Celebrating years of service - South African Guide Dog Association

Freedom
Mobility
Independence
R14.95
Companionship
issue two
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 
Proudly sponsored by
Celebrating
years
of service
Reports
Cape Town, Durban,
Kennels and Puppy
Raising
“A TRULY
GREAT
MAN…”
Tribute to Ken Lord
3-2013
195
Official Publication of the South African Guide-Dogs Association for the Blind
IV E R S A R
Y
A
NN
          
CONTENTS
4 Ed’s note
A word from Arleen Lord
6 KZN Report
What has been happening on
the East Coast?
12 Books
Good reads
14 Golfing for Guide-Dogs
The SAGA Golf Day was a big
success
16 Diamond Jubilee Concert
A night to be remembered
19 Dog Diary
Shana and her mom head to Cape Town
Blind agility competitor
tells us her story
34 Kennels and Puppy
Raising Report
Turning puppies into guide dogs
36 Meet the team
Our amazing staff
39 Interview
Meet Urs Honegger
40 Fuss-free furry friends
Dogs that are easy to care for
20 Tribute
43 Puzzles
22 Eye care
44 Q&A
24 CT Report
46 COM Report
Ken Lord – a great man
Protect your child’s eyes
Dinners, school visits and
fundraisers
Publisher: Panorama Publications / Animaltalk
Editor: Arleen Lord ˚ Assistant Editor: Deanne Dudley
Studio Manager: Paul Kotze ˚ Designer: Cronje du Toit
Senior Sub-editor: Vanessa Koekemoer ˚ Sub-editors: Nicolette Els,
Noleen Fourie ˚ Advertising: 011 468 2090, [email protected]
Jan - Dec 2012
20, 782(Total)
30 Against the odds
Try our Sudoku
Behaviour questions answered
The College of Mobility has come a
long way
South African Guide-Dogs Association Head Office and Training Centre:
126 Wroxham Road, Rietfontein, 2IR, Sandton, PO Box 67585, Bryanston, 2021
Tel: 011 705 3512 Fax: 086 506 3364 Email:[email protected]
SA Guide-Dogs
@SAGuide_Dogs
Cape Town Office: PO Box 2674, Clareinch, 7740 Tel: 021 674 7395
Fax: 021 674 7397 ˚ Durban Office: PO Box 1267, Umkomaas, 4170
Tel: 083 654 2049 Fax: 086 580 3785 ˚ Website: www.guidedog.org.za
College of Orientation and Mobility: 011 705 3512
Friend in Harness is produced and sponsored by
Ed’s Note
Our legend
In the first issue of
Friend in Harness this
year it was incorrectly
stated that the first
Service Dog and
Social Dog were
trained in 1996. It was,
in fact, in 1994. We
apologise for the error.
Calling
all
book
lovers
DATES TO DIARISE
We urgently
need your
help with all
your unwanted
books –
please send
them our way
as we need
them for our
book stall at
our Family
Fun Day. If
you can’t
deliver (in the
Johannesburg
area) please
contact us
and we will
collect. Call
011 705 3512.
We are waiting
to hear from
you.
4
AUGUST 2013 EDITORIAL
The Diamond Jubilee Year is progressing well
with two very successful events already done.
Further on in this Friend in Harness you will
read about the Golf Day and the Diamond
Jubilee Concert. Later in the year we have
other events taking place which I will cover in
the next Friend in Harness and also report on
the 10 years since the Golden Jubilee.
Christmas is fast approaching and the
Christmas brochure is included in this edition.
Some information for you regarding orders –
Ingenuit is responsible for posting, so please
phone them if you have any queries.
You will also find ‘‘My School Card’’
applications inside. We have had numerous
enquiries as to how much money we have
received from individuals and that you have
not received receipts or a letter of thanks.
We do not get this information from the
organisers as we just get a payment of the
money raised. So please forgive us, we cannot
do individual letters of thanks. We are however
very grateful for your support.
I hope you enjoy meeting the staff of 2013.
I last did one in 2003, and many new faces
have joined us since then. Many laughs were
enjoyed among staff of “Is that you?!”, “Gee,
you have, um… changed – matured!”
Our Annual Open Day will be held early next
year, so books are still very welcome.
Wishing you a healthy and happy festive
season with your family, friends and loved
ones.
Our legend
It is with great sadness that I have to tell you
that my beloved Ken passed away suddenly on
25 July. A much loved father and grandfather.
In accordance to Ken’s wishes, we had a
memorial service on 3 August in the gardens
at the Training Centre, attended by more than
500 people. The deluge of emails, cards and
letters, both locally and internationally, have
been overwhelming and have in some small
way helped us to come to terms with our
incredible loss.
To the chairman and committee and to all
the staff at SAGA, a very special thank you
from the Lord family for your love and support
during this sad time. We will pick up the
pieces and persevere, as Ken would expect us
to – Our Legend.
Arleen Lord
• Western Cape Cavendish Charity Book Sale on 26 Sep 2013 • KwaZulu Natal Garden Show on 27 Sep 2013
• Gauteng Diamond Jubilee Spring Ball at Montecasino on 28 Sep 2013 • Gauteng AGM on 1 Oct 2013 • Gauteng Hobby-Ex Midrand 3 to 6 Oct 2013
• Western Cape The International Boat Show – CTICC on 4 Oct 2013 • Western Cape Long Cane Rally – Camps Bay on 19 Oct 2013
• Western Cape Outdoor Expo – Stellenbosch on 25 Oct 2013 • Gauteng Graduation on 1 December 2013
• Western Cape Golf Day – Royal Golf Club on 28 Mar 2014
Further information can be obtained by contacting the SAGA’s Johannesburg Office on 011 705 3512 or 0860 100 922
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You can make a difference
Here’s another way
you can support the
Guide Dogs – subscribe
to Animaltalk Magazine!
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KZN Report
WHAT’S BEEN
HAPPENING IN KZN?
A message from Di Turner
W
ell here we go again, and
my, the years seem to be
flying past so much quicker!
I have just determind that this is my
13th report! It really should be easier
by now! So here goes.
This year we were
lucky to have the
World of Dogs and
Cats in February
and they donated
a stand to us. A big
thank you to Sharon
and Brian Blades
for the opportunity
to be there. I did a
number of demos,
very ably assisted by
Wiseman Ndwandwe and Jenny Puffett, and
they went down very well. Other guide dog
owners also came along to help and chat
and the car ticket sales were great. It’s been
a while since we’ve been together at a show
in Durban.
We raffled a quilt donated by the Sew
Wot Quilters and this was won by Kurt
Miller. The two teddies, donated by a
Teddytech lady, were won by Jennifer van
der Merwe, and the ice-cream maker by
Tony Moodley. I hope they are all enjoying
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their prizes. A big thank you to the donors!
The biggie, The Royal Show, was even
better than before this year! We sold
R38,380 in car tickets, a really sterling effort
by all the volunteers who came to help. Here
I must say a big thank you to the regulars
who came most days, guide dog owners
Gail and Robin with Kenya and Hudson,
Tracy who took leave to come and help,
Penny, and all those who came and donated
a few hours of their time. You have no idea
how much it is appreciated as it’s a long
10 days. The ‘Maritzburg public support
us fantastically every year and really are a
great bunch of people.
This year we also had a lovely Honda Brio
on display. It was lent to us by Fury Honda
of PMB. Many thanks to them as well – it
really made a big difference having it there.
We also had help from new guide dog
owner Johan Minnie and his dog Dobby – it
was lovely having a new dog around again.
The PRO dog, Dougal, was injured on duty
(well, he was playing with a tug actually)
and bled copiously over everything. We
managed to work out that he’d ripped a
nail off and got him to the vet. He spent
one day with a bandage on and the last few
days walked around with a purple foot from
Gentian Violet. He did, however, enjoy all
the sympathy he received.
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2
3
Did you
know?
4
Despite
the La its name,
bred in brador was
N
Hence wewfoundland.
h
known a y he is also
sS
Newfou t. Johns
ndland
1 Ian
Anderson
and Zen at
Wodac
[pic: 2012 Golf Day
The Garden Show was longer than last
year due to a public holiday so that meant we
missed the lovely Hilton Arts Festival, but we
will be back this year in September! We sold
enough quilt raffle tickets to sponsor a puppy.
The two quilts made by the Kloof Quilters and
the Scottburgh Quilting Guild were finally
won by Margaret David and Janet from PMB.
Once again the Christmas card and calendar
seekers were disappointed as I had no stock.
This year will be the same I am afraid, so
you need to fill out the order forms in the
brochures and post them off early to avoid
disappointment as no branches are keeping
stock anymore.
Although it is noticeable that the economy
and petrol price are affecting the average person,
2013
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2
2 Jenny
Puffett and
Gracie at
the
Highland
Gathering
3 Receiving
a cheque
from the
Nomads
Bowlers
we did a number of smaller shows and a
thank you is in order for all the donated stalls.
Baynesfield had a couple of open days and
the Lions Highland Gathering is always a
successful day. We had the Pennington May
Day Fair, and I have just finished the Lions
Port Shepstone Show and this year the
weather really did its thing. After no rain for
three months it bucketed down on Thursday,
leaving the grounds a foot deep in mud and
water. Cars couldn’t get in or out so the show
opened very late on Friday. Saturday and
Sunday were noticeably quieter than normal.
However, a big thank you to the Lions for the
stall and the opportunity to take part.
Last year’s street collection was back again
in July this year and what a cold, cloudy,
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4 Robin
Giles and
Hudson at
Cars in the
Park
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KZN Report
1
2
1 Jenny
receiving
the
drawings
from the
Durban
Girls School
2 Robin
and Gail
receiving a
sponsorship
from the
Hilton Lions
3 Di and
Lauren
receiving a
cheque
from the
North
Durban
Lions
4 1st prize
winner
Busisiwe
Mkhize’s
drawing
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windy day it was! The collection raised
R20,200. There were 64 tins out at 16 centres.
We had 46 people collecting. Thank you to
everyone who turned out to hold a tin for
us on a freezing day! A number of centres
did not allow street collections again, and
Murphy’s law, it’s always the big ones where
we traditionally do very well. This year I
booked for July again, and only once I started
getting permissions did I discover the council
had double-booked two charities for the
same day. The end result was that our street
collection was moved to 2 November, so don’t
worry – I will be contacting you to help if you
are on my list.
Our Golf Day last year was held on one of
the few days that it didn’t rain and we raised
enough to sponsor a dog and maybe a leg!
We had 19 four-balls so it was a fair field.
Thanks to all the golfers and the prize sponsors
for their support in making it a success and
Umdoni for having us again! The blind putting
competition again proved very popular with
much hilarity and apparently dreadful tasting
schnapps. A special thank you must go to
Debbie from Westville Vet who, when she
heard I was battling for prizes, waved a magic
wand and got a whole lot of fantastic stuff from
their suppliers. Amazing! This year we are at
Umdoni Country Club in Pennington again
and the date is 25 October. So please golfers,
rally around and support us. All prizes will be
most welcome!
h arn e ss
I ran the art competition again last year
and would like to thank the schools that
entered. We had very few entries, but those
few entries were AMAZING!
