Today’s Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants will
be presented in Spanish,
with subtitles in Arabic,
Aulacese (Vietnamese),
Chinese, English,
French, German,
Indonesian, Japanese,
Korean, Malay,
Persian, Portuguese,
Russian, Thai
and Spanish.
Welcome excellent viewers
to Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants.
Today we’ll visit
a guide dog school
in Madrid, Spain which is
operated by the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation.
The Spanish
National Organization
for the Blind, or ONCE,
was started over 70 years
ago to offer aid and
social services to blind
and otherwise visually
impaired Spaniards.
The Foundation,
which began in 1990,
currently has a staff of 60
and trains approximately
100 guide dogs a year.
Mr. Eloy Aranda,
guide dog instructor
for the Foundation will
now kindly give us a tour
and introduce the school.
We are at the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation,
an entity in charge of
training guide dogs
for blind people and
supervising these dogs
with their human users
for the dog’s
entire working life.
The school is located at
the end of Boadilla del
Monte, here in Madrid,
in facilities of about
100,000 square meters
in size.
This entire complex
would not be possible
without ONCE.
ONCE is
our biggest supporter
and is in charge of
the expenses
related to the process of
training these animals,
and afterwards,
of their adaptation to
working with blind people.
How do canes, which are
used by many blind and
visually impaired people
to get around, compare to
having a guide dog
for assistance?
Guide dogs are different
from a cane
in several aspects.
In the first place, a cane
is a cold tool for movement;
the guide dog is
a living being, warm.
A cane, too, when
you make the decision
to cross a street,
if one makes a mistake
in crossing the street, the
cane won’t ever stop you,
and the dog will.
And above all,
as to what a dog is for,
they facilitate social help,
they are going to be
a bridge, a link with the
rest of the sighted people.
How many times
have we seen a person
with a cane on the street,
at the crosswalk lane
and we found it hard to
get closer to him or her
to offer our help?
The dog on the street
acts as a bridge.
Some people
are interested in the dog
and they end up talking
to the blind person.
So, we can say that
they are a link to society.
The guide dog spends
many more hours
in a day in the company
of a human being
than working.
The guide dog might
work three or four hours
a day, for example,
yet there are another
20 hours in which
his social behavior
must be exceptional
more than anything else
because actually, the
blind person won’t know
whether that dog gets up
on the bed, etc., etc.
Which dog breeds
are best suited
to be guide dogs?
The ones
that adapt the best,
the most reliable and
above all the most likely
candidates to be trained
from the start
are all colors of
Labrador Retrievers.
We use
yellow, black, chocolate;
we don’t discriminate
between colors, just
as we don’t discriminate
between races.
We also use
Golden Retrievers; we
also use German Shepherds
and we also frequently
use a cross between
the Labrador Retriever
and the Golden Retriever,
a mix that gives us
very good candidates
when it comes to
working as a guide dog.
We have to
remember something
that is fundamental,
a guide dog is not born,
he/she is made.
We need a whole range
of temperamental qualities
from which we can select
between their sensitivity,
their ability
to concentrate,
their will to work,
their flexibility, and
based on these qualities
we shape the behavior
the dog will have later on;
that is to say,
what we really do
is to shape what
the guide dog’s job is,
because the dog is not born
knowing how to guide.
Mr. Aranda
will now introduce us
to the school’s wonderful,
intelligent guide dogs!
This is a Labrador dog,
three blacks.
They are so beautiful.
Wait,
I’m going to say hallo.
Hi, hi baby,
hallo, hallo, hi.
We are now with the dogs
I have in training.
As we can see
there are many sizes,
a variety of breeds,
a variety of sexes, because
what we are interested in
is a diversity of individuals.
Here we have
a black Labrador; this one
is a yellow Labrador.
Oh, she is so cute.
Sure, this one in here,
she is a Labrador crossed
with a Golden (Retriever).
I previously mentioned
that they look like
a Labrador
on the outside but
have only one difference:
a bit more fringe
on the tail.
And here we have
a German Shepherd.
Very good.
Tuste, Tuste, he is good,
eh? And Kaspian?
Kaspian is good, yes!
Kaspian is good
and more handsome,
Kaspian is good, eh? Sure.
Hi Seika, Seika is good.
See, here
they are all Labradors.
Yes.
These are pure Labradors;
we have all of them:
yellow, white, through
to cinnamon, even though
this one is almost brown.
Yes, yes.
When we return,
we’ll have more
from the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation
school in Madrid, Spain.
Please stay tuned
to Supreme Master
Television.
Let’s go see Lay,
who, as I’ve been told,
has had puppies recently.
Yes, three days ago.
