From dog lover to guide dog specialist

Speaking to the friendly and thoughtful Alida Pansegrouw, her warmth and love for animals immediately become evident.

She is not just the custodian of a team that trains guide dogs under two years at the South African Guide-Dogs Association, but also someone who has walked the path herself with dog training.

From her first love of dogs as a kid to the specialist she is today.

This talented hockey player is a true leader in the world of guide dogs, and her enthusiasm makes a significant difference in the lives of people and animals.

Alida’s mom, Risa, tells with pride how her daughter had a special bond with their dogs when she was young. She supports her daughter with the dog training.

Risa shares stories about how Alida grew up with their family dogs Caesar, Oortjies and Troepie. These dogs were not just pets for the family and Alida, but friends and teachers.

It comes as no surprise that Alida found her calling in animal behaviour and training.

After a career in the art industry, she decided nine years ago to follow her passion and change direction in her life and career.

She started with courses in dog training at ThinkingPets and completed her diploma in animal behaviour, an important step to train guide dogs and understand behaviour problems.

Since then, she specialised in the training of guide and support dogs.

Currently, she trains puppies and sees to it that their guardians apply the right training so that these dogs can one day help someone with a disability, like a visually impaired person, or someone in a wheelchair or on the autism spectrum.

The journey of a support puppy to becoming a trained and usable guide dog starts long before they wear a harness.

“Puppies are not born with the skills to help people. Everything they must know, they must learn,” Alida explains.

That is why they wear a special harness jacket with a logo to show that they are in training.

The jacket helps the public to understand that these puppies are not ordinary pets, but are busy learning an important role.

She supervises the training of the puppies herself, from learning basic behaviour to socialising and class attendance to get used to people, and other dogs and dog breeds.

Her job involves supporting guide dog guardians and providing training, as well as making sure that the puppies can develop safely and with love in their temporary homes.

“It is important that the premises where the dog lives are safe, without poisonous plants, because puppies are very curious and like to taste everything,” she says.

The right characteristics in a puppy, like tranquility, calmness and a lack of unnecessary barking, are monitored closely.

She works mainly with breeds like Labradors and Golden Retrievers, which are known for their calm temperament and teachability.

One of the puppies that she is currently training is Larry, a 10-month-old Labrador, who likes to air his opinion and is quite ‘mouth-driven’.

He is clearly a good example of his breed with his friendly, energetic and very loyal nature.

Although he is still in the learning phase, there is hope that he will become a guide dog one day that can change someone’s life in a meaningful way.

The formal training of guide dogs usually starts between 12 and 16 months, and by that time, they must have a good behavioural basis.

She also assists guardians of puppies to understand the life circumstances of people with disabilities and ensure that puppies are placed in the right households.

Her task even extends into the public domain. She helps dogs and their guardians to be comfortable in shopping malls and other public spaces and organises access to such terrains.

On October 11, another graduation will take place once again, where six guide dogs, eight autistic support dogs, and four breeding dogs will finish their training successfully.

Alida also plays an important role in the handling of the organisation’s breeding moms, the bitches that are chosen specially for breeding purposes. This process is carefully planned in collaboration with international organisations; for example, semen is sent to Onderstepoort, where artificial insemination takes place to keep the bloodlines clean.

For people interested in becoming a puppy guardian, there are several requirements. You must be willing to attend socialising classes, learn the necessary handling techniques and naturally, make your house puppy-friendly.

“We are looking for guardians with love, patience and respect in a safe environment,” she says.

And with Larry resting his paw on her leg, you know that many support dogs have already found these qualities and more in this loving dog lover.

– Wear your sunglasses and make a difference: The South African Guide-Dogs Association recently announced its third annual Wear Your Shades Day on October 17. This countrywide campaign celebrates World Sight Month by spreading awareness about eye health and supporting people with visual impairments. You can buy your R20 sticker online via the organisation’s website www.guidedog.org.za.

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