Students hear about guide dogs

A representative of the Australian Guide Dog Society has told students from Brisbane Water Secondary College Umina campus that it was important to wear sunglasses

Ms Angela Allen spoke to the students on Tuesday, February 7, about different conditions that affect vision, the need to wear sunglasses and what her life was like being visually impaired.

Ms Allen said she lost her sight progressively from a young age and now has only about 10 per cent vision in one eye.

She moved to Australia from Ireland over four years ago with her guide dog Hamish to be closer to her family.

Ms Allen said Australian guide dogs were trained from a young age and were basically fostered out until they were about 12 months old.

Every two months they return for basic training.

When they were 12 months old, they undergo intense training that could take up to nine months.

When the dog finds a home, training continues so that the dog and new owner can get used to the immediate surrounds.

The dogs work until they are 10-years-old and then retire.

They can be kept on as pets, passed on to other family members or moved to aged care facilities where they get pampered by the residents.

Angela also told students how to assist a visually impaired person if they were in need of assistance and brought in a number of glasses allowed students experience what it was like to be visually impaired.

"The students gained a lot of knowledge from Angela and had plenty of pats for Hamish," said teacher Ms Nerrida Lewis.

Email, 7 Feb 2012 Nerrida Lewis, BWSC Umina