The tough decision of Rentons retirement

Renton sitting in the drivers seat of the car looking in the wing mirror

Unless there is a snap general UK election in the next 12 months, this forthcoming Scottish Election at the beginning of May, will be my guide dog’s last one before he retires! Bit of a shock I know! One of the reasons I started this blog was to explain the process of how a blind person is trained to work with the new dog and all the bonding and frustrations that go along with it. So far he’s been on the road with me on two UK elections, one local council election, a Scottish Referendum on independence and oh yes, a referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU still to come at the end of June.

So Renton has certainly seen his fair share of political action.

It’s never easy making the decision to retire a guide dog, but as he’s coming up for 8 and it can take some time to get the exact dog for my needs, it was suggested it may be time to start the process of retiring him.

So, before the Easter break, I sat down with one of the guide dog instructors to set out a plan and timetable for Renton’s retirement.    The one thing I didn’t want to do was have a last minute rush to stop him working, which would leave me with no dog at all or push me into getting a dog that  doesn't quite fit my needs.  Because of this we’ve put a plan in place that he will retire sometime over the next 18months!

There are two things I have to consider when retiring a guide dog.  His welfare and my mobility. One doesn’t supersede the other, they are both equally important. It’s very easy to get sentimental, but it doesn’t help. Fundamentally, I’m blind and need a dog to get about. Plus he needs some time to enjoy life without the stress of work.

picture of the bag of Ian and Rentons heads as they sit in the car

A  colleague at work had said that they thought that 8yrs old sounded young to retire a guide dog? Well, in many cases this may be true. However, it does come down to the dogs work load and breed. German shepherds are larger dogs so do tend to age a bit quicker than the average Lab.8-9yrs old is about an average age for a dog which is so big...and he is huge! So to give them some kind of quality after work life it’s best to retire them a bit earlier. 

So anytime over the next year and a half, I could get that call saying we’ve a new dog for you. Then the real emotion kicks in and the next big decision. Do we keep Renton? Or find him a new home for his retirement? 

  

Blast from the past - what is in a name?

A number of people have been asking me about Rentons' name. So, here is what I have found..this a repeat..hey I work for the BBC what can I say?

It is from day three of my blog way back in October 2010 - 

Among friends and colleagues there has been some discussion about the origin of Renton’s name. I’ve heard: Ring tone, Rent boy and to top it off Rectum. 

Well, to throw some  more light on the reasoning  behind the names, I did some digging about and it appears all 7 puppies from Renton's litter  are named after characters and writers from Scottish literature. Two of his brothers are called: Rebus and Rankin. Rebus after the Edinburgh detective and Rankin after it’s author Ian Rankin.   Renton’s name comes from the book “Train Spotting” by Irvin Welsh.  The main character in the novel is Renton, which  is played by Ewan Mcgregor.

I’m currently trying to find out about the other names in the litter. 

It could have been so much worse though, his litter could have been named after diminutive characters from Walt Disney and I could have ended up with Dopey.  What was that?.I've just heard my first virtual global blogger groan......made me laugh!

Who’s the most regal?

Renton befriending the Royal couple at BBC Scotland..Pic: by S. Mclundie

I don’t think they believed me at work this week when I managed to get my face on TV as part of a royal visit.

I had hurt my back playing blind golf..and trapped a nerve. Because of this, it was my plan to work from home. Typically, the very day I was wanting to rest my back, my BBC Laptop decided to stop talking to me. (I use a speech software called JAWS, which reads out everything on the screen to me]  So this meant having to drag my sorry painful self  into the office to get it repaired. In the back of my mind I remembered that there was a royal visit on, but I never thought it would affect me, I would be in and away quickly. I wasn’t in long, when a couple of colleagues told me.., “They’ll be coming past your desk and Renton”. I said, “I think I’ll head up stairs for an early lunch and get well out the way.”  Then I felt the hand of one of the producers pressing down on my shoulder as I began to stand. “Just you stay exactly where you are.” When Ali M tells you to stay, you don’t argue. She added, “I’ll give you a warning when they are heading your way. They are bound to stop when they see Renton.” 

Before I new it they were at my desk shaking hands and being all..well..you know... "royal".

We had a general conversation which moved quickly on to the topic of the other regal figure in our midst, that of Renton. They were very keen to hear all about him. All the usual questions. where was he trained? who trained him? how old he is? Then finally, “Oh he is a big boy” said Camilla. I assumed she was still talking about Renton, well, lets hope so…  

Then before I new it they had moved on to my colleagues on Newsnight Scotland.

Prince Charles and Camilla approach Ian and Renton

Renton getting a pat from Camilla, he was a really good boy.lovely crochted blanket curtesy of Aunty maureen

So you can imagine the amount of ribbing I’ve had since a short clip of me meeting them was shown on our local dinner time news programme.   My Aunty said...were you wearing a tie?...oops...nope..well I never thought that I would be meeting them....she's disappointed in me.....aw!  

All Paparazzi pictures by Susan McLundie      

One year on....

Ian being a big sook and offering Renton a nibblet for being a good boy

It’s hard to believe it’s nearly a year since the Guide Dog Association brought Renton for his matching visit with me. Basically, this is when they bring the dog for a test drive. It’s at this point when you decide whether this particular dog is the right one or not. 

This can involve a number of factors. Like: walking speed, size, breed and temperament. Admittedly, it’s hard to draw any firm conclusions from such a short meeting, but often it’s best to follow your gut instinct and get some further background from the instructor. 

However, it’s always best to look between the lines as guide dog trainers can be a bit like estate agents. 

“The dog is very keen” 

Translation -  they’ll drag you off your feet.

“He responds well to firm handling.” 

Translation -  you’ll have to wrestle him to the ground if a cat goes past.

“The dog shows great caution at an obstacle.”

Translation - dog requires some kind of bribery usually food, to get them past anything. Even then they’ll require counselling for their nerves.

I am not saying that it has been plain sailing. He has had plenty of his own challenges to overcome. Like his suspicions and hate of cats, horses, small dogs, [not large ones he’s not stupid.] squirrels. He is a bit too enthusiastic when people come to the door, but we are working on this also.  (do you like my estate agent speak there...translate..he barks the house down until you are deaf!!!...anyway other than those, Renton who had his 3^rd birthday last Wednesday  is maturing nicely  and it feels that I’ve been working with him for years.

Talking about his barking... this has been new to us..we are a quiet house and Moss rarely barks, far to much like hard work for a Labrador. However, Renton likes to bark at dogs going  past the gate, the postman, [particularly the postman.] visitors to the door. We can quieten him down a bit and then he coughs and splutters instead.

Renton sitting at the window watching for someone to bark at!

We have had loads of laughs with him, and I mean loads, he is incredibly intelligent and caring even to Moss. (which I've talked about before)

Moss and Renton with Ian at the front of the house

Moss is still not sure about him. Renton is far to fussy and loud for Moss (the Buddhist dog) He tends to put up with Renton, but we noticed that they have started to lie together out in the grass..and run down to the gate together...so maybe there is a change happening.


So..from this sad dog who arrived, not long from the kennels, missing his handler, not eating anything and wanting to stand in a dark corner in the bathroom..we call this his ubend phase!..he was a bit disorientated at first and I think it has taken this full year for him to finally feel confident and at home..His work, however has always been good...but, I now have this big bouncy, Gucci pawed bear of a dog..Renticus Giganticus, his guiding work is just brilliant  and we both love him to bits.