The work went on exhibition at The
Garden Show at the beginning of October and
attendees showed considerable interest! Here
are the winners in the two categories I had
entries for:
Group 3: 13-16 years old
1st – Busisiwe Mkhize, 16 years old, Durban Girls’ High
2nd – Melissa Pattinson, 15 years old,
Durban Girls’ High
3rd – Tyrelle Peter, 13 years old, Wembley College
Group 2: 9-12 years old
1st – Rena Tajiri, 11 years old, Crawford Prep La Lucia
2nd – Robin Yang, 12 years old, Crawford Prep La Lucia
Highly commended
• K iera Lander, 12 years old, Crawford Prep La Lucia
•M
ikail Jassat, 12 years old, Crawford Prep La Lucia
• K elsey Chelin, 12 years old,
Crawford Prep La Lucia
•N
icole du Preez, 12 years old, Crawford Prep La Lucia
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• I would like to thank Adams &
Co who sponsored the book
prizes. Thank you once again
for your entries and hard work –
the results are testimony to that!
I am hoping to finally pull the
‘walk’ together. Unfortunately my
volunteer who knows the actual
walk has ended up in hospital twice,
so we’re concocting a new plan of
action. Watch the website for details!
This past year saw us firmly on
the Womens Institute ‘‘invite to talk’’
list. Jenny and I spent the times with
the various ladies who always seem
to make the best egg sarmies and
just love the dogs to bits. We have
also visited a number of schools
which we always enjoy, and here
I would like to thank Robin Giles
and Hudson who continue to do the
‘Maritzburg schools as it saves me a
lot of petrol. Big thanks to Flick who
drives him. To anyone reading this
who has contacts at schools please
invite us to do a talk. Most schools
seem to tie it in with teaching about
senses and we do touch on that
as well, and of course we always
take the dogs who prove to be very
popular with the kids.
A special thank you to my
2013
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daughter and son-in-law would
be in order as well for housesitting when I am at shows as it’s a
demanding job looking after four
dogs (one of whom is Doogs) and
five cats! Also to Jenny Puffett who
still accompanies me to most of the
talks as she has the disadvantage of
living close by!
So in this, our 60th anniversary
year, it is my opportunity to thank
all those who have assisted, donated,
sponsored and simply supported
us in different ways over the last
year, and the previous 60! It is an
absolute nightmare that I might
forget someone, so can I just say a
heartfelt thanks to EVERYONE.
You are all stars! I wouldn’t be able
to do the events I do without all your
help and support!
Di Turner 083 654 2049
THANK YOU to all these very
special people, companies,
funds, trusts and of course,
SPONSORSHIPS!
Nomad Bowlers, Vintage Sports Car
Club for a stall at Cars in the Park
and a donation, Chatsworth Diabetes
Assoc., Royal Durban Golf Club ladies
section, Mt Edgecombe Country Club
ladies section, Murray & Roberts,
Indemnity Club, Indwe Risk Services,
Mr and Mrs Gorven, Smith’s Plastics,
Zebbies Lighting, Teddytech and
Springbok Trucking.
Schools
Athlone Park Primary who are very
close to their 10th dog, Maris Stella
grade ones, Warner Beach Primary,
Durban Girls’ High who donated
two wonderful drawings to us, New
Hanover Prep, Our Lady of Fatima,
St Nicholas, Umdoni Pre-Primary,
Crawford Prep La Lucia, Merchiston
Prep, Makabongwe Pre-Primary,
Stepping Stones Academy, Embury
High for continuing with the can
top initiative, St John’s Primary, Van
Riebeeck Park Primary and New
England Pre-Primary.
Donors
First Cool, Lubrizol, Les and John Hay,
Tom Weton who swam the Midmar
Mile for us and Standard Bank,
Westville Vet Clinic for their ongoing
initiatives and support and 31 Club.
Service clubs
Amanzimtoti Lions for a stall at the
Highland Gathering, North Durban
Lions, Azalea Lioness Club, Westville
Rotary, Lions Club of Hilton, Lions
Club of Port Shepstone, Rotary
Club of Kloof, and all the trusts and
foundations, including the Victor Daitz
Foundation.
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KZN Report
1
1 Doogs trying to
work out golf
2 Doogs at Cars in the Park
Report from Dougal –
extraterrestrial special
KZN PRO TOP DOG
Hi everyone,
My name is Doogs, the one and only
PRO dog for this KZN place, or so
she tells me. She is HERSELF – who
controls ‘thefoodandtreatsandkennelonwheels’. I must say she’s okay as
Herselfs go and she does melt when
I turn on my ‘‘I really didn’t mean it’’
look. (He he, I am getting that taped!)
I came here a while ago and the
minute I got out the kennelonwheels
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it was HEY! PARTY TIME! Dogs to
play with, these things called cats,
and amazing asking-to-be-chased
things in trees who hang their long
tails down. Herself tells me I landed
with my butt in the butter – I guess
that’s the stuff that belongs to the
wrappers I take out of the bin and
then Herself says rude things to me.
Well my ‘‘earn your dog food’’ thing
is to go to these places with Herself
– and meet all these people. That’s
okay. They all tell me I’m beautiful
and so well behaved and, of course, I
have to make Herself look silly when
she tells everyone how naughty I am.
I behave beautifully of course – it
kills me I might add. I reckon this
deserves a Guide Dog PRO/acting
medal of some sort. I only blew it
once when we walked into a room at
one of those places with lots of little
people with interestingbagswithfood and there were these amazing
couches – just asking for a dog to
cuddle on them – which I did and
Herself yanked me off very fast and
said things like ‘‘verysorry’’ to people
there. Hoooweee I knew I’d blown
it… no idea why of course, ‘cause I
do it at home – and these couches
were much better – like Herself ’s soft
chewy shoes nogal!
Oh and there was the other time
we went to the little people place
and we were waiting in this boring
room when WHOOWEEE this
bouncy thing ran past the door
and me and my friend Gracie, who
belongs to the lady who puts that
funnythingonGracie’sback, both
saw it and we thought the same
thing: BREAKFAST! I’ve never seen
anything like it before but aaahhhh...
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the smell! All my ancestors spoke to
me with one voice and said, “Get IT!!
Eat IT!!” Herself wasn’t impressed,
neither was the lady who puts things
on Gracie’s back and they both said
something like ‘trust us to go to a
school that has a pet rabbit running
around.’ Me? I say bring it on!
Ja, so all in all life’s not too bad. On
the days when we get up late, LittleHerself comes to visit and that’s great
fun! She comes with Himself who
GO already!’ But she can be very
stubborn. Oh and that’s just the best
thing for me! Swimming and chasing
balls! Hey, I look sooooo cool! I try
and tell Herself every day that we
need to go but she says ‘Ýou’re too
much to handle’ so we only go when
Little-Herself comes.
So ja, Herself and me have a bit
of a blast – I got a bit worried the
other day ‘cause she said if I didn’t
behave she would give me the snip
smellslikethesea and they stay and it’s
lekker! Little-Herself says things like
‘Let’s go to…’ and what more does
a dog need I ask you? I set the girls
and the ‘little white *^&**’ off with
barking and eventually the Herselves
give up and take us with and we
shout the whole way and tell all the
dogs behind gates that we’re going
off to play! Dunno why but Herself
gets very tetchy! Sometimes it lasts
‘until we’re on the beach too. I keep
jumping up and telling her ‘Lemme
– what does she expect when she
takes me to places with these ultracool chickabees? Take Gracie – man
she has ears to die for. Then there
is Kenya – waaay cool chick but
before I could get my act together
I hurt my paw so Herself said “no
roughhousing.” And Hudson, well
that’s a very interesting dude… nudge
nudge, wink wink...
But of course there’s Herself who
has to be answered to…
Last week Herself said I out
I behave beautifully of course – kills me I might
add – reckon this deserves a Guide Dog PRO/
acting medal of some sort.
2013
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did myself, and actually I thought
the same thing. We went and did
‘shopping’ and what me and the
others call ‘bark and be mean to
everyone who walks past’ time –
it’s great fun – you should try it
sometime. On the way back I knew
I didn’t have much time – I mean I
have the route taped after all this time
and I decided it was now or never
and attacked the funnybags they put
in the back. My but they hunt some
funny stuff! My favourite thing is to
take the tops off those crunchy bottles
– what they call Coke – hey, had it
buttoned up in seconds. A funnysmelling bottle I left alone – smells
like the kitchen floor after Herself has
‘mopped it up’ – and something called
oats wasn’t promising after I got in
there. I was going for the chocolate
when I hit the jackpot! A carton!
Took the top off and VOILA! Lovely
milk – all over! Me and the girls had
fun licking it up! Oh boy was Herself
TEED off! I jumped out of the car with
the bottle to show the Herselves how
clever I’d been and they, well actually,
they changed colour! Shouted things
like ‘sour milk smells’ – but hey, me
and the girls were cool… and full –
the girls disappeared very fast... after
Herself shouted at me I knew why!
We also do some days when all
Herself ’s friends say ‘support guide
dogs – R20 a ticket’ or something
like that. I tend to block it out after
a few days – you know – same old,
same old.
So I guess that’s enough from
me for the Arleen lady that Herself
has been cursing, don’t know what’s
so hard about writing a report…
but of course Herself can’t write
like me – I am the one and only…
DOOGELICIOUS!
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Books
BOOKS
History, handwriting and
hilarity
How can I support the
South African Guide-Dogs Association?
    
   
The South African Guide-Dogs Association is a non-profit
organisation that is wholly dependent on donations from
you, the public, as well as corporate support. There are
several ways in which you can get involved with this worthy
organisation and make a difference in someone’s life:
Volunteer work
Hundreds of volunteers give of their valuable time to
assist the South African Guide-Dogs Association with
various tasks, ranging from office administration to
helping with fundraising.
Fundraising
SAGA is responsible for raising its own funds and does
this in various ways, such as tin collections, events and
happenings at the various centres, donations (once-off
or per debit order), codicils to existing wills and glitzy
corporate functions.
Membership
Members of the general public also have the special
chance to become a member of SAGA. Your
contribution helps to train a potential guide dog who
will add more freedom to the life of someone who is
visually impaired!
Collar and Tie Club
For a more exclusive touch, you can join the Collar
and Tie Club, whose purpose is to offer substantial
cash prizes annually to caring donors in return for an
annual membership fee of R600. All remaining funds
not won in the monthly draws, and the two additional
bi-annual ‘Elite’ draws, are used to purchase, breed
and train guide dogs.
Advertising
Why not advertise in this magazine? It's another source of
income for SAGA; you are welcome to contact our
advertising sales representative on 011 021 0838.
