Coventry guide dog Theo crowned Guide Dog of the Year 2008

Guide dog Theo – who has totally transformed the life of his 24-year-old owner Katie Meakin from Coventry who has additional special needs relating to her learning, spatial awareness and physical dexterity – has been crowned Guide Dog of the Year 2008.

Before being partnered with Theo, Katie did not go out on her own but now she has the confidence to travel to the centre of Coventry by herself. Katie and Theo made the trip to London and were presented with their prize at the Awards ceremony hosted by Guide Dogs on Monday 8 September by TV personality Peter Purves and Guide Dogs’ Chief Executive Bridget Warr.

Theo, named Life Changing Guide Dog of the Year, went nose-to-nose with the winner of Outstanding Work (Ashby, from Dorking, Surrey) and Beyond the Call of Duty Guide Dog of the Year (Yaron from West Kirby, Merseyside) to decide which was given the overall title.  

Sue, Katie’s mum, explains why she nominated Theo for Guide Dog of the Year: “Never in a million years did we think that Katie would be eligible to be a guide dog owner. The thought of Katie travelling independently without a sighted person just hadn’t entered our minds. 

“However this all changed when Theo entered Katie’s life. When Guide Dogs originally assessed Katie for guide dog ownership they had doubts about if she was a suitable candidate. Katie had no dog experience and so three months later was given Theo to get her used to feeding, grooming and the general skills required for dog ownership. We never thought he would be anything more than a friend for her. How wrong could we be!”

Theo was previously rejected as a guide dog as he was not mature enough at the time to safely guide a blind or partially sighted person. However, Guide Dogs Central Midlands District Team visited Katie and Theo regularly to set new targets and assess the partnership. After six months Katie and her family were told that the bond between them was so strong that there was a slim chance that with some additional training, Theo could progress as a potential guide dog for Katie.

“We were delighted - training for Katie and Theo commenced in January 2008 and with a sheer determination to succeed, Katie qualified as a guide dog owner on January 29”, Sue explains.

“Initially it was thought Katie would only work Theo on one set route from our house to the local shop…well surprise, surprise Katie is not only covering this route but also travels by bus into Coventry for coffee at Marks and Spencer’s. Theo has been an absolute godsend, transforming Katie’s life, giving her independence we never dreamed possible. For most life may begin at 40, but for Katie life began with Theo!”

The Guide Dog of the Year Awards aim to recognise the life-changing work of the 4,600 guide dogs currently providing freedom, independence and confidence to their blind or partially-sighted owners around the UK. 

Vicky Bell, a spokesperson for Guide Dogs, says:  “This year we received many fantastic stories of life-changing guide dogs, and heard about the huge differences that they have made to the lives of their blind and partially-sighted owners. It is fantastic that Theo’s outstanding and life-changing work has been recognised and we are able to share his story with the public, and celebrate his amazing achievement.”

Information on winners of Outstanding Work and Beyond the Call of Duty categories

Golden Retriever Ashby was given the title Outstanding Work Guide Dog of the Year after being re-trained especially for his owner Lucy Jacques (from Dorking, Surrey). Lucy - who is hearing impaired and has no use of her left arm - had always dreamed of having a guide dog but thought her additional needs would prevent this.

Lucy explains: “Guide dogs are normally trained to walk on the left side of their owner but Ashby had to be re-trained to walk on my right side so that I could hold his harness. He responds to handle twists as well as my voice when we are out, and picks up new routes very quickly. Once shown he could find pelican crossing buttons, post boxes and bus stops. At work we have swipe cards; he soon learnt to find the boxes before the doors!

”Ashby copes well with going to many different events and meetings as part of my job, and is loved in my office! I have had Ashby for two years now and he is the best thing that has ever happened to me. He is a very clever and instinctive dog, and has changed my life far beyond what I could ever imagine.”

Black Labrador x Golden Retriever Yaron was given the Beyond the Call of Duty Guide Dog of the Year title after bravely helping his owner Jon Hastie’s niece to safety when she became distressed in the sea on their family holiday.

Last summer, Jon and Yaron went on holiday with Jon’s brother, his wife and their two young daughters to the Isles of Scilly. The family were spending the afternoon at the beach when Charlotte, seven at the time, fell off her belly board in to the sea. She started to drift out of her depth and despite wearing a life jacket Charlotte became more and more distressed. She tried to grab hold of her belly board and get back on but in her panic she began splashing which pushed the board further away.

Jon explains what happened next: “Yaron saw that Charlotte was distressed and jumped into the sea. He swam out to Charlotte and began to circle around her, so that she could grab hold of his collar, before swimming back to shore.

“Charlotte’s dad was nearby in a canoe and helped to bring them both safely back to the shore and neither were hurt, just a bit soggy! Charlotte was over the moon with Yaron, telling anyone and everyone that he had saved her life. This isn’t what a guide dog is trained to do but Yaron went beyond the call of duty and is certainly a winner to me and my family.”