BETHEL – It was very painful – and still is – when Addie had to be put down because of injuries caused by loose dogs.
But now there’s Bronson.
Addie and Bronson: guide dogs past and present, the eyes for Lynn Mason-Courtney.
Mason-Courtney, a former guidance counselor and social worker, returned a few weeks ago from Guide Dogs for the Blind out of San Raphael, Calif., where she trained with her new partner, 2-year-old Bronson, a 75-pound yellow Labrador retriever.
“He’s calm and laid back. When his harness is on, he’s working. When it’s off, he’s a regular dog,” she said.
Getting Bronson was extremely important to Mason-Courtney. He’s her eyes, just as Addie – a smaller yellow Lab – was until two attacks limited her ability to serve as a guide dog and left her in pain. She was put down in May.
Bronson is a bigger dog, one that may not be as intimidated by roving dogs. He’s also Mason-Courtney’s second guide dog. He’s learning the ropes around the household and neighborhood.
Bronson tolerates the household’s two cats, Busy and Dickens. All three animals sleep in the bedroom.
The weeks of training in California was intense, meant to build a bond between Bronson and his new human partner, allowing human and dog to totally concentrate on each other.
“The training built my skill, built trust between us. It’s a big thing to trust an animal to keep you safe,” she said.
She said about a year will be needed for the quiet, unspoken communication to develop between her and her service dog.
Bronson knows where the bumps are on the road, when it’s safe to cross. He knows, too, that no one is supposed to touch him while he’s guiding.
Mason-Courtney wishes people knew that. Often, people treat service dogs like pets, rushing up to them, petting them, feeding them. This is distracting to a service dog, she said. It can be dangerous to the person the dog is helping.
As with Addie, Mason-Courtney plans to use Bronson to teach school children, senior citizen groups and others the proper etiquette to use around a guide dog and the reasons sight-impaired people often use them. Plans are also in the works for Courtney-Mason and Bronson to make a public service announcement for Pine Tree Guide Dog of Maine.
She also hopes to use Bronson to show that other sight-impaired people could benefit from the help of a guide dog.
Many people in the state could experience huge changes in their lives if they had a guide dog. But only about two dozen are currently in use in the state, Courtney-Mason believes.
She lost most of her sight over the past few years due to macular degeneration and detached retinas. Using a guide dog has opened up her world.
“When using a cane, I walked much slower, maybe hunched over a little. With a dog, my shoulders are straight, I’m independent. It’s absolutely wonderful,” she said.
If all goes well, as it seems to be going, Bronson will serve as Courtney-Mason’s eyes for six to eight years, its prime working years. Then he could become her pet, or he could be returned to the service dog puppy farm that raised him.
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