“Three days,” Patricia says.
Patricia is
one of our co-workers.
Hallo Patricia,
are you going to show us
the new puppies?
Look, this is the mum.
She will say “hi.”
What a beautiful mum!
Hallo! Hi!
And you will hear…
Yes, yes.
You will hear the puppies
Yes, yes
She is acknowledging
all of us as usual,
in order to find out if we
are trustworthy people.
Let’s go and
see your babies, okay?
Ay, ay, what a cute
little thing. Look, look.
Ole, ay, nice,
you’re very good, huh?
What a cutie.
You have such beautiful
babies, huh?
How lovely they are! Look.
Welcome back to
Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants
as we continue our tour
of the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation
school in Madrid, Spain.
But first, let’s meet Runa.
Runa, what are you doing
here again, little Runa?
Look at the cute little thing.
You’re so gorgeous.
Her name is Runa, and
she has just been born.
Her mother Tania
is a special dog.
The ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation
selected her based on her
good health and attitude.
This is because
her pups will have
an important function,
to work as guide dogs.
Now
we’ll follow Mr. Aranda
to the kennel halls.
Now we are
at one of the big windows
of the central part
of the kennel halls and
in one of the outdoor parks.
We can see one of the
early stimulation zones
for puppies.
For us it is very important
that the dogs not have
fears or become fearful
when they are adults.
To achieve that we rely
on this type of facility
where the school staff,
along with those puppies,
teach and help them
to develop confidence
in terms of, say,
textures of the floor.
We can see that there are
different textures, plastic,
with holes, and then
another important factor
for us is that the dogs
not be afraid of heights,
that they do not feel vertigo,
because dogs also suffer
from vertigo, like people.
They are living beings
and we have
many behavior patterns
in common.
Then we can see that we
have small children’s sleds,
we have areas
where there are corridors
and tunnels,
and this is what helps
to improve and develop
the dog’s confidence.
Runa,
you are out again?
Having hardly learned
to walk, Runa
spends the day playing.
She doesn’t know it
but she is taught
from a young age to adapt
to different surroundings
and situations.
Her education starts
as a game.
As an adult, she must be
an intelligent, decisive
and obedient dog.
Runa meanwhile
is unaware of her future,
and she spends the days
amusing herself with
her brothers and sisters
and minders.
After a month and a half,
the puppies transition to
a new living environment
and stay with
a loving family.
Now, I’d like to
mention something that is
extremely important;
and that is, from the time
these 45-day-old puppies
are placed in a family,
the family receives
free support
in every aspect of
raising the puppy like
in the following areas:
maintenance
expenditures and
veterinary costs are
for free (the school
takes care of all of them).
Besides, they have
guaranteed access
to the subway, bus, train,
department stores,
any place within Madrid.
This is only for the city
of Madrid at the moment,
since it is a requirement
that all dog trainers
live within
a 50-kilometer radius
of the school at the most;
that way our co-workers
from the puppy section
can make two, three visits
daily to different puppies.
Today is a very special day.
Anna and her two
daughters Sara and Anita
have come
to the Foundation
to pick up Runa.
The dog always has to
go out with his vest on.
And can you take her
to the cinema?
Yes, yes, wherever you want.
From almost 10 months,
they will be
her adopted parents.
And as such
will be responsible
for her education.
To that end, they’ll
always count on help
from the school supervisors
who will be watching the
puppy’s progress closely.
After 10 months
with their foster families,
the quickly growing puppies
return to the school.
The day when Runa
has to return to the school
to begin her training
has arrived.
She is twelve months old
and not the puppy
she was at first.
Well, you knew it already,
right?
It’s her turn
to start working.
That’s why you’ve raised her
with all the love
and all the affection
in the world,
Have you liked
the experience, yes? Sure?
I am sure you want
another puppy, yes?
Ok, but don’t be sad, okay?
From this point
on what she saw is a game,
is to become
specific training
to turn her into
an excellent guide dog.
There will be
several months of training,
after which she will be
taken under the guidance
of an instructor.
After that the dog
will have to assume
some responsibilities.
The ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation
is doing a wonderful job
in readying canines
to assist the blind and
visually impaired of Spain.
To find out more
about guide dog training,
please join us tomorrow
for Part 2 of our program,
where the kind-hearted
Mr. Eloy Aranda
will give us more insights
about the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation
school and
its canine students.
For more details
on the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation,
please visit
Sweet viewers, thank you
for your company today
on Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants.
Up next is Enlightening
Entertainment
after Noteworthy News.
May you always be blessed
with Heaven’s grace.
