Raising a Guide Dog Puppy
By Roger Pettingell
My wife Alisa and I have raised four guide dog puppies over the years…Wafer, Dagmar, Nessie and Mac (we didn’t name them, generous donors did). We decided to work with the guide dogs as a way to help those with sight challenges in our community. Little did we know how much we would get from the program, and how we would continue to support Southeastern Guide Dogs even to this day.
Our first puppy was Wafer…the cutest little golden-colored Labrador puppy you have ever seen. We instantly fell in love with Wafer, though not like you would with a pet. Wafer had a mission ahead of her, and we were there to help her prepare for that mission. Then came Nessie, then Dagmar. Last, but not least was Mac; he’s the one I want to tell you about. I probably shouldn’t admit to having a favorite, but Mac was clearly ours.
Mac was a little white bundle of fluff when we first got him. He fell asleep in the car on the way home from the school (where he was born from guide dog parents). Our job with Mac was to socialize him, and to get him used to being in every circumstance imaginable. On Mac’s first night we put on his little “guide dog in training” kerchief (he was to small for the jacket he would later wear) and took him to 15th Street South, the Italian restaurant on St. Armand’s Circle; he adored the crowd then fell asleep!
Mac spent his days with me at my real estate office, on property showings, at open houses and closings. When we went out to dinner, he was taught to remain quietly under the table. When we travelled, he sat at our feet in the plane. With his training jacket he was welcomed into virtually every restaurant and public place he entered. Every Saturday we attended training classes with other host families in our area. We learned how to teach Mac basic obedience commands, and we shared our week’s experiences with the group.
As Mac grew into a more mature dog, it was clear that he would become a star pupil. He was so perfect in his design that he was considered for the Southeastern Guide Dog breeding program. The day he was called to go back to school for his guide dog training was a sad one for us, as we knew we wouldn’t be sharing our daily activities with him anymore. We felt proud, however, knowing that we had done our job in preparing Mac for his future as a guide dog.
Several months later we were invited back to the school to meet Mac’s new roommate, Michael, who had lost his vision in a random car accident. This was the moment when it all came together for us. We were able to see the bond between Mac and Michael and to see the independence which Mac afforded Michael. We left with tears in our eyes and warmth in our hearts.
These days we raise children instead of puppies, and frankly, the experience we got from the latter has helped with the raising of the former! Children, like puppies, need to have defined boundaries and to understand expectations. They also need a lot of loving, which is the easy part in both cases!
Roger Pettingell currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors for Southeastern Guide Dogs in Sarasota, Florida. He lives and works in Sarasota with his wife Alisa, sons Jake and Max, and career-changed guide dog, Wafer. Photo Left to Right, Back Alisa and Roger, Front Wafer and Mac.
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