Guide dogs change lives of the visually impaired

SHINNSTON, W.Va. (AP) _ On a sunny, winter day, Raye McCoy donned a pair of sunglasses, put a harness on her guide dog and set out on the streets of Shinnston for a walk.

Her black Labrador retriever, who will turn 2 in March, led her safely as she crossed streets for a quick walk around the block. McCoy, who has no sight in her left eye and severe impairment in her right eye, does not mind.

``I have always been a fast walker,'' she said. ``When my vision was first gone, I tried walking with a cane. It's slow. Very slow.''

She does not have that problem with the pup she got through the Columbus, Ohio-based Pilot Dogs Inc.

McCoy, whose sight deteriorated over a period of time because of a few accidents, does not want to publicize her dog's name, because that makes people more likely to greet him and distract him when he needs to be guiding her.

``The biggest thing is people want to pet him,'' she said. ``I say, I'm sorry, he's working.' I try to be really polite about it.''

But since she traveled to Columbus last August and trained for 28 days with the dog she would bring home, her life has changed. Now she can leave her home by herself, whether for a walk in her neighborhood or for a plane ride to Washington state to visit her sister, which she did shortly after finishing training with her guide dog.

``To me, he's very special. He's my eyes, he's my partner and that's the way he'll be until he can't work anymore.''

McCoy's vision began deteriorating in 1995. An active person who considered herself a ``workaholic'' and who liked to exercise by roller skating, McCoy found herself less independent than she was accustomed to being.

``I've always been physically active, and now I'm down to a fast walk,'' she said. ``I used to be able to roller skate. That was one of my favorite things.''

She worked in a job until 2005, and during that last year, she had to commute with another woman because she no longer could drive.

But her black Lab has returned some of her former independence to her.

``Before I got him, I had to wait for my husband or daughter to walk me in the evening, but it got to the point where my daughter wanted to do her own things.''

McCoy's husband, Tracy, works as a heavy equipment operator, while her 17-year-old daughter, Victoria, is a senior at Lincoln High School.

``She's got a job, and she's trying to decide if she should go to college,'' McCoy said. ``I'm trying to get her to go. She's been good trying to be there for me. But I felt like I couldn't be a burden to her. I felt like I needed to find a way to be more independent.''

Scott Summers of Fairmont, who has had four guide dogs in 28 years, serves as an advocate for Pilot Dogs Inc. and helps the organization recruit puppy raisers.

``Using a guide dog to me is a safer way of traveling,'' Summers said. ``The dog is going to look out for himself. For instance, if you are walking with a guide dog and you come to a major hole in the sidewalk, the dog is going to stop for that. With a cane, you have to find it. You basically have to use the cane to find the obstacle and you have to decide what the obstacle is.''

Summers, who has been blind since birth, used a cane until he got his first Pilot dog at around age 22. He much prefers the dogs. He always has had Doberman pinschers, his preference. His current guide dog, Winston, will be 12 in March and is nearing the age of retirement. Generally, after eight years or so, the dogs slow down and need to be replaced.

The visually impaired person can keep their guide dog, Byers said, but if they cannot, Pilot Dogs Inc. will find the dog a new home.

Summers not only plans to keep Winston after his retirement, but already has had him certified as a therapy dog.

``He'll be going into nursing homes and hospitals and letting people pet him as a therapy dog,'' Summers said. ``As a guide dog, I had tell people not to pet him. Now he'll get a little loving back.''

McCoy found out about Pilot Dogs Inc. through her sister-in-law.

``My mother-in-law was blind from diabetes, and they had checked out the program for her,'' McCoy said. ``She was older and she decided she didn't want to go that route. When she passed away last April, my sister-in-law refound the information and I applied.''

By mid-August, McCoy was attending classes at Pilot Dogs Inc. in Columbus, where she was matched up with a small Labrador retriever. She was going to be placed on a waiting list, but a cancellation gave her a spot sooner.

``They were very good to us,'' McCoy said. ``The facility is set up great. They started out to find what our ability was as far as how fast we could walk to determine what kind of dog to put us with, and they had everything imaginable that you could do on your time off.''

On the third day, the students were matched up with dogs. ``He's energetic,'' she said. ``He is a faster walker. The had other black Labs there that walked at a slower pace.''

After 28 days, McCoy and the dog returned to Shinnston to begin a new life. Two months later, in mid-November, the pair flew to Washington state to visit McCoy's sister, Reba, who lives outside of Seattle.

``I just felt confident with him,'' she said.

The pair got a workout, traveling on ferries and going up and down escalators. He even was fine with the plane trip, riding on the floor, although the flight on the smaller plane out of Clarksburg ``made him nervous.

``But when we got on the big plane, he was fine, and coming back, it was like he had flown all his life.''

The trip gave McCoy the opportunity to hearken back to her old life before she lost her eyesight by taking walks around her sister's neighborhood by herself. McCoy was able to find her way because her sister took her around on the first day and showed her where to stop.

``It was like I was free,'' she said. ``I didn't feel like I was being a burden. I felt more independent. My sister worked during the day some of the time I was there, and I was able to go out into the neighborhood. It was a neighborhood I've never been in before. It gives you back so much independence.

``I've lost a lot of independence. Before, I was a very independent woman.''

And now, with a guide dog, she has gained some of that independence back, even though the winter weather has slowed them down a bit.

But when spring comes, McCoy plans to hit the pavement more often, led by her trusty Labrador retriever.

``I thank God every day for him,'' she said.