Today’s Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants will
be presented in Spanish,
with subtitles in Arabic,
Aulacese (Vietnamese),
Chinese, English,
French, German,
Indonesian, Japanese,
Korean, Malay,
Persian, Portuguese,
Russian, Thai
and Spanish.
Welcome, virtuous viewers,
to Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants.
Today
on Part 2 of our program
we’ll further examine
a guide dog school
in Madrid, Spain
operated by the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation.
The Spanish
National Organization
for the Blind, or ONCE,
was started over 70 years
ago to offer aid and
social services to blind
and otherwise
visually impaired Spaniards.
The Foundation,
which began in 1990,
currently has a staff of 60
and trains approximately
100 guide dogs a year.
Mr. Eloy Aranda,
a guide dog instructor
at the school, is giving us
a tour of its facilities.
Right now we are inside
one of the many sections
of the school;
we are in the dog kennel.
The kennel here is
one of the main areas.
We have to say
that the kennels are
one of the centers
that require the most staff
and attention.
We would like to
highlight that
we try to give the dogs
dignified living conditions
and the best treatment
possible, attending to,
above all,
the specific needs
of every dog.
In every two kennels
there’s an outlet
to a concrete yard, so
each internal kennel has
a capacity for four dogs.
So, we can say that
up to eight dogs gather
in each outdoor yard.
Based on our philosophy
of respect for the dog,
of respect for their habitat
and their way
of communication
and their language, being
able to observe the dogs
relating to their own kind
is fundamental.
We believe that
dogs are animals that
live in groups,
and as such
we must observe them.
Many times
we learn things from them,
a lot of things,
observing them
among their own species,
because
when they deal with us
they have a tendency
to cover certain skills,
certain ways of being.
That’s exactly why
we like to respect
their environment, we
like to respect their space.
The facilities are quite
extensive, so they can be
very calm and relaxed.
Another feature that
the kennel has is that it has
radiant heating wires.
The wires go below
(the floor) and
the dogs won’t be cold.
Although the normal
temperature at which
a dog feels comfortable
is between eight or
10 degrees (Celsius),
we want the dog
to get used to the
temperature at which
they are going to later
coexist with humans like,
20 or 22 degrees (Celsius).
In this way
the dog gets used to it
and has less of a change
to their fur coat
if there is a change
from a cold site
to a warmer place.
The Foundation’s
dedicated staff
works round the clock
to ensure the guide dogs’
welfare and safety.
There are personnel here
24 hours a day, precisely
so as to avoid dogs
having anxiety; they are
calm and well cared for.
Then, staff is here
from seven in the morning
to 10:00 pm, and then
there is one shift at night,
which is in charge
from 10 pm to seven am
when the main shift begins,
so the dogs are monitored
24 hours a day.
We believe that
by giving more attention
to the dogs,
the dogs in exchange
will give you much more.
How about play time
outside?
These guide dogs-to-be
have plenty of opportunities
to experience sunshine
and fresh air.
Here we have each wing
that consists
of 10 kennels and
is intended for training.
In each interior park
there’s four dogs, but
every two internal kennels
has access to an outdoor
park, so that the dogs
when they are in here,
they are not locked
in a kennel,
they are doing exercise.
Besides this, we have
earthen-ground parks too.
There are triangular parks
in between every block
and it makes better use
of the land,
since it is a more
natural environment
for the dog, and above all,
it prevents their toes
from chapping.
The firm cement
is not convenient for them
to be standing on
for too many hours;
it’s too static; they can
get their paws chapped.
Here on the ground, they
can exercise much more,
they can run and
with this wide open space.
They can have
the feeling of freedom.
We never tie up the dogs,
they are always loose;
no leashes and no collars.
Oh, very good.
In the morning,
before leaving to work
in Madrid we let them
go run and do exercise,
because later when we
arrive to the work areas,
our mission is that during
the 40 or 45 minutes
that we have for the dog,
the dog demonstrates
fewer signs
of excitability,
so all that excess energy,
especially physical,
has already worked out
through the exercise
that they do early
in the morning, and when
they arrive to Madrid,
we don’t need
five or 10 minutes
of work for them
to be able to have
the kind of concentration
that the work requires.
Guide dogs must deal
with many distractions
when leading
their human companions.
How are they prepared
for this demanding task?
Eloy Aranda shows
how the dogs are made to
feel comfortable working
in a variety of settings.
Now what we’re going
to do, basically,
is to teach what
an obstacle path is like,
what the movement is
and sorting out the fixed
solid obstacles, okay?
Initially we, as a general
rule, in all work,
whether the job is to find
an outer curb,
an interior curb,
to find a staircase,
to walk downstairs
or to walk upstairs,
be it an escalator
or normal stairs,
there is one concept
we are most interested in:
to teach the dog
to move in a straight line.
