Romsey woman's plea over guide dogs

New figures show that 71% of guide dog owners claim their guide dog is distracted by strangers at least once a day, with a further 24% saying it occurs at least once a week.

In response, charity Guide Dogs polled 2,000 people and found that three in 10 Brits (28%) admit they’ve stopped and distracted a guide dog while it was working, with a further 40% admitting they’ve been tempted.

While no working dog should be distracted; to put it into context, Brits are 12% more likely to distract a guide dog than they are a sniffer dog or police dog.

The distractions come in many forms, but the most common ways people admit to doing so are petting (13%) or touching (11%). However, 9% have even tried to feed a working guide dog.

Those that admitted to distracting guide dogs were asked why, with the most common reasons found to be that they interacted with the dog because they’re impressed by their intelligence to carry out their work (59%), finding labradors and golden retrievers particularly cute (55%).

There are also misconceptions that fuel these distractions, with Brits claiming that guide dogs deserve a pet and a fuss from the public because they work hard and deserve attention (28%), and that it’s OK to pet a guide dog if the owner is sat down (27%).

The distraction of guide dogs happens, even though 80% of Brits believe the work guide dogs do is essential, with Brits going as far to suggest that the work of a guide dogs is as important as nurses (55%) and more important than journalists (49%), politicians (48%) or accountants (43%).

Remembering that guide dogs are at work is key, as 42% of Brits say they would never dream of distracting a stranger at work, no matter their profession.

Guide dog owner Nicky West, from Romsey, has been partnered with her black Labrador / Retriever cross Lily for the last four years, and has faced regular interference when they are out together in her local area.

Nicky says, “It feels like whenever you step out of your front door you are public property and have no privacy or right to your own space. I’ve had people just touch Lily out of the blue, make noises at her, stare at her – it makes me uncomfortable and Lily isn’t a fan either, because she doesn’t like being touched by people she doesn’t know and I can tell she gets anxious when it happens.

“I need my guide dog to be focused on where we want to go to keep us both safe and distracting her puts us both at risk.

“Not only that but people will also talk about us like I can’t hear them or make assumptions about me because of my sight loss. It’s frustrating and honestly I just want to go about my day and be able to get out and about freely without worrying. I’ve actually had someone follow me to look at my dog.

“Once when I asked a woman to stop touching my dog she walked away shouting and throwing her hands up. It was really distressing.”

Tim Stafford, Director of Canine Affairs at Guide Dogs says; “It’s important that people respect a guide dog at work, just like any other hardworking professional.

“Distracting a guide dog could put its owner in real danger, if for example they are navigating a busy environment or crossing a road.

“While Britain is a nation of dog lovers, we ask that people think twice before diving on the dog, and instead admire our lovely guide dogs from a distance. People with sight loss should be able to lead independent lives without this daily disruption.”