12
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A History of the World
By Andrew Marr
Our understanding of world history is
changing as new discoveries are made on all
the continents and old prejudices are being
challenged. In this book Andrew Marr revisits
some of the traditional epic stories, from
classical Greece
and Rome to the
rise of Napoleon,
but surrounds
them with less
familiar material,
from Peru to the
Ukraine, China to
the Caribbean. He
looks at cultures
that have failed
and vanished,
as well as the
origins of today’s
superpowers, and
finds surprising echoes and parallels across
vast distances and epochs.
This book focuses on the great changemakers of history and their times, people
such as Cleopatra, Genghis Khan, Galileo and
Mao, but it is also a book about the present.
For the better we understand how rulers
lose touch with reality and why revolutions
produce dictators more often than they
produce happiness, or why some parts of the
world are richer than others, the easier it is to
understand our own times.
The Missing Ink
By Philip Hensher
The Missing Ink is a smart, funny book
about the rise and slow death of the art of
handwriting, and why it still matters. The
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simple pleasure of picking up a pen
and writing is a skill that has existed
for thousands of years – but that
skill is slowly dying. Where once
we would have reached for a pen
and paper to commit our innermost
thoughts to a diary, to send a letter
home or to slip a note to a loved
one, instead we now stare at tiny
screens, typing with our thumbs.
And all that typing looks the same.
This is a book about the
characters who shaped our
handwriting, and how it in turn
shaped us. From Victorian idealists
preaching the moral worth of
italic copperplate to great modern
educational reformists, throughout
history the style in which we write
has influenced the way we learn,
behave and communicate.
But this is also a book about
the physical act itself, about the
pots of ink and treasure pens that
we used to take for granted, and
whether the style of our writing
really does reveal anything about
our true selves. Witty and thoughtprovoking, The Missing Ink is in
itself a love letter to the warmest of
technologies, and the place it still
has in our lives.
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Lost at Sea: The Jon
Ronson Mysteries
By Jon Ronson
Jon Ronson has been on patrol with
America’s real-life superheroes and
to a UFO convention in the Nevada
Desert with Robbie Williams. He’s
interviewed a robot and asked her if
she has a soul. He’s travelled to the
Alaskan theme town of North Pole
to investigate a high school massmurder plot. He’s met a man who
tried to split the atom in his kitchen
and another who’s preparing to
welcome the aliens to Earth.
Ronson is fascinated by madness,
strange behaviour and the human
mind, and he has spent his life
exploring mysterious events and
meeting extraordinary people.
Frequently hilarious, sometimes
disturbing, always entertaining,
these compelling stories of the
chaos that lies on the fringe of our
daily lives will have you wondering
just what we’re capable of.
SUDOKU
Answers for page 43
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Events
4
GOLF
GUIDE DOGS
A great
success
1
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he 25th Annual Charity Guide-Dogs Golf Day was held at the Kyalami
Country Club on 7 June 2013 and if last year was one for the record
books, this year’s event exceeded that by far – in all respects.
The field was fully booked about three
months in advance and teams were
thoroughly entertained and spoiled as they
made their way through the course. There
were 35 four-ball teams who battled it out for
the much-coveted title and, unlike last year’s
cold front that moved in, the weather could
not have been more perfect – sunny and blue
skies throughout.
Our generous sponsors ensured that every
team left with a wonderful prize on the night.
The auction items ranged from a Mauritius
holiday to a fabulous Persian carpet and
raised a record amount on the night, thanks
to the persuasive powers of auctioneer Iain
Banner.
The winner of the 2013 tournament
was ‘Chai’ from Investec Property. Teams
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competed in various categories, ranging from
the longest drive to nearest the pin and best
dressed.
Rosette Chetty, Fundraising and Marketing
Officer at the SA Guide-Dogs, commented:
“I am sincerely grateful to everyone who
supported the SA Guide-Dogs golf day
and took part in this most spectacular
day. We have raised the most ever in any
one single event hosted by Guide-Dogs
and even surpassed our goal of raising
25 dog sponsorships, which is a fantastic
achievement for all involved.”
On behalf of the SA Guide-Dogs, thank
you to ALL our sponsors, four-ball teams,
volunteers and puppy walkers. A special
THANK YOU to our friends Martin and
Sharon Banner and the organising team:
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1 Gypsey
checking out
the golf
course
3
4
5
2 Taking a
shot
3 Probity
Phida
4 The
welcome
table
6
7
8
9
5 Putting
under
blindfold
6 Animaltalk
publisher Urs
Honegger
collecting his
prize
7 Porsche
display on the
putting green
8 Mandla
Nxumalo and
Leon
Bunguza
9 Nishane
Raghunandan
and Lerato
Masemola
Dodi Hockley, Elizabeth van Straaten,
Glenda Rae, Helena Pires, Julie Williamson and
Vanessa Hickey for their efforts in assisting with
preparations for this most memorable occasion.
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Events
THE DIAMOND
JUBILEE CONCERT
A remarkable evening of entertainment
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T
hus far, the Guide-Dogs
Jubilee Year has been filled
with highlights from the
Twinings Tea Party for couples
celebrating 60 years of marriage, to
our Golf Day where golfers
overwhelmed us with their
generosity. But the star-studded
Diamond Jubilee Concert in June
drew the most accolades of all.
The gala concert was the brainchild of the
astounding Mixael de Kock who is visually
challenged as a result of being attacked
by intruders in his home. Mixael was
able to convince over 250 artists to give
of themselves without remuneration for
the 150-minute extravaganza. The Joburg
Theatre provided the venue for two days,
fully staffed and equipped, without cost to
the South African Guide-Dogs Association.
It was a totally sold-out house with an
audience that included 18 of our four-legged
friends who graced the stage in the finale.
Besides the performers giving of their time,
12 sponsors provided the necessaries for
transporting and feeding the two orchestras
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as well as designing and printing the
programmes.
The evening commenced with an
overture by the University of Pretoria’s
70-piece orchestra, conducted by Graham
Scott. The staging, with its magnificent
sets, was done by Ivor Jones. A 25-piece
orchestra, also from the University of
Pretoria, accompanied by Wessel van Wyk,
thrilled with an outstanding rendition
of George Gershwins’s Rhapsody in Blue.
Renowned soloists Angela Kilian, Samantha
Peo, Sibongile Mngoma, Cito, Judy Page,
Abigail Kubeka and young Rochelle
Veenemans graced the programme with
their spellbinding talents.
The event featured dancing by ballet
company SA Mzansi Ballet as well as the
astounding Tshwane Dance Theatre. The
former performed, for the first time ever, an
extract from their forthcoming production,
Cinderella, while Tshwane mesmerised the
audience with their Rain Queen Legends
of South Africa. Forte from the Black Tie
Ensemble moved the audience with You
Raise Me Up. On the lighter side, a comic
spoof was staged by Tony Bentel, Mark
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Did you
know?
The ve
were b ry first Labs
stars on lack with white
the
white so ir chests and
cks
on their or dots
paws.
1 Dave,
Beverly Parker,
Pieter van
Niekerk and
Veronica
Schnippenkotter
2 Trixie-Belle,
Charles and
Jayne Nicolle
3 Florence
Bilsland and
Jayne Nicolle
4 Dackley
Merafe (College
of Orientation
and Mobility)
5 Hamish
and Gibson
6 Willow
and Elliot
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5
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Events
2 Carolyn Steyn and Daphne Kuhn
3 Morag Cardoso and Hamish
4 Barry and Monica Steen with
pups Lucy and Lotus
5 Dackley Merafe, Jacques Pienaar
and Alson Maphosa
6 Des and Dawn Lindberg with the
late Mixael de Kock
2
3
4
1 Performers of the SA Mzansi Ballet Company
Hawkins, Steven van Niekerk and
Sibu Radebe with their rendition
of Swan Lake. Mark Banks and
Robert Whitehead provided
additional laughs. Michael de
Pinna of Vodacom fame linked
some of the performances
with further humour as he was
accompanied by Anne Power,
Fiona Ramsay, Louise St Clair,
Harry Sideropoulos and Michael
Richard, who sent up Shakespeare
with an extract from the musical
Kiss Me Kate.
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The South African Guide-Dogs
Association marketing manager
Pieter van Niekerk ended the
night with a feature by the various
entities at Guide-Dogs including
trainers, puppy walkers and
members of our Orientation and
Mobility College. He also proposed
a vote of thanks to the audience
and especially to all those
supporters who, over the years,
have played such an important
role in ensuring the Association’s
existence and sustainability.
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6
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Pet care
THE DOG
DIARIES
Me, Mom and Cape Town
W
hen Mom told me last
November that we were
going to Cape Town on
holiday in February and by
ourselves, I was terribly worried. l
only knew that Cape Town was very
far away. How was I meant to lead
her to a place I’d never been to?
Mom said: “Not to worry – the
Guide-Dogs Association and the
travel agent will help us.” My Mom
sometimes knows what she’s doing
so I left her in charge of making the
arrangements.
A big taxi, just for us and driven by Kenneth,
arrived at our house at 6:10am and took us to
the airport. Everyone was so kind and helpful
and the staff of Mango were truly wonderful.
We arrived in Cape Town at lunchtime
and were driven to the lovely Winchester
Mansions Hotel. Lots of nice people there too
– they all told me how beautiful and clever I
am. Really nice people.
Eish. Have you been to Cape Town?
Things I’d never seen or smelled in my
whole life – the sea, the sand and all those
strange swimming creatures. It was so
exciting and I loved every second of it. We
walked and walked and walked. We were
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also taken by friends to all sorts of places like
Chapman’s Peak and the V&A Waterfront. The
Waterfront is fun but I don’t
like jazz much. Mom says
the food at the hotel was
scrumptious. I think the
wines were good there too.
They must have been – she
drank a lot of it.
I slept for two days when
we arrived home and on
the third day I had to have
a bath because the boring
humans in my life said that
my coat was full of sand. I
like sand. I didn’t even get
a crummy ice-cream on my
holiday – why couldn’t I
keep the sand?
We are going again
next year and if Mom still
refuses to buy me even one
small piece of kingklip,
I’m not taking her for any
walks, anywhere, any time.
Thank you to everyone who so willingly
helped make our stay in Cape Town the
holiday of a lifetime.
With love, Shana
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Tribute
KEN LORD
A GREAT, GREAT MAN
A tribute delivered by the Chairman of SAGA, Mr Dave Parker
I
t is indeed an honour for me to
say a few words today on behalf
of the South African Guide-Dogs
Association for the Blind.
I first met Ken at a
business meeting
some 11 years ago.
As was my way I
did my homework
prior to the meeting
and found out that
Ken’s background
was one of training
dogs. Being rather
busy at the time I
decided that, with
Ken’s obvious lack of
business knowledge,
it would be a very
easy meeting so I
prepared no further.
How wrong I was!