When we return,
we’ll have more
from the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation
school in Madrid, Spain.
Please stay tuned
to Supreme Master
Television.
I like this dog a lot.
She knows
how to make decisions
and to be agreeable.
I like her a lot.
Now I would like to
start thinking
about the person that
she will be paired up with.
Welcome back to
Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants
as we continue our tour
of the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation
school in Madrid, Spain.
Eloy Aranda,
guide dog instructor
at the school, now explains
more about one of
the most challenging skills
a guide dog must learn.
It is the most difficult thing
to teach a dog
to walk in a straight line,
whatever the situation is.
Why?
Because there are a
multiple number of stimuli
which are going to
inhibit movement
in a straight line.
The dog will have to keep
going in a straight line,
moving with his user
at least until
one of two things happens:
one, that the user stops
at a point and
decides to turn right, left
or go back and straight,
or two, he gets to a point
in the environment
in which the environment
itself blocks the path,
and then he has to
ask the dog what is
the next path to follow.
That is the concept
we call “straight line.”
On that straight line is
where we start to work
with the curbs, obstacles,
obstructions in the
pavement, and the traffic.
Yesterday
in Part 1 of our program
we met Runa.
How is her
training progressing?
Runa’s lessons
are being carried out
in the street
with real obstacles that
an apprentice dog needs.
When you
walk through the streets
with a walking stick
it’s completely different.
An animal sees, right?
It’s not the same
with a walking stick,
which is just a stick.
It doesn’t see anyone.
They are at a bus shelter.
The guide dog must
locate the bus, which is
not always stationed
in the same place.
The animal is trained
to go right up to the door
of the bus.
In the subway,
each station is different.
Therefore it is the person
who must guide the dog
using his or her sense
of hearing and touch.
The dog distinguishes
doors and spaces
between cars,
and going up stairs.
Very good, very good.
It’s a case of teamwork.
Okay, then
month after month
we would be building up
this work on the street.
Of course on the street
there are many more
stimuli, there is noise,
there is traffic,
there are smells, dogs,
bikes, and there are people
that distract dogs
when they are working.
Then we have to teach
the dog to discriminate,
teach them
that all those things
are not of interest,
depending on
what we want to project.
At times it’s best
for guide dogs to rely on
their own judgment.
Mr. Aranda next
describes such situations.
Finally,
at the end of the training
we are looking for the dog
to develop a concept
that for us is paramount;
that is,
intelligent disobedience.
Intelligent disobedience
is a response from the dog
to respect the environment
instead of
the person’s decision.
It is clear that a user who
is blind or barely sighted
may make a mistake in
giving a spacial command
to the dog
in the environment,
and the dog will have to
first obey the conditions
of the environment over
obedience to the person.
Here we go,
let’s continue…
I will make her
go to the obstacles
and we will see if
she is able to discriminate
between what I ask her
and what is around her.
This is what we were
talking about before,
intelligent disobedience.
Runa’s instruction
continues.
One of the gauges
used to measure
learning progress
is the intelligent
disobedience test.
Here the dog
is to ignore a command
to move forward when
an unexpected car appears.
Very good, very good.
What’s the hallmark
of a guide dog
that can lead his or her
human companion
in an appropriate manner?
We look for a dog
that is confident, especially
we must have control
over the speed he goes,
the pace he goes
and the tension.
It is most important
that the tension between
the body of the dog and
our hand is not too loose,
but the dog wants to pull,
the dog has to pull
because he knows,
he is conscious,
he has to guide me.
Now we are going to
let her go on
her own initiative,
without telling her
anything else.
We’d like to express
our sincere thanks
to Mr. Eloy Aranda for
giving us an in-depth tour
of the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation
school.
The Foundation’s
hard-working staff
and guide dogs are truly
special and wonderful.
We wish the Foundation
all the best
in reaching more
of Spain’s blind and
visually impaired citizens
in years to come.
For more details
on the ONCE
Guide Dog Foundation,
please visit
Thank you for joining us
on Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants.
Up next is Enlightening
Entertainment
after Noteworthy News.
May Divine Providence
always guide you.
Fowl Play,
a documentary by
Mercy for Animals,
shows the lives of hens in
egg production facilities.
You’ll discover that
it is an existence that
no being should
ever have to endure,
even for a second.
How can you not take
an active role to stop this?
This has to stop!
It’s not okay,
any rational human being
that saw this would agree
this is not okay.
We invite you to watch
“Fowl Play –
An Award-Winning
Documentary by
Mercy for Animals,”
this Tuesday, January 12
on Stop Animal Cruelty.