneasy, calling and high-fiving. At this time, "Benben" was following the call of a familiar neighborhood and ran more than ten meters away, and the owner's voice was drowned in the noise of the market.

At that time, Zhang Dehong, who was still calling and applauding again and again towards the final position of "Benben", seemed somewhat helpless. Others ran over and grabbed Benben and coaxed him back to his master. A set of saddles, it immediately returned to working condition. On the way home, a war broke out between two female stall owners who had just started setting up a night market on the pedestrian street. More than a hundred people crowded the road, and "running" took the owner through the cracks like no one was watching.

"Without it, I'm sure I can't go to the garden once. Before it came, I could only try not to go out, not to see the sun, and my body was getting worse and worse. " Zhang Dehong still sincerely likes his "second pair of eyes".

Guide dogs that can't be sold

Wang Jingyu, 43, has loved animals since he was a child. After graduating from Yanbian University majoring in animal husbandry, 65438-0992 went to Japan to study at his own expense and worked with animals for 25 years.

200 1, Wang Jingyu was hired by the Experimental Animal Center of Dalian Medical University as an imported talent. From June 5438 to 10, 2004, with the support of Liaoning Provincial Science and Technology Department, he bought a batch of puppies in China and tried to train according to the standards of the International Federation of Guide Dogs. "At that time, we didn't think it was so big now. We just want to see if we can do this from an experimental point of view, and the project will come to an end. " Wang Jingyu recalled.

As a result, what Wang Jingyu didn't expect was two "nine Niu Yi hairs". First, three to five guide dogs a year is "a drop in the bucket" for the 48,000 blind people in Dalian, and "Japan 10 base can't meet it". He said more. Another "drop in the bucket" is money. After the project of the Science and Technology Department is completed, the only support that the school can provide is the free use of equipment and facilities, plus the help of 15 teachers, students and volunteers.

At present, the five full-time trainers in the guide dog training base are all external staff, and they have to be on duty on weekends without winter and summer vacations. "They all graduated from college and didn't pursue much, but they always had to live. The salary per person 1500 yuan is too low. " Wang Jingyu said. Even so, the monthly salary of 7,000 yuan to 8,000 yuan basically depends on the savings of 500,000 people in Wang Jingyu. Wang Jingyu's lover is also a teacher of Dalian Medical University. If it weren't for the lumbar disc herniation, she would have several puppies at home.

There are also rich blind people. It is said that blind people in large massage parlors in Hunan are willing to bid hundreds of thousands for guide dogs. "If the price is to be marked, a good guide dog in the world is worth 60,000 dollars." Wang Jingyu thinks, "But no country in the world charges for it. If it is sold, the original intention of this matter will be deformed. Most of the blind people in the country/kloc-0.233 million can't afford it. " "We insist on the Paralympic Games now, and we don't know what to do in the future. I have no money if I invest 654.38+00,000 at most. If there is no outside support in the future, I may consider reducing the scale. " He said.

The funds for foreign guide dogs are generally donated by the government, enterprises and individuals, each accounting for 1/3. In New Zealand, individual donations are not enough. With the financial support of nearly 2 million yuan from Taiwan Province philanthropist and New Zealand Chinese Chen Jianfei, experts from Australia and Taiwan Province Province were able to teach at Dalian Guide Dog Training Center, and Jiang Dan, the trainer of the center, will soon go to Australia for training. However, the funding from mainland enterprises is limited to Simce Lei in Jiangsu Province. The company has some funds dedicated to charity and promises to provide cars, but "where does the money for oil, drivers and insurance come from?" Wang Jingyu hesitated. Personally, only Wang Haitao, a citizen of Dalian, donated 2000 yuan.

As for the government, "Dalian is too small for the Disabled Persons' Federation to support itself. We applied for 654.38 million yuan from Dalian Disabled Persons' Federation, and the Municipal Finance Bureau said it was for a few people. China Association for the Blind is more supportive, but it still stays in words. The organizing Committee called to see that there was no special fund. It's just that we provided guide dogs, and no one coordinated how to operate. " Wang Jingyu said.

The survival of guide dogs

In fact, seeing-eye dogs are not Wang Jingyu's main business. These days, he is most busy with the 5th annual meeting of China Northern Laboratory Animal Science and Technology held on August 29th. Balloons, arches, flower baskets, red carpets, expert speeches, meeting minutes and media interviews are all indispensable. "This meeting has nothing to do with guide dogs. Except for the teaching and research section, our experimental animals are operated independently, which is bigger than guide dogs. The whole of Liaoning Province is supplied by us, and the annual operation needs about 200,000 to 300,000, but it is expected to be profitable after 3 years. " He said with confidence. In the new campus that Dalian Medical University has just moved into, a 20,000-square-meter experimental animal center has been built, including a 2,000-square-meter guide dog base. Obviously, the school also has confidence in the scale of guide dog training in the future. The contract between Zhang Dehong and the guide dog base lasts for 3 years. During the use period, the ownership of the dog still belongs to the base. According to foreign requirements, the parents of the alternative puppies should be guide dogs. If the training of guide dogs in China is carried out step by step, it will undoubtedly be an important source of puppies.

