The city's first guide dog program for the blind has already
stumbled on a legal technicality.
The first batch of guide dogs, six labrador puppies, has been
sent to foster families ahead of a comprehensive training program
for the blind.
However, city laws that ban dogs from streets, parks and public
transport could prevent the guide dogs from carrying out their
duties.
The regulation says that dogs will only be allowed in public
places if they need to be registered, quarantined, inoculated or to
receive physical examinations.
The municipal public security bureau said that, so far, only
trained police dogs are allowed to enter public places like
airports and subways to carry out specific missions.
Bao Yu, a staff member from the Shanghai Association for the
Disabled (SAD), which is responsible for the guide dog program,
said they are currently in negotiations with the security bureau to
make a legal exception for guide dogs.
"Training guide dogs is still a very new idea in Shanghai and
also China. So it will inevitably face some problems when being put
into practice," she told China Daily.
However, Bao is confident the city's existing regulation on
canine administration can be amended for guide dogs.
In addition to the regulation hiccup, guide dogs and their
masters face other challenges in Shanghai, like roads.
Bao said she was concerned about safety because the city's
traffic "is not very ordered".
Shanghai announced its first attempt to help local blind and
visually impaired people with the guide dog program earlier last
month. After the guide dog puppies reach the right age, they will
be sent to the Nanjing Police Dog Institution in neighboring Jiangsu Province to get professional guide dog
training.
China still lacks a comprehensive guide dog system, and Shanghai
is the testing ground for the program.
A second litter of guide dog puppies will be ready for foster
homes soon.
Shanghai has some 160,000 blind or visually impaired people.
In addition to the guide dog program, the local government
provides services for the blind, such as in-depth training walks,
and provides free walking canes.
(China Daily April 5, 2007)