Ken twisted me
around his little
finger and had me
agreeing to whatever
he wanted.
I learnt two valuable lessons that day 11
years ago. Never underestimate anyone, but
particularly never underestimate Ken Lord.
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Over the intervening years I got
to know Ken a lot better and
we became good friends. Even
knowing him as well as I did I
can still only marvel:
•about this man who dedicated 53 years of his
life to the visually impaired community of this
country, all this time with SAGA.
•about this man who served as Executive
Director of SAGA for 35 years.
•about this man who was the first recipient
of the prestigious International Guide-Dog
Federation Award for his services to the
worldwide guide-dog mobility community.
•about this man who was Chairman of the
International Federation for seven years until
his retirement.
•about this man who, in 1999, received the
Paul Harris Fellowship Award from Rotary.
•about this man who, in 2001, received a
second award from Rotary… this time the
Paul Harris Sapphire Fellowship Award.
•about this man who received an award
from the SA Blind Workers Organisation for
a lifetime of outstanding service to visually
impaired people.
•about this man who had the vision to open
the College of Orientation and Mobility, this as
a first in Africa.
•about this man who, upon his retirement in
2004, was awarded the RW Bowen Award for
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a lifetime of service to the visually impaired.
•about this man who, after formally retiring,
had the humility to return to work to continue
serving the disadvantaged communities. I
have particular admiration for Ken in that
even after his retirement and already having
suffered a few setbacks in his health he was
still happy to get into a SAGA vehicle and
travel into the rural areas to carry on his work.
Amazing, but then Ken was always amazing!
Ken was not a university graduate but he
was an intellectual who totally understood
the business he was in and its complexities.
Despite Ken’s lack of formal business
education he built on our founder Gladys
Evans’ original vision and turned the South
African Guide-Dog Association into what
it is today: A highly successful, financially
viable, well-respected and fully functional
organisation constantly achieving its aims of
serving the visually and physically impaired.
As has been said, Gladys Evans was
the founder of the Association, but Ken
will always be known as the father of the
Association as we know it today!
I am aware that it is my task today to talk
about Ken’s achievements relative to SAGA
and his role within the Association, but I
also wish to talk about Ken himself and the
influence his personality and approach has
had on the success of the Association.
Ken was a very strong character and an
exemplary leader, leading the Association
by example with dignity, compassion and
humility. He was not only a true leader in
the guide-dog world, but in life in general.
As can be seen from the results of the
Association, he made things happen and got
things done and so created a huge legacy for
us to follow and to build upon.
First and foremost, however, Ken was a
true people’s person… although he worked
with dogs I believe he always placed people
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first, he understood his audience and
could converse with professionals and the
marginalised communities alike. He never
patronised anyone, he never faked, he never
pretended.
He was Ken Lord!
Ken, with Arleen’s backing, understood
that running the residence here at GuideDogs like a family home rather than like
an institution made a massive difference to
the experience of people in training with
their dogs. This is a perfect example of Ken’s
understanding and knowledge of people.
Ken and Arleen were a super, hospitable
team as many guide-dog owners who passed
through this Training Centre will testify.
Ken was an exceptionally rounded
person. His passion for serving the
disadvantaged never overtook his
commitment to his family so much so that
I believe his extremely strong family values
made his work with the visually impaired
that much more successful.
Finally, the wonderful participation of
family, friends, colleagues and associates
here today and the huge amount of tributes
that have poured in over the last week must
be a true testament to the esteem in which
Ken was held by the community, not only
here in South Africa but worldwide.
Arleen, Tracy, Rory, Leigh-Anne,
Anthony, your spouses and the seven
grandchildren, you can be sincerely proud
of this wonderful man who gave so much of
himself and his life to the service of those
less fortunate than himself.
Today I pay tribute to a truly great man, a
true icon of our society.
Charles Kenneth Lord, rest in
peace. We will sorely miss you.
Saturday 3 August 2013; Dave Parker
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Health
PROTECTING
YOUR CHILD’S EYES
In about 80% of cases blindness is preventable if treatment is
received as soon as possible. In children this is usually before the age
of six, when the brain and the eyes are still developing.
U
nfortunately many children’s eye problems are only picked up once they
start school, and in some cases this may be too late. ORBIS has
compiled this checklist so that parents and caregivers can detect
possible eye problems and act quickly.
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The child’s eye
Look regularly and carefully at the eye for
any of these warning signs:
• A white pupil or white spot on the pupil
•Not being able to fix eyes and follow a moving
object such as a finger or toy
•One or both eyes being bigger or smaller than
usual
•Crossed eyes or one eye looking in another
direction
•Redness of the eye and around the eye and/
or crustiness
• Swelling or inflammation
• Excessive watering
• Protruding or sticking out
The child’s behaviour
Does the child:
•Smile and focus on your face by the time they
are three months old?
•Cover or close one eye when trying to focus
on something?
•Hold objects close or get very close to the TV,
computer or blackboard?
• Have trouble reading or doing close-up work?
• Tilt or angle the head when trying to focus?
•Complain things are blurred or difficult to see?
•Squint or frown when concentrating and/or
looking at things in the distance?
• See double?
• Have jerky eye movements?
•Rub their eyes a lot or complain of sore, itchy
or scratchy eyes?
What can parents and
caregivers do to protect
eye health?
•Check that the ‘Eye’ section of the
child’s Road to Health Clinic Card
is completed.
•Speak to a healthcare professional
(such as a community healthcare
worker, optometrist or family
doctor) immediately if you suspect
a problem.
• If your child requires glasses
ensure that they wear them; a child
is never too young to wear glasses.
•Keep your child’s face and hands
clean to minimise risk of eye
infections.
•Make sure that your newborn’s
eyes are delicately wiped
(with separate, clean cotton
wool and cooled boiled water)
immediately after birth – to prevent
conjunctivitis and other more
serious infections.
•Know that even if a child is born
blind it may be possible to restore
sight – in about 40% of cases
vision problems are treated
successfully.
If you notice any of the above or have any
reason at all to be concerned about the
child’s sight seek professional advice.
Early intervention is vital so do
not delay in taking the child to a
healthcare professional.
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Compiled in
consultation with
Dr Dharmesh
Parbhoo (consultant
ophthalmologist
at the ORBIS
Paediatric Eye
Care Centre, Inkosi
Albert Luthuli
Central Hospital),
ophthalmologist
Dr Robert Lindfield
(ORBIS Medical
Advisor) and
optometrist Reshma
Dabideen (ORBIS
Senior Programme
Advisor).
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Cape Town Report
WHAT’S BEEN
HAPPENING IN CT?
Message from the Cape Town team (Teagan,
Vivian, Cheryl and Charne)
2
012 was a challenging yet
eventful year for the Cape Town
team. In spite of the challenges,
we are very pleased to report on the
highlights for the past year.
Cape Town calendar
We decided to produce another calendar
which hadn’t been produced in Cape Town
since 2010. It was a fantastic project that
we were privileged to be a part of especially
with the amazing team that we worked
with and breathtaking locations where
the photographs were shot. It was also an
incredible opportunity to meet some guide,
service and social dog owners and puppy
raisers who we hadn’t met before.
Thank you to each owner and puppy
raiser who was featured in the calendar, to
the team (Lynne Curley, Michelle Biffon and
Neal Ellis) and a special thank you to each
and every one who purchased a calendar
– especially to Janice Salthouse and Dawn
Pilatowicz who sold over 50 calendars each!
Cavendish Charity
Book Sale 2012
SAGA took part in the Cavendish Square
Charity Book Sale last year for the first time.
The mall hosts an annual charity book sale
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where organisations have the opportunity
to raise funds by means of selling secondhand books and raise awareness for their
cause. This is their way of giving back as
they no longer allow collections at the mall
entrances.
We had so much support in terms of book
donations – thank you to those who donated
their second-hand books and a special
mention to Kelli Clifton of Fairlady for
putting our book appeal in the August issue
of the Fairlady magazine.
Belville High School
Annual Fundraiser
Every year Bellville High School holds a
beauty pageant and a central theme of the
pageant is that participants put something
back into the community. The 12 finalist
couples each nominated their charity of
choice and SAGA was chosen as one of
the beneficiaries. Viv Cook and Andre
Neethling, with his guide dog Emmi,
attended the fashion show and received
a cheque for R7,480 from the beautiful
Monique Heyns and Iwan Zylstra who
were crowned Mr and Miss Bellville 2012
runners-up. They are our leaders of the
future, so keep up the great work. Thank
you Bellville High School.
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2
Blanket donation
Helga Fitzroy from Claremont donated over
30 handmade blankets and three continental
pillows with spare covers.
The Boat Show
We were fortunate enough to be part of the
first International Boat Show at the CTICC
from 23 to 25 September 2012. SAGA was
the only charity organisation that had a
stand at this amazing show. Thank you to
the organisers and volunteers for making
this a successful event.
Môreson Blessing of the Harvest
The 2013 Môreson Blessing of the Harvest
took place on 2 February and was attended
by guide-dog owner Hendri Herbst and
Brigitte Glanzmann who enjoyed a delicious
lunch. We are very lucky to be a part of this
event each year and this is certainly one not
to be missed.
Every year Môreson invites guests to
handpick their own grapes, stomp them the
old-fashioned way, which is always such
great fun, and are treated to a delightful
lunch. Thank you to Môreson Wine Estate
for your ongoing generosity and all that you
contribute to SAGA.
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Getaway Show
The Western Cape Getaway Show was
held in the Winelands for the third time.
Even though the entries were down this
year, it was still well attended by over
15,500 visitors. Lourensford Wine Estate
in Somerset West created an ideal venue to
host an outdoor expo. In order to create a
bigger attraction at the SAGA stand, and to
sell more car raffle tickets, we arranged with
Honda Helderberg from Somerset West to
place a beautiful Honda Brio on the stand.
We were very fortunate to have been
given a big stand – 6m x 3m – onto which
the car fitted quite nicely. Special thanks to
Wernich Stander, Sales Manager at Honda,
for making it all possible.
As usual, a successful expo would not
have been possible without the tremendous
support and help from volunteers,
puppy raisers, guide-dog owners and
the Somerset West Lions Club. The
event was extremely well organised, and
SAGA received tremendous support and
assistance from the efficient staff and
security personnel.
To Debbie and Leza from Ramsay
Media, a big thank you for hosting a first
class event, that was not only a fantastic
experience, but also a great success.
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Town guide
dogs in
training
2 Getaway
show –
puppy
raisers,
guide dog
owners and
volunteers
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Cape Town Report
1
2
Shopping mall support
Willowbridge Shopping Mall
invited SAGA to be a part of their
Super Dog Day event in October
2012. We had a stand at the mall
every Friday for the month of
October and did a talk on the
roles of guide dogs. Thank you
to the mall management and the
marketing team for your support
and to all the supporters we gained
during the month.