In the case that most people in China don't know what a guide dog is, it does have the same worries as luxury goods. Wang Jingyu said: "Some people have calculated that guide dogs are generally used for about 8 years, and the cost of raising them is 654.38+10,000 yuan, which is more than 654.38+10,000 yuan a year. China's labor force is so cheap, can't we recruit people? My consideration is that there may not be foreign countries, but there must be domestic ones, but this is a social trend, and disabled people in China should have this right. "

About June 5438+ 10, 2006, Wang Jingyu also thought about giving up. "The blind man took the dog on the road and confiscated it. After buying it, the training was eliminated, and the dog had no place to send it. " Zhang Dehong was also puzzled: "All three dogs have been registered in Dalian Dog Office. The original' running the road' proved to be coordinated with the public security, and later it was the seal of the guide dog training base, which was not so useful. " Wang Jingyu said: "The police actually only acquiesced in us. I gave them the foster care list. I don't know what to do next There should be an authoritative department to identify it. I also mentioned to the central leadership that there will be a law on the protection of the disabled at the end of this year, and the Beijing Olympic Games will be resolved through temporary legislation. "

Liu Aikun, a trainer at Dalian Guide Dog Training Base, said: "Now private shops basically let guide dogs in after consultation, but large supermarkets are not acceptable. In May this year, China Southern Airlines held three meetings for the first time to fly guide dogs to Kunming Paralympic Games. Buses can't go directly to training now. " -

Hard-won guide dog

At the same time as Benben, he was employed by Zhang, a blind girl in Lushun. The stone who joined before them was the first guide dog in China. In June this year, when the trainer paid a return visit, he suddenly found that "stone" was prone to some aggression because of nervousness, which was absolutely not allowed by guide dogs. Therefore, Si Tong had to leave Yu Liang, a blind woman in Dalian who had served for less than three months, and gave her to a foster family as a pet dog.

"The elimination rate of Labrador retriever training, which is most suitable for the blind, has also reached 60%." Wang Jingyu said, "There are many eliminated in the selection process, and there are one or twenty behind one, so the training cost of guide dogs is not a dog's money."

Also in June this year, trainer Liu Aikun accidentally discovered that Tintin, who had been training for almost a year, had the problem of loving children. "At that time, we had a meeting in the house and talked about the dog's interest in children. It barked at a child under the window. It has seen many children before, but it has not found them. Even a hundred times, we can't take the risk. Now one and a half years old, I have already given volunteers, and there is this phenomenon. "

The criterion for choosing a guide dog is mainly personality, followed by health, and beauty is not important. "There can be no aggression, especially active, especially quiet. Labrador and Golden Retriever, which are most suitable for guide dogs, are athletic, but once they enter the working state, it is impossible to have the habits of being close to others, smelling things, chasing small animals, being afraid of cars and even not liking TV. " Liu Aikun said.

"No barking" is one of the most intuitive and basic conditions for guide dogs. In the kennel of the training base, this is a clear sign to distinguish the training level. A dog that just came back from a foster home barked alone, and most senior students were unmoved. Of course there are exceptions. Sun Xianlong, the animal trainer, explained: "The key is to stop it in time when it barks."

A guide dog can distinguish about 65,438+00 English commands. "In fact, it's not whether it understands English or Chinese. Many details of you can reflect your intentions and emotions at that time. Which action will satisfy the owner has formed a pattern. " Liu Aikun said. There is no compulsion or punishment in the training of guide dogs. Trainers all use "no" to express blame. The biggest action is to shake the collar, which is to convey the owner's dissatisfaction to the dog's psychology. "There are 70 standards for guide dogs. The most difficult thing is the ability to analyze and judge. Dogs are born red and green blind, so they need to judge the time of crossing the road through the traffic volume, and of course the blind should listen. For obstacles, we generally require to avoid at a distance of about 6 meters and make a diagonal detour. It should also know about sewers without manhole covers. Although guide dogs are required to remember the seven routes they take most often, blind people should have a general map in their minds, or have the ability to walk in a directional way. It is up to dogs to judge when to walk. After a long time, dogs can find out what shoes a blind person with a special regular life wants to wear when going out. It comprehensively judges where you are going through a series of behaviors. " Wang Jingyu said.

At the end of 10 this year, four more dogs will start training with the blind at Dalian Guide Dog Training Base. The next batch of 16 dogs are still in foster care, and the total number of dogs sent has reached 58. "According to international standards, the scale is not small." Wang Jingyu said, "Because of the breed of dogs and other reasons, the success rate of our training is 30%. It is estimated that there are 20 to 30 dogs that can succeed in the end. Paralympic Games preparation 10 or so, with 5 guarantees. "

At present, six Labradors are being trained by Nanjing China Working Dog Management Association, and four dogs are being trained by Nanjing Police Dog Research Institute of the Ministry of Public Security. In Nanjing, Zhengzhou and other places, guide dogs, police dogs and military dogs have been taken as exceptions.