Guide dogs - Using a CAT to make a dog

If you've seen one of the 4,500 guide dog partnerships in the UK in action, you'll know that guide dogs are truly remarkable animals. We are committed to providing dogs to all those who can benefit, for as long as they need one, but breeding the number of dogs needed is a real challenge.

There’s perhaps an idea that you simply pair up a boy and girl, turn down the lights, throw on some Barry White and the rest will take care of itself. But it’s far more complicated than that.  For starters there is actually a very small window when the bitch is at her optimum time for mating.

On top of this, guide dogs need quite specific character traits, such as a willingness to please and adaptability. And as much as you might think that this is at the whim of nature, in reality it’s a lot more scientific.

Some of the most important work happens in our reproductive lab (that’s laboratory, not Labrador) where we are able optimise the chances of successful mating. Our aim is to produce a puppy that’s equal to the quality of its parents, if not even better.

In doing this we are making use of technology in a new character assessment test (or, rather ironically, CAT) which tests a dog in the core elements of compliance, environmental awareness, and willingness.  It’s not a pass or fail situation as such, but it gives a fairly reliable indication of whether a dog will be suitable both as a guide dog and as brood stock.

Some breeds of dog are predisposed to particular health problems. Labradors, for example, can be prone to an eye condition called PRA. Advances in screening mean there is now a genetic test that can help us when selecting dogs for the breeding programme.

We have a high success rate in terms of the number of puppies who “make it” as guide dogs. But we are committed to increasing this number and in turn the number of guide dog partnerships.

Our current, world-leading breeding facility is 40 years old and cannot support such growth. Consequently we are investing a brand new, purpose built, state-of-the-art breeding centre, adjacent to the existing site. The importance of this project cannot be underestimated – it will be central to increasing the number of guide dogs we can produce and in turn, the number of blind and partially sighted people’s lives that we can help improve for the better.

The new breeding centre will open this summer and subsequently there will also be a visitor centre where you can learn more about the breeding process first hand. Details of when the visitors centre will be open will be available soon. So if you found this blog of interest, it’s an experience to look forward to.