Milano Fashion in N1 City
chose us for the second year in
a row to donate a percentage of
their turnover made during a sale.
Thank you Angela from Milano
Fashion for your generosity.
Hectic Nine-9 TV show
Michelle Botha and Panda were
invited for a live interview on the
SABC2 programme Hectic Nine-9
which targets the youth market. The
theme for the show was ‘We are
amazing’. To view the live interview,
visit https://vimeo.com/48355986.
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KFM live radio interview
Elana Afrika, radio personality
on 94.5 KFM, the biggest radio
station in Cape Town, invited
Teagan Schwerin, Cheryl
Robertson and the Cape Town PR
dog Oregon (sister to the infamous
O’Reilly in Gauteng) to a live
radio interview to speak about
the upcoming events and training
at SAGA. Oregon answered her
questions with cheerful barks
which had the whole of 94.5 KFM
cooing with affection. Thank you
Elana and the team at 94.5 KFM
for the wonderful opportunity and
experience.
Italian Kitchen
Dinner in the Dark
Thank you to Paul and Dale from
the Italian Kitchen for inviting
SAGA to be a part of an enjoyable
and successful evening. The
Italian Kitchen invited guests
to attend a ‘Dinner in the Dark’
where they were served a delicious
three-course meal all eaten under
blindfold. After dinner, guests took
part in an auction for the following
superb sponsored prizes:
1.Accommodation at the Whaleview
Manor in Simon’s Town.
2. Sketch by Bowen Boshier.
3. Lindt chocolate cooking classes.
4. Sail on a yacht by Scape Yacht.
5.Hamper of olives, olive oils,
balsamic vinegar and wine by
Olyfberg and Yonder Hill.
We were very pleased with the
generous donation of R6,000
which was raised on the evening.
Thank you again Italian Kitchen!
Annual SAGA car competition
On behalf of SAGA, we would like
to thank Dawn Pilatowicz for her
outstanding effort and dedication in
selling raffle tickets in Cape Town.
Your support is appreciated more
than you know!
Sanlam CSI Project
A huge thank you to Celeste
Pieters and the team from Sanlam
Distribution for the support given
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1 Hectic 9 – behind the camera 2 Italian Kitchen guests enjoying their pasta
3 Jeremy opperman with guide dog Barklee and generous golfers 4 Bad News Bikers
3
to SAGA. The ‘Boerewors Day’ was
not only to raise funds but also to
stimulate the awareness of SAGA
within Sanlam. This was the first
event of its kind and Sanlam is
planning to have more during 2013.
Almost 2,500 Sanlam employees
visited the event and even the rain
couldn’t keep them away. On the
day, 950 boerewors rolls were sold.
An excellent start with a total of
R10,500 was raised in donations
alone… So never underestimate a
boerewors roll again.
Corren Kuhn, professional
photographer, supplied these
wonderful photographs. Please
visit her website to see more
photos of the event: www.
coreenkuhnphotography.org.
Fireman’s Arms and
Auto Atlantic Golf Day
Kevin Phelan, the owner of The
Fireman’s Arms, held a golf day on
14 May 2013. They played against
Auto Atlantic Foreshore where
they hosted a lucky draw and
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auction. The amount of money
raised was enough to sponsor
three guide dogs. Our grateful
thanks to Kevin Phelan from
The Fireman’s Arms and Trevor
Megan, Financial Manager of
Auto Atlantic, for this fantastic
initiative.
Barracuda
fundraising dinner
SAGA in association with
Barracuda restaurant hosted a
fundraising dinner to raise funds
and sell the 2013 calendar. The
event was emceed by guide dog
owner Barry Blomkamp, who
really knew how to keep the guests
entertained. Guide dog owner
Hendri Herbst, who participated
in the Paralympics for swimming,
attended as the special highlight
where guests had the opportunity
to have their calendars signed by
him as well as ask him questions
about his journey.
The food was delicious and the
company was great and this event
4
would not have been possible
without Janice Salthouse and
her service dog Denver! Thank
you Janice for your drive and
enthusiasm and for fundraising
for our association. We appreciate
your passion for our cause.
Third-party fundraising
Several clubs supported SAGA
throughout the year through
various drives. Our special thanks
go out to the following entities in
this regard:
•Bad News Bikers Club for their
donation.
•Skal International for upgrading
their puppy sponsorship to a
guide-dog sponsorship.
•Erinvale Gentlemen’s Golfing
Society for puppy sponsorship.
•Lions Club Tokai for guide dog
sponsorship.
•Rondebosch Vet for their monthly
donations.
•Juliet Lubbe and family for their
guide-dog sponsorship.
Thank you to all the Rotary
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Cape Town Report
1 Cape Town puppy raisers
Clubs, Innerwheel Clubs, social
and pensioners clubs who have
continued their generosity by
sponsoring guide dogs, puppies
and donations. Your support is
truly valued.
Schools
We cannot say thank you enough
for the support from all the
schools in the Western Cape who
have generously donated in money
and time over the past year. There
are too many schools to name but
we feel blessed to have visited with
our guide dogs and their owners.
A special thank you to Elkanah
House and Sweet Valley Primary
School for their ongoing support
and generous contribution to our
cause. We will continue to visit
all our friends, so please do not
hesitate to contact us on 021 674
7395 to arrange a time when we
can come and visit.
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Guide dog class graduations
Cheryl Robertson and Charne
Maujean, Guide-Dog Mobility
Instructors, are proud to announce
the new graduates:
March 2012
Hendri Herbst and Stan
Jeanie Rudolph and Bijou
Dawie Marais and Sadie
June 2012
Leon van Wyk and Spencer
Michelle Botha and Panda
Michael Watermeyer and Coco
December 2012
Ross Crymble and Ferdi
Lindy van der Merwe and Arti
Jennifer Pretorius and Kaine
March 2013
Renette Bloem and Wendy
Arthur Dickson and Judge
Johan Deminey and Kengi
Puppy raisers
A truly heartfelt thank you to
the Cape Town puppy raisers for
your dedication, support and all
the effort you put into raising our
guide dogs. Words cannot describe
how grateful we are to you. A
special thank you to Des and
Estelle (official carriers of SAGA
pups and dogs) for transporting
our puppies and dogs from
Johannesburg to Cape Town.
Thank you!
The most important part of our
report is to say the many thank
yous to those who have supported
SAGA. To our volunteers, namely
June Colussi and Bevin Elliott,
who are always willing and
available to help in the office and
at fundraising events. Thank
you to the schools, service clubs,
social clubs and individuals for
donations, and sponsorships of
guide dogs and puppies.
Thank you to the Johannesburg
branch for all your guidance and
continued support. Thank you
to everyone! Together we will
continue to do this amazing work
and change people’s lives. We
are proud to be a part of such a
wonderful organisation!
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coca-cola dome 11-13 Oct 2013
ENTERTAINMENT
FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY!
The exciting Pet&Me Expo includes a Puppy Zone, a Fish/Reptile
Adventure Park, KUSA Discover Dogs Edu-zone,
Bird Aviary, the Pet&Me Wellness Zone, DIY workshops,
food, wine and lifestyle and more.
Watch the ‘Doggy Olympics’, the largest FCI Agility Dog Event
in the world, where the best international teams
will be competing and entertaining audiences
with the speed and agility of their disciplined animals.
An event especially created for all pet lovers!
Tickets available online at
www.petandme.co.za
BUY
TICKETS
We challenge you to bring a bag or cans
of any kind of pet food to the Pet&Me Expo
to help us beat this record!
PASEPT FWORKS
0114676587
(Beneficiary list: www.petandme.co.za)
www.petandme.co.za
www.facebook.com/PetandMeExpo
www.twitter.com/PetExpo2013
Sports
A SPORT FOR DOGS
AND PEOPLE
Meet Jitka Lebedova, an agility competitor from the Czech Republic,
who, despite her physical disability, happily and successfully competes
at an international level
W
hile attending a warm-up
competition in the Czech
Republic for the Agility
World Championships last year, I
quite literally bumped into Jitka
Lebedova and I would like to share
her amazing story with you.
Accidental bump
It all started during course walking, the 10
minutes before a competition when the
handlers are allowed to walk the course they
will have to negotiate with their dogs later on.
1
This is the time you have to learn and
remember the course, but more importantly,
you work out the manoeuvres you want to do
in order to get your dog around the course in
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the best way – the tightest turns, the fastest
time. To the uninitiated spectator, this often
looks pretty chaotic. Handlers are running or
walking seemingly at random, performing
twists and turns and pointing with their hands
and arms. Despite that, there is in fact an
intrinsic flow to walking the course.
While concentrating on your own line, you
keep others in your peripheral vision and slow
down a step or speed up a step to maintain this
flow. It is thus unusual to physically bump into
anybody. It is indeed very unusual to bump
into the same person twice. This was what
happened between Jitka and me. Of course the
bump was momentary, a smile, a brief ‘sorry’
and you continue.
While I remember thinking how odd it was
to bump into the same handler twice, the whole
episode would have slipped my mind in no
time, had I not seen her run her dog later on.
She ran a big Malinois, a very beautiful dog – I
am a great fan of the breed – so I stopped what
I was doing and watched her round.
Strange collar
As the dog cleared the first jump I gasped – she
had left the collar on with what looked to me
like lots of tags attached that were merrily
jingling away. In South Africa and most other
countries, dogs may not wear collars in agility.
I was thus most surprised when neither the
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Did you
know?
Golden
Labrado Labs are
rs c
with Go rossed
ld
Retrieve en
rs
South
Africa will
be hosting
the Agility
World
Championships 2013!
This international
event will
take place
from 10 to
13 October
2013 at the
Coca Cola
Dome in
Johannesburg.
Described
as the most
exciting
dog event
South
Africa has
ever seen,
it will see
about 25
nations
competing for the
ultimate
agility title
– the World
Champion.
2
judge nor the spectators nor fellow handlers
seemed to take any notice of the fact that
the collar was left on. Jitka ran a lovely clear
round and received the deserved applause. My
curiosity was piqued. I went to find an English
speaking competitor and asked her if collars
were allowed in the Czech Republic. “No“, was
the reply, “of course not, but that was Jitka...”
The lady looked at my clearly puzzled face and
elaborated: “Jitka is blind.”
Unbelievable
Well, there must have been a bad translation
somewhere, I thought. The person I just
watched had run a lovely round on a highly
technical, very difficult agility course. Clearly
she couldn’t be blind. My new-found friend
laughed and assured me that indeed Jitka was
legally blind, and offered to introduce us. So I
heard one of the most inspirational agility stories
which I have permission to share with you.
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Jitka’s story
Jitka Lebedova is 34 years old, although she looks
much younger. She explains: “I have been affected
from birth. I am classified as ‘legally blind’. I can
only see things up to approximately one metre
away, but I can’t see detail in objects. Everything
appears like shadows. For example, I can see
objects on a table, but I can’t identify them
without touching them.”
