Guide Dog Trainer

A guide dog is an essential part for every blind person who needs to get around. They help assist vision impaired people in getting around from point a to point b and are a valuable addition to making their lives a whole lot more easily. But a guide dog does not train itself, and they require lengthy programs to help them become a capable guide dog in assisting the blind.It is a great career too as not only do you get to work with animals, you also get to help people who really are in need and your training of a dog goes a long way in providing this. But how do you become a guide dog trainer? Well the first thing you should do is keep an eye on pet jobs in your local paper and websites. Generally you will find that your local guide dog organisation will advertise approximately every 18 to 24 months for new trainers and a lot of the time they will do so specifically through their own website. We recommend you bookmark your local guide dog organisations website and keep checking back every couple of weeks to find out if they have any vacancies related to animal jobs.Alternatively, you could contact them directly and ask them when they expect to start the next round of applications so that you can know specifically when they will occur. Generally after the application process happens and if you become successful you will then enter a training program and be referred to as a 'Cadet Guide Dog Instructor'. A rigorous course will then be given to you in all aspects of training a dog, so be prepared to learn a great deal! Courses are usually offered at their headquarters although some travel may be required, depending on where they are located.You should be aware that a guide dog training course can take up to three years of full time study for people who don't currently hold a mobility and orientation qualification or any other prior guide dog training, dog sitting or pet care experience. To avoid it taking this long you should invest in conducting one of these courses in the meantime to save you time. By holding these qualifications it will reduce the time of training to around two years. Once you have these qualifications you can then commence the proper training for the guide dog instructor, where you will be taught everything from how to make the dog follow commands right through to feeding it and caring for it correctly.It's not easy though! It does involve a lot of hard work and dedication! You will also be required to scout out potential guide dogs and offer training for them to assist other visually impaired people in the long run. You will be constantly supervised by a trained guide dog professional that will provide you with advice and tips on how to best train the dog into becoming the best guide dog it can be. If you do not wish to take part in the full course you can always take a shortened course that will provide you with the basics to train a guide dog, without giving you the full experience for future training sessions.This is particularly good for those who may only want to train guide dogs on a part time basis and earn a small amount of money on the side from their full time jobs to support their expenses during their internship or during their tenure as a student on an Australia student visa. Whatever option you do choose, you should definitely consider becoming a guide dog trainer as not only is it a great career in which you get for working with dogs from a close range, but you also get a rewarding career as well knowing you are helping people as well as animals. You not only as a trainer but also help the dog become a social pet. You would also provide useful animal care therapy to the canine friend to help it integrate into the life of the owner. Contact your local guide dog organisation today for more information or arrange a visit to them where you can meet a qualified instructor and see the dogs being trained first hand. It might be the best decision you make in your entire life!