Civil servant finds Seeing Dog Alliance
Andrea Cooper, 31, is a civil servant at the Department of Education and lives in Coventry. Her Seeing Dog, Midas, qualified early November 2022
Andrea is no stranger to having a guide dog. In fact, she was the youngest-ever recipient of a dog, getting her first (named Cara), back in 2006 when she was in Year 11.
Born with optic atrophy (a severe optic nerve issue resulting in extreme tunnel vision), having a four-legged assistant transformed her life. “I just never suited a cane – I hated it and felt embarrassed. Getting a dog was the perfect mobility aid and gave me a new level of confidence,” she recalls.
Cara retired in 2015, and was followed by Volley, a companion who helped her move into her own home. Sadly, the loveable chocolate Labrador passed away suddenly in 2021.
Despite being classed as high priority for a new dog, there was little hope of getting one through the traditional route. Training delays caused by Covid-19 meant she was placed on a waiting list stretching at least two years.
And then she heard about the Seeing Dogs Alliance.
“I wrote about the loss of Volley on social media and was very down. Luckily someone referred me to Seeing Dogs and I got in touch. Things very quickly moved on. I applied in November 2021 and got a call in June 2022 that Midas was a possibility for me,” she explains.
“His trainer, Sue, got him as a puppy and the training is the great quality that I’d come to expect. In fact, the whole introduction process was much more tailored to me, to make sure me and Midas were a proper match.”
Andrea spent a week in Bolton with Sue to see how she might get on with Midas. Intense one-on-one training sessions built trust and help dog and new owner learn each other’s quirks. “It’s about being out of your comfort zone in unfamiliar surroundings,” says Andrea. “One of the great things about Seeing Dogs is the way they learn to negotiate everyday obstacles and handle the ground. It means I can listen to my phone giving directions and he leads – we can go really fast!”
Training also offered some added extras. Because Andrea often travels by train into London for work and leisure, Sue and Andrea spent time riding the escalators at Euston with Midas to get him comfortable on them.
“He’s got other tricks too,” says Andrea. “He stands on his back legs at pedestrian crossings to point out where the button is for me. And he does the same at bus stops, on buses and trains – he’ll find me a seat and put his front paws on it, so I know where to sit down.
“What’s amazing is that when we’re out, together people sometimes see us and think I’m training him. They ask me how his training is going. We move so well together, people think I can see.
“In the months after Volley, when I didn’t have a dog, it really affected me. People at work could tell and I felt lost. It does hit your confidence, which makes your work suffer.
“I feel very lucky to have found Seeing Dogs Alliance and very lucky to be partnered with Midas – even if he does get blond hair everywhere!”