Seeing-Eye Dogs

In May last year, Dalian Medical University in the Liaoning Province of China set up a centre where dogs can be trained to act as guides for blind people. This is the first training centre of its kind in China. It is the brain-child of Professor Wang Jingyu, who studied animal behaviour in Japan last year, and has a vision and a mission to help blind people in China enjoy a fuller, more active life.

People with impaired vision can apply to the China Disabled Persons' Federation to get their own dog after approval. The only requirement is that candidates be truly in need of a dog and can afford the dog's upkeep which can cost around 300 yuan per month. A new selection of candidates was recently chosen, and each person has been allocated their own personal guide dog. Together, each team of dog and owner will embark upon a course of training last approximately six months. The guide dog centre is only able to train a handful of dogs each year due to lack of funds but at least hope now exists for visually impaired people in China.

In other countries such as Canada and the USA laws have been passed to protect the rights of blind people so that they can enter buildings such as their place of work, and use public transport with their guide dogs. It is now illegal in America to deny a blind person and their guide dog access to many places, and more recent legislation ensures that blind people whose dogs have been harmed or killed by other people or animals receive compensation for the loss. This is not yet the situation in China but hopefully things will change. Legislation needs to be passed in China as there are nine million visually impaired people who could potentially benefit. Also, next year there will be blind athletes who will need guide dogs in the Paralympics in Beijing. Blind people need to be seen as they really are, fully human, not just disabled people but people who have an important role to play in life, who are willing and able to contribute to life in many ways, if they are given the chance.

Jinzhou Dehong Traditional Chinese Medical Massage Hospital in Dalian, China was established by Zhang Dehong, assistant chief physician and vice chairman of China Massage Association of Blind Practitioners in 1985. During its two decades of operation, the hospital claims to have successfully cured up to 500,000 patients of their diseases and won wide acclaim for its achievements. If you would like to know more, you can visit the English pages of their website at:

http://www.amw99.com/en/Overview.htm