First guide dog training centre in Hong Kong opens

The first guide dog training centre in Hong Kong opened yesterday after two years of struggling to find a home in one of the most expensive cities in the world - raising hopes guide dogs can also be bred locally.

Hong Kong Seeing Eye Dog Services has obtained a 1,000 sq ft space - which will double as a training base and office - at a "discounted price" on the edge of Kwai Shing Estate, near Kwai Fong.

"We tried the Housing Authority and the Housing Department ... multiple times but never came close [to getting any help]," said the body's chief executive, Alfred Li.

With a visually-impaired population of roughly 170,000, Hong Kong has only 30 guide dogs - 14 of which have been trained or are still undergoing training by the group. Out of these 14 dogs, just four are currently in use.

According to the group, about 1,700 visually-impaired Hongkongers have expressed a wish to have a guide dog.

"If pups are raised and trained locally, Hong Kong's tight spaces are not an issue. They are used to navigating road crossings, escalators and malls," said one of the two dog trainers at the centre, Edith Lee. Lee and another trainer are obtaining their international credentials - receiving training from authorised centres outside Hong Kong, since there's no accredited facility in the city.

Until now, the group has trained puppies without a permanent base. Puppies are brought to Hong Kong when they are just a few months old and placed with foster families - which the centre screens carefully, Lee said. Then the puppies will have to pass a health test and an emotional test, before formal guide dog training commences.

Training usually lasts between six and nine months, after which dogs will be matched with owners followed by 28 days of "matching training".

"Training commences in the streets for the dogs. We will first bring them to quieter places like parks, then slowly to noisier and more crowded areas," said Lee.

She added the two dogs she's training at present also live with her - common practice for dog-trainers.

"Hong Kong has unique environments like wet markets. The smells of slaughtered pigs and meat will take training, but is possible to get used to for dogs."

Usually the guide dog will stay with the same owner for life, Lee said.

At the centre's opening ceremony yesterday, three of the first four locally trained guide dogs received a "belated graduation" - complete with cap and gown.