Jitka currently runs her Malinois, Ax, and her
Papillon, Kami, in agility. Her other dog is Chili
– Kami’s mother – who is an agility champion,
but at 11 years old she is now retired from
competition. Ax is actually her service dog and is
registered and certified as a Service Dog for the
Blind. Jitka used to do dog dancing, canicross and
flyball with her dogs, but now agility has become
her number one sport and she merely teaches her
dogs some dancing tricks for fun. Jitka says for
her, agility is like a drug, she has become hooked
and it has become a matter of her heart.
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Sports
3
Why agility?
I was very blunt and asked her how a blind
person would become interested, not to
mention hooked, on agility. Her reply was
short and matter of fact and demonstrates
the spirit of this woman beautifully: “Sixteen
years ago, when I was at an international dog
show in Mladá Boleslav with my Pinscher,
I saw a demonstration of agility with
comments. Right there and then I asked if it
was possible to learn it and to start a course,
and so I did.”
“I completed the two-month course to
learn the basics under an instructor who
was training with Tonda Grygar at the time,
as part of the Czech selection for the Agility
World Championship Team. After the basic
course, I went to Tonda Grygar’s training
centre. Under his leadership, I have prepared
for all the competitions I have participated in
during my career.”
1 Jitka with
other
competitors
2 A Cocker
Spaniel
competing
3 Dogs of
all shapes
and sizes
may
compete
4 Jitka and
her dogs Ax
and Kami
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How does she do it?
Only when she started talking about her agility
training did she open up and admit how much
harder this is for her than for an able person:
“From the very beginning, Tonda worked with
me like with any other handler. At that time I
trained with my Labrador, who was also my
guide dog, and we participated at top events
including the Czech selection for the World
Team. I had to run quite difficult courses with
a dog who had been trained in agility for only
a few months. But this type of training and
leadership allowed me to work on myself and
to get better.
“Sometimes I crashed into an obstacle that
I didn’t see, but we did different exercises
focusing on psychical resistance, orientation
and so on.
Thanks to these experiences I was able
to get through and overcome many stressful
situations at competitions. People who have
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“I memorise the course, mainly the position of
obstacles; there is no time for counting steps”
4
no problems with their eyesight don’t need to
deal with many things. If I go somewhere I
haven’t been before, I need a guide to help me
find the entrance to the arena, refreshments,
toilets, the place to walk the dogs…
“At competitions, there is always somebody
who will show me the course during coursewalking, because I don’t see the numbers. I
memorise the course, mainly the position of
obstacles; there is no time for counting steps.
I just need to know that two obstacles are
straight on, the third one turns right at 90
degrees – and that if I run forward, I’ll not hit
another obstacle. Only in turns I sometimes
count my steps, but usually I just memorise
the movement.
“During the run I have to manage the
same things as sighted handlers – to give the
cues at the appropriate times, react to the
dog’s movements, and of course, the correct
handling, as well as monitoring my dog with
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my ears and the remnants of my sight.
“After each run I’m usually physically tired,
not because of the run and the way the obstacles
were set out, but from concentration, and
emotionally from the fact that I didn’t crash
anywhere and that I found the next jump and I
reconnected with my dog after a spin or turn.
“People often compliment me on how well
my dogs are taught to work independently
and at a distance from me, both the Papillons
and the Belgian Shepherds. My trainer plays a
significant role in that of course, but the truth
is that I need my dogs to be independent. I can
only see the obstacles at the very last moment,
so I can’t help the dog – he must look for the
obstacles while listening to my commands.
That’s why we try to teach the dogs to work on
their own, for example on the entrance to the
weave poles or the contacts. Contacts must be
very reliable, because I’m not able to control it
during competition with my sight. The same
with turning commands; I say a command, for
example ‘left’ and I trust that my dog will turn
to the left.”
The sound of bells
“The bells on my dogs’ collars serve a specific
purpose. I try to estimate from the bell’s sound
how far the dog is from me or how quickly he
is approaching. When the dog jumps, the bell
is silent, and on the moment of landing, when
the dog touches the ground with his paws, the
bell rings.”
Jitka loves her sport and says it keeps
her energised. One can only admire such
determination, but that is what’s so great
about agility – it brings people together, no
matter how different their backgrounds or
circumstances.
Text: Gaby Grohovaz; Photography: Castka, Cynoclub
and courtesy of Jitka Lebedova
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Kennels/Puppy Raising Report
A MESSAGE
FROM CAROLINE
At the time I write this, it is one week since the sudden death of Ken
Lord. It still doesn’t seem real.
K
en was so intrinsically a part
of SAGA that it really is hard to
comprehend that he is no
longer physically with us. He will,
however, live on in the hearts and
memories of those of us who
worked with him in various
capacities over the years, his family
and friends, and of course within the
history of SAGA and the International
Federation. For my part, Ken’s work
ethic, his dedication to SAGA and to
the visually and physically impaired,
and his support of and loyalty to his
staff will remain an inspiration to me
always.
2013 also had a sad start with the deaths of two
members of our extended puppy raising ‘family’
– Rob Airey and John Jacobs. We wish their
families strength in learning to live without their
physical presence in their lives.
Thank you
As always, the body of a report back from this
department consists primarily of a long list of
expressions of gratitude.
First and foremost to our puppy raisers,
without whom our work would not be possible
– thank you for the year of hard work and effort,
love, socialising and conditioning that you put
into each puppy you raise for SAGA.
To our breed stock holders – thank you for
taking our precious brood bitches and stud dogs
into your hearts, homes and families, and for
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taking such good care of them for us.
To those who allow SAGA the use of their
own stud dogs’ services, to expand our available
gene pool and make more future guide dogs and
service dogs – thank you.
To our temporary homers who provide
holiday homes for our dogs in training, puppies
too young for kennelling and the occasional
working dog, thank you.
To our weekend homers, who collect our
donated adult dogs each Friday afternoon and
return them each Monday morning, thank
you. For many of these dogs this is the first
opportunity that they have to live in a home
and acquire experience of all that that entails,
including good household manners.
To our kennel volunteers who assist with
administrative tasks, DIY jobs, puppy handling,
TLC for the hospital dogs, taking dogs to
hydrotherapy sessions and the vet, and taking
garden refuse to the dump – thank you Gillie,
Bruce, Dave and Joan, Morag, Helen, John,
Ken, Lionel, Hilda, Charles, Christine, Liz,
Lorraine and Norma. My sincere apologies if
I have omitted a name – the grey matter does
sometimes refuse to function as it should!
To Karin Lourens, who assists with volunteer
veterinary tasks around kennels, thank you.
Thank you to Sandra Small for the alterations
to our puppy raising jackets.
To all individuals and visiting groups who
continue to bring in a steady supply of plastic
bottles for our dogs to play with, blankets,
towels, newspapers, chews, treats, biscuits and
toys for the dogs, clothes for our mannequins,
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items for puppy classes, treats for
staff, wire beaded animals and plastic
birds for our animal conditioning
collection, thank you.
To Morag and Germano,
who donated a large collection of
Nylabones for the dogs in kennels, in
memory of their daughter Rush.
To those puppy raisers – Morag,
Lanti, Bonnie, Martin, Jeff, Joan and
Rikus – who contributed financially
towards the installation of a solar
heating system for the swimming
pool at the training centre, enabling
us to utilise it for dogs needing postoperative hydrotherapy and dogs
needing to lose weight or improve
fitness levels, many thanks. Also
thank you to Alison and Doggy
Paddle for treating our dogs at a
reduced rate.
To Pioneer Plastics for a large
consignment of Zoo Balls to keep
our dogs entertained and stimulated,
thank you. The balls are wonderfully
durable and to date all have withstood
the enthusiasm of Labradors!
To Inqaba Biotec, who continue
to run the genetic testing (PRA and
EIC) of all our breeding stock free of
charge, thank you.
To Identipet, who continue to
supply microchips for all our dogs and
maintain their information on their
database free of charge, thank you.
To Merial, who continue to
supply the vaccines for all our dogs in
training, puppies and breeding stock,
six months’ worth of Frontline for all
our qualifying dogs, and Frontline
(tick and flea control) for all our
breeding stock and puppies in the
Puppy Block, thank you.
To Novartis, who supply Practic
(tick and flea control) for all our dogs
in training, Milbemax (dewormer)
for all our dogs and puppies, as well as
Capstar and Flego – thank you.
To Camsecure who supply and
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maintain our camera system around
the kennels, thank you.
To the shopping centres who
grant access to our puppies and
dogs in training, notably Fourways
Crossing, Fourways Mall, Lonehill
Shopping Centre, Brooklyn Mall,
Greenstone Mall and Brightwater
Commons, and to Discovery Junction
Nursery School, who allow groups
of our puppies to visit the children,
thank you. Our dogs cannot get used
to the sights, sounds, smells, surfaces,
people, stairs, trolleys, lifts, escalators,
reflective windows, swinging
shopping packets and small children
without access to these experiences
from a very early age. Dogs who are
not familiar with and comfortable in
these environments would not be able
to concentrate on the job that they
need to do as guide dogs, and as such
this early exposure plays a vital role
in helping to determine their success
in this role.
To Eddie Foster from Ed’s and
Tails Puppy School for allowing one of
our pups to join his puppy socialising
classes free of charge.
To Bob Martin who supplies the
food for all our breeding stock, puppies
and dogs in training, thank you.
On the supply front
Two of our brood bitches have been
retired during 2013. Shady, after four
litters and 27 puppies, 25 of whom
qualified as working dogs and Iva, after
four litters and 18 puppies, nine of
whom qualified as working dogs and
eight of whom are still in training or on
the Puppy Raising Scheme.
2013 has also seen the untimely
death of Classy, a private stud dog
owned by Di Phillipson and Gill McLarty.
Classy, aka Catcombe Class Act of Kilifi,
sired six litters for SAGA, producing 47
puppies, of whom 23 qualified and six
are still on the Puppy Raising Scheme.
Memories of Classy’s exuberant
enthusiasm for life and all it had to offer
will always bring a smile to my face.
RIP beautiful boy.
Puppy block had another busy
year, with 10 litters born from August
2012. During August, Etna and Pele
produced nine ‘E’ Labrador x Golden
Retriever pups, and Fiesta and Rocky
produced eight ‘F’ Golden Retriever
pups. October saw the arrival of six
‘H’ Golden Retriever pups to Lyla and
Classy, and three ‘I’ Labrador pups to
Wyvern and Pele. During November, six
‘J’ Labrador pups were born to Iva and
Pele. During January 2013, eight ‘K’
Labrador pups were born to Angie and
Blade. During April, eight ‘L’ pups were
born to Jelly and Mannie. Seven ‘N’
Labrador x Golden Retriever pups were
born to Liberty and Addie during June.
