Some time ago, we met a former colleague of Maureen's
who had suffered a severe disability and who had
received some amazing help and support from Dogs
For the Disabled, a wonderful and important
registered charity which we are delighted and
privileged to support.
Dogs for the Disabled was set up in 1986 by
Frances Hay, a dog lover, who was herself
disabled through the crippling disease bone
cancer.
Frances
found that her own dog, Kim, could be trained to
carry out tasks that she found increasingly
difficult to do.
Following
her sad death at the early age of 41, friends
and family continued with this work, realising
the value and happiness brought by a dog trained
to help disabled people.
Dogs
for the Disabled became a UK registered charity
in 1988.
Dogs
for the Disabled provides trained dogs that
promote independence for people with
disabilities by building mutually beneficial
partnerships which respect the needs of both
client and dog.
Dogs are trained to do
many tasks that are often very difficult or impossible for
disabled people, but which are so crucial to enjoy the
independence that most of us take for granted.
These include:
Retrieving a range of items
including cordless telephones, letters and newspapers
from the letterbox and picking up articles dropped
accidentally, such as keys and pens
Opening and closing doors
Activating switches and alarms
Pulling washing out of a
washing machine and fetching groceries in a shopping
basket
Through the use of a special
harness, helping a person with balance difficulties to
walk without a walking frame or stick
The Dogs for the
Disabled national training centre and head office is a purpose
built facility near Banbury in Oxfordshire. This was opened in
January 2000 and contains the very best facilities for dog care
and training, as well as facilities for clients to live and
train with their dogs.
There are also
satellite training centres at Exeter and Middlesbrough.
Dogs for the Disabled
The Frances Hay Centre
Blacklocks Hill
Banbury Oxon
OX17 2BS
Telephone: 01295 252600
Daniel George
and Yogi - Crufts 2006 Friends for Life Winner
Unlike
most boys his age, Daniel (age 12) can’t just
get up and go anywhere that he chooses as he has
a severe condition called Duchenne Muscular
Dystrophy, which affects and limits every aspect
of Daniel’s life. He is only the third child in
the UK to have an assistance dog trained
especially for him as part of the Dogs for the
Disabled children’s project. Yogi a three year
old, chocolate Labrador has improved Daniel’s
confidence and independence incredibly as Daniel
doesn’t have to rely on other people all the
time to help him with every day tasks from
helping him undress to turning off his bedroom
light when he goes to bed. Yogi has become a new
and positive focus for Daniel and his family.
Daniel has a new friend and helper, his brother
and sister have a rough and tumble play-mate and
his mum has someone that makes her smile.