July saw the arrival of two ‘O’ Golden
Retriever pups to Basheera and Nougar,
who was a busy boy and a week later
produced, along with VB, seven ‘QR’
Golden Retriever pups. Later this month
we are expecting a litter of Labrador
x Golden Retriever pups from Tanika
and Rocky, and next month a litter
of Labrador x Golden Retrievers are
expected from Luna and Mannie.
We received 14 donated puppies
between August 2012 and August
2013, all of whom are still on the
Puppy Raising programme. The pups
are primarily Labradors (or crosses),
but also include one Golden Retriever,
one German Shepherd and one Swiss
Shepherd. In addition, we accepted
10 donated adult dogs. Three of these
dogs have been withdrawn from
training to date, while the rest are still
in training.
That’s all from Kennels and Puppy
Raising for this year.
Caroline
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Guide Dog Staff Profiles
MEET THE
TEAM
College of Orientation
and Mobility (COM)
Back row left to right
Willemien Kleijn, Dackley Merafe,
Zothile Ndlovu, Salome Ntsoelengoe
Front seated Left to Right
Moira Higgerty, Jacques Pienaar
House and Ground Staff
Standing left to right
Solly Zungu, Johannes Mokoena,
Shorty, Abel Matshava, Sylvia
Munzhelele, Rose Chamberlain
Seated Arleen Lord
Absent Maria Matshava, Sinah
Maluleka
Kennels Staff
Back row left to right
Sam Chauke, Moses Ntaupane,
Tumelo Mukhara, Sydney Makgara
Front row left to right
Monica Fica, Patricia Mbotshane,
Caroline Human Absent Daniel
Mukhara, Matthews Moila
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HOD Group (Head
of Departments)
Back row, left to right
Jacques Pienaar – Head of
College of Orientation and
Mobility,
Pieter van Niekerk –
Marketing Manager,
Malcolm Driver –
Executive Director
Front row, left to right
Gail Glover – Guide-Dog
Services Manager,
Guide Dog O’Reilley,
Jayne Nicolle – Financial
Manager
Puppy raising
supervisors
Lerato Masemola and
Monica Steen
Cape Town Team
Cheryl Robertson, Teagan Schwerin,
Charne Maujean; Gulliver, Becks,
Vivian Cook, Keala
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20
20
meet
the team
Guidedog staff
profiles
1. Full name: Cheryl Robertson
2. Known as: Cheryl
3. Number of years of service at SAGA: The
big 20
4.Department: Cape Town Training
5. Where were you born: Port Elizabeth
6. If you could be any animal in the world, what
would you be and why? A tiger because
they are beautiful
7. What do you regard as your best character
trait? Loyalty
8. What pet/s do you own? Two dogs, one
cat, four goldfish and one tortoise
9. Who would you most/least like to be stuck in
a lift with and why? Walt Disney because
he made his dreams come true
10. Who would you most like to have
dinner with and why? Friends, relaxed
conversation with good food
11. Who has been the person who has most
influenced your life? There are many
people, not just one
12. Everybody likes food. What is your favourite
food? Lamb and chocolate brownies
13. If money was no object, what would be your
dream holiday destination? A cruise to an
island
14. What makes you smile? The dogs
15. What makes you cry? The cruelty of humans
16. What motto do you live by? Be true to
yourself
17. If you were the president of this country,
what would be the first thing you would
change and why? Crime and corruption
18. What is your favourite movie? Dirty
Dancing and comedies
19. What is your favourite CD? Whatever is
playing on the radio
20. What do you sleep in? A bed
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Johannesburg Admin and
Marketing Team
Back row, left to right
Hennie Nortjie, Event Moyo, Probity Phidah
Middle row, left to right
Pieter van Niekerk with O’Reilley, Nishane Raghunandan,
Florence Bilsland, Alson Maphosa
Seated, left to right
Beauty Nkomo with Ruby, Jayne Nicolle with Kai, Sanette
Harmse with Gypsey
Johannesburg Training Department
Back row, left to right
Percy Tlholoe, Leon Bunguza, Joel van Stavel, Maxine Geddie
Front row, left to right
Veronica Schnippenkötter, Hayley Cumming with Dakota,
Gail Glover with Kai, Mandla Nxumalo with Ruby
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Corporate
SPONSOR PROFILE
Panorama Publications MD, Urs Honegger,
tells us why he feels so drawn to SAGA
P
anorama Publications
produces Friend in
Harness twice a year
on behalf of SAGA. The
magazine is one of the
organisation’s key tools for
communicating with its
sponsors. Urs Honegger’s
involvement with SAGA goes
way back, even before the
involvement with Friend in
Harness came about. We
asked him a few questions
about his affiliation with the
Guide-Dogs.
How did you first become
involved with SAGA?
We publish AnimalTalk and our
paths crossed through a charity
event. On a personal level, I became
aware of how losing your eyesight
can impact your independence
when my grandfather started losing
his due to old age. I have always
loved Labrador puppies – any
puppies for that matter – but Labs
especially, so it was a simple and
easy decision to get involved. My
wife and I started puppy-walking,
which is when you foster a puppy
until he is ready to be assessed and
trained to become a guide dog. We
had a black Labrador called Khyba
and I got to see the entire process
that she went through, from being
a playful puppy to becoming a
fully-fledged guide dog. I had the
opportunity to walk blindfolded
with Khyba once she’d been trained
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so I could experience what she was
capable of. Seeing her give someone
their independence had a huge
impact on me. I really became aware
of the work the organisation does.
In 1995, when we started
AnimalTalk magazine, SAGA fitted
right in with the content. We placed
a few charity ads for them – and
then started thinking bigger. How
could we help more? At the time
the Friend in Harness was in need
of assistance and we offered our
services as a publishing house and
got stuck in. We generate content,
design the magazine and get it
printed and delivered to SAGA to
send out to its sponsors.
Why should other
organisations get
involved with SAGA?
There are so many causes out there,
but the Guide-Dogs really value
your interest in the organisation
itself. They are very receptive to
getting your staff to understand what
they do and to get their buy-in, so
your staff can feel equally as proud
of your sponsorship as you do.
What does Panorama
Publications do to support
SAGA, other than produce
Friend in Harness?
We develop and maintain their
website for a minimal fee, and
we make donations via our own
fundraising efforts. The most recent
way we are sponsoring SAGA is by
donating a portion of the September
AnimalTalk cover price to SAGA
in celebration of their Diamond
Jubilee. We also got the buy-in
from our distribution company,
Republican News Agency (RNA), to
match our donation. It’s something
we are trying out and, if it’s a
successful venture, we will look at
doing it again in future.
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Pets
FUSS-FREE
FURRY FRIENDS
We look at five breeds that are easy to groom, and make
fun and adaptable family friends
T
here are all sorts of reasons why people decide to
welcome a dog into their home. With proper planning
and research, you’re more likely to get a breed that
suits your family and your lifestyle.
Pug
Group: Toy
Origin: China
Job today: Companion
Life expectancy: 13-15 years
Weight: 6-8.1kg
Height: 25-28cm
Characteristics: The Pug is
known for his easy-going, tolerant
nature. He is an affectionate dog
who becomes greatly devoted to
his family. He has an excellent
temperament with children, but he
can be wilful and needs guidance
and training from an early age.
His fine, short coat requires only
occasional brushing, but the creases
on his face and his eyes must be
checked and cleaned regularly. Like
other flat-nosed breeds, he may
snuffle and snore when he sleeps,
especially in hot weather.
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Short-coated Chihuahua
Group: Toy
Origin: Mexico
Job today: Companion
Life expectancy: 12-14 years
Weight: 1-3kg
Height: 15-23cm
Characteristics: What he lacks in
size, he makes up for in personality.
The little Chihuahua is a remarkably
spirited, agile dog who is suitable
for flats, townhouses or houses
with small gardens. He is alert,
affectionate and very intelligent.
The smooth-coated variety has a
short, glossy coat that is easy to
groom. Early socialisation and
training is recommended.
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‘Low-maintenance’ breeds
We often hear the term ‘low maintenance breed’, but can a dog really
be described in this way? All dogs need basic general care like food,
shelter, medical attention, exercise and stimulation. Your dog’s breed
may predispose him to act in a certain way, but his behaviour can also
be attributed to the time and effort you put in.
“The statement ‘50% nature and 50% nurture’ is absolutely correct,”
says Wendy Wilson, animal behaviourist, COAPE lecturer and founder
member of ThinkingPets COAPE SA. “A dog will get a certain amount
of his temperament from his breed type and genes carried from his
parents, but you can’t rely on just that to ensure a happy, well-rounded
dog. He needs to be taken to school and must be treated consistently
and fairly so he understands what you, the owner, want from him.”
Labrador Retriever
Group: Gundog
Origin: Great Britain
Job today: Companion, gundog
Life expectancy: 12-14 years
Weight: 27-32kg
Height: 55-57cm
Characteristics: The boisterous
Labrador has an affectionate,
cheerful nature, making him a very
popular breed. His eagerness to
please those he loves, combined with
gentleness and patience, makes him
an outstanding family companion.
Although the Lab can adapt to
apartment life, he does better with
some outdoor space. His short,
straight coat is easy to groom, but
extra brushing a few times each
week is advised during his heavy
seasonal shed. He needs moderate
exercise and is easily trained in
agility, obedience and retrieving. The
breed responds well to a positive,
consistent approach to training.
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Great Dane
Group: Working
Origin: Germany
Job today: Companion, guarding
Life expectancy: About 10 years
Weight: 46-54kg
Height: 71-76cm
Characteristics: The Great Dane
is a large, muscular, strongly built
dog with a handsome outline and an
aristocratic bearing. He has a spirited
temperament, with a gentle, sensitive
side. His coat is short and easy to
groom, but he does shed and extra
brushing is required during this time
to assist in removing loose hair. Daily
walks are encouraged, but avoid
strenuous exercise while the puppy’s
bones and ligaments are growing.
Boston Terrier
Group: Utility
Origin: USA
Job today: Companion
Life expectancy: 10-12 years
Weight: 4.5-11.5kg (three weight
classes)
Height: 38-43cm
Characteristics: The Boston
Terrier is an affectionate, cheery,
well-mannered breed. He makes
a super family companion and an
excellent watchdog. The Boston is
able to adapt to any type of living
environment and will gladly make
the family cat his best friend if they
grow up together. His short, fine coat
is easy to maintain with a once or
twice a week brushing. He is a social
breed and doesn’t enjoy being left on
his own for long periods of time.
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Pets
A WORD ON
GROOMING
Dr Julia Swan, veterinarian at
Petsure, says that while some breeds
have ‘low-maintenance’ grooming
requirements, the time you spend
with your ‘easy-to-groom’ dog
shouldn’t be less than time spent
with other breeds, simply because
you need to groom him less!
“Grooming your dog is an
important part of keeping him
healthy. It also provides time for you
to examine your pet for any unusual
lumps, bumps or skin conditions that
may require veterinary attention,”
says Dr Julia. She says the following
five areas should be given attention:
1
Hair brushing
Most dogs love being brushed.
Brushing strengthens your bond
with your dog and helps to maintain
a healthy coat. The frequency of
brushing depends on the coat
length. Short to medium coats can
be brushed weekly, fortnightly or
monthly.
2
Nail trimming
Most dogs and most pet
owners detest nail-trimming.
A lot of dogs form an aversion to
the procedure if they have been
hurt before by a nail being cut too
short. Ideally, you should ask your
veterinarian or groomer to show
you how to clip the nails. Very long
nails are prone to injury – which can
be extremely painful and may need
a visit to the vet. It is better to keep
the nails at an optimum length and
prevent injury.
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3
Bathing
Most dogs should be bathed
monthly, but bathing as often
as once a week is not considered
harmful. Bathing more than once a
week may increase susceptibility to
skin allergies and infections, as the
natural oils on the skin are constantly
being stripped away. Always use
shampoo intended for dogs. If your
dog has sensitive skin, he may need
a special shampoo. Discuss this with
your vet at your next visit.
4
Ear care
Dogs with hairy ears or long
floppy ears are at increased
risk of suffering from yeast or
bacterial ear infections. The inside
of the ear can be wiped with a damp
towel or cotton wool. Never use ear
buds to clean your dog’s ears as this
can cause severe damage and push
dirt deeper down into the ear canal.
Some dogs may need their ears
cleaned up to once a week and others
may never require more than a quick
wipe down of the ear during their
routine bath.
5
Dental care
Like people, dogs also need
their teeth brushed. They
do not suffer from dental caries as
much as people do, but gum disease
and bad breath are a problem –
especially in the smaller breeds.
You should begin a regular, daily
brushing routine when your puppy
is between six and eight weeks of
age. If your dog is older, you can
gradually introduce tooth brushing
and try to make the experience a
positive one for your pet.
Text: Gina Hartoog
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Time out
SUDOKU
KrazyDad.com
EASY
HOW TO PLAY:
Fill in the blanks so that each row, each column and each
3 x 3 square contains the numbers one through nine.
Solutions on page 13.
Proud sponsors of SAGA
MEDIUM
Braille 
Alphabet

HARD
2013
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a 
k 
u 
0 
b 
l 
v 
1 
c 
m 
w 
2 
d 
n 
x 
3 
e 
o 
y 
4 
f 
p 
z 
5 
g 
q 
6 
h 
r 
7 
i 
s 
8 
j 
t 
9 
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Pet care
Q&A
Your questions answered
I
f you have a animal or eye
question you would like us
to answer, send it to
[email protected] with
FIH Q & A in the subject line.
How many meals should I
feed my pets each day?
We recommend three times a day
for puppies up to at least six months
and twice a day for a normal
healthy adult dog. Several studies
of eating behaviour in domestic
cats have shown that, if given free
choice, it is not unusual for cats to
eat between nine and 16 meals per
day. However, cats are adaptable
and we recommend at least two
meals a day for adult cats and more
frequent small meals if the owner
can manage it.
Dr Sarah Miller, Veterinarian
My one-year-old male dog
occasionally lifts his leg
in my home in different
places. It seems as if he
is marking as he leaves
small puddles. How can
I discourage him from
marking in my home?
This does sound like marking.
Marking is natural behaviour for
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male dogs and some female dogs do
it as well. If marking in the house
is a new behaviour that he hasn’t
shown before, you may want to take
him for a health check at your vet
to make sure there isn’t anything
medically wrong. If you’ve had a
recent change in your home, such
as adopting a new pet, this may also
bring on this behaviour; or it may
simply be that he is starting to mark
now that he is maturing. If he hasn’t
yet been neutered you may find that
this will help, although if he is in the
habit of marking you will also need
to train him out of the behaviour.
If medical causes have been
ruled out, you will need to address
the problem in the same way as
regular housetraining. Monitor your
dog closely and take him outside
often. Praise and reward him for
going outside. Try to ensure you are
watching him closely enough that
he can’t manage to sneak off and
mark in the house.
If you can’t give him your
undivided attention, try tethering
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him to you by his lead while you
are training him. If you catch
him in the act of marking in the
house, interrupt him and take him
outside. If you miss catching him
in the act, avoid rubbing his nose
in it afterwards, this will make him
much more secretive about marking
and will make your job harder. If
there is an accident in the house,
clean up thoroughly with a cleaner
that does not contain ammonia. The
scent of ammonia-based cleaners
will encourage your dog to mark in
that spot again.
Candi Moon,
Furbabies Training School
he 5 most common
T
veterinary issues in SA
We asked a number of vets to give
us a list of the veterinary issues they
mostly deal with on a day-to-day
basis:
1. Skin problems
2. Tick borne diseases
3. Diarrhoea (gastro-enteritis) and
vomiting
4. Lameness/arthritis
5. Issues with fleas and other
parasites such as mites
[Source] AnimalTalk Magazine
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Can our pets sense our
moods and how do they
normally react to them?
Yes, our pets certainly have the
ability to sense our moods. Whether
they understand the meaning of our
moods, however, can be debated
– they probably perceive a change
in our ‘normal’ attitude more than
they know what it is we are feeling.
It is mostly their very acute visual
and olfactory senses that enable
them to notice changes in our
feelings. They can pick up very
small changes in body language
visually and are able to see when we
tense up or relax, and are also able
to sense different scents which may
be associated with, for example,
stress hormones in our body.
Studies are currently underway
examining the way in which dogs
recognise faces and human facial
expressions and to determine
whether dogs can feel empathy
towards people or other dogs.
Once we know more about these
topics we will better understand
how it is that our pets often seem
to know more about us than we do
ourselves!
Dr Quixie Sonntag, lecturer
in animal behaviour at the
University of Pretoria
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COM Report
THE CHILD HAS
FINALLY COME OF AGE!
A look at the evolution of the College of Mobility
W
hile the South African
Guide-Dogs Association
(SAGA), the parent body,
celebrates its Diamond Jubilee this
year, it seems the child (Orientation
and Mobility) has over the past 10
years, as a result of a number of
events and happenings, finally come
of age.
Firstly we became known internationally as
we hosted the 11th International Mobility
Conference in Stellenbosch in 2003. Sadly the
events of 9/11 and the war in Iraq impacted on
the number of international visitors attending
but for those who did make the effort to
come from a distance and the local South
Africans who attended, it was a memorable
event as information and ideas were shared,
new friendships formed and Orientation and
Mobility was very firmly placed in the minds
of several government departments and
community structures.
The National Diploma: Orientation and
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Mobility Practice Qualification was finally
registered with the South African Qualifications
Authority in 2004 and the School became an
accredited training provider a year later. It
seemed an appropriate time to move on from
being a ‘School’ to becoming a College with a
name change which was more in keeping with
the provision of a two-year diploma course than
the previous one-year certificate course. Thus
the Orientation and Mobility School became
the College of Orientation and Mobility (COM)
in 2006.
Continuing with matters international, the
College organised an Ultra-Cane course for
Orientation & Mobility (O&M) Practitioners
with presenters from the United States and
the United Kingdom. The Ultra-Cane is quite
unique in that it combines an ultra-sonic device
within a cane using vibrations rather than sound
to warn of obstacles ahead. The use of tactile
information makes it particularly applicable for
people experiencing both a visual and a hearing
impairment. However, using an Ultra-Cane is
definitely not for the fainthearted as its effective
use requires good concentration and accurate
cane skills.
The College also hosted a workshop on
‘flash-sonar’ organised by the Orientation and
Mobility Association of South Africa. Facilitated
by Daniel Kish, a blind Orientation and Mobility
Specialist from America, participants were
shown how to use echoes to safely navigate
different environments. Incredibly, ‘flash-sonar’
is not just about locating obstacles in the path
of travel, as it provides the individual with
information about the size and shape as well
as the structure of the object. After just a few
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lessons, some participants were identifying
overhanging branches, recesses, street poles,
up-kerbs, steps, flower boxes, and even the
shapes of parked vehicles. Amazing stuff,
and certainly a lesson for all participants as
to the importance of sound and hearing for
independent travel.
Over the next few years the College
extended its scope of practice as it rolled out
the materials and piloted programmes for the
full qualification, in addition to running our
usual short courses and a number of top-up
courses for practising O&Mers to upgrade their
certificate to the diploma qualification. 2008
also saw the College piloting a ‘blended’ learning
programme (distance learning and college-based
blocks) with funding from the Umsobomvu
Youth Fund.
In an effort to train more students, distance
learning was introduced; however, while there
are many advantages to distance learning, major
problems were experienced at community level
with supporting and the supervision of students.
Perhaps something to look at again over the
next decade as increased numbers of O&M
Practitioners in the field will provide a solid
support structure for students in training. It is
expected that by the end of 2013, 20 students
will have graduated with the National Diploma:
Orientation and Mobility Practice. Each year
that those 20 students remain in the field
teaching the skills of orientation and mobility, it
is estimated that they will in turn assist between
800 and 1,000 people with a visual impairment.
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons
with a Disability, which was ratified by South
Africa some years back, led to the National
Department of Health organising and hosting a
number of workshops for O&M Practitioners at
which several far-reaching decisions were made,
all of which paved the way for the employment
of O&M personnel within the health profession.
While a number of stumbling blocks remain to
this becoming a reality, it is believed that it is
only a matter of time before O&M Practitioners
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are employed within the health structures of
the country.
With the knowledge that Orientation and
Mobility Services are here to stay, the Executive
Committee of SAGA approved an expansion plan
for COM several years ago. After considerable
alterations and a new building, COM is now
housed in a beautiful and almost totally new
building with several lecture rooms, a library
and staff offices. COM will also be looking to
increase staff numbers in order to ensure that we
are able to move into the next decade by greatly
increasing student numbers.
T he sudden passing away of Ken Lord in July
this year is a huge loss to the College. It was the
inspiration of Ken Lord, then Executive Director of
SAGA, that brought about the establishment of the
College in 1974, with the idea that by training a
few ‘Trainers’, many visually impaired people could
be reached. After retiring as Executive Director
in 2004, Ken returned to join the COM staff in
2008. His knowledge, wealth of experience, great
wisdom, genuine concern for others, wonderful
sense of humour and humility are just a few of
the characteristics that made Ken such a special
person to know and work alongside. Ken was often
overheard saying to students he was instructing
under blindfold – “Don’t worry, the ‘Lord’ is near
and watching over you.”
Well, Ken, although your presence is sorely
missed, we know you are ‘watching over us all
here at COM’ and we feel sure you will take great
pride as your ‘COM child’ implements its strategic
plan to train many more O&M Practitioners and
become more financially independent from the
parent body SAGA over the next decade. You
have left behind a great legacy that has already
enhanced the mobility and independence of
many thousands of visually impaired people, and
that will continue to impact the lives of many
more generations of people experiencing a visual
impairment.
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