Dale Gormley from the charity Canine Partners was speaker at the 11th November meeting of Anstruther Rotary club.

It was a revelation to learn of the work of Canine Partners. Everyone knew of the work of Guide Dogs and Hearing Dogs, but canine partners are dogs trained to the special and individual needs of people with disabilities, so enabling them to enjoy a greater independence and quality of life. Dogs are individually trained to meet the needs of people with even the most complex disabilities such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, MS, brittle bones, polio, arthritis, spina bifida, spinal injuries and amputees.

We heard how the charity works very closely with Help for Heroes to place dogs with injured ex-servicemen and women.

We also saw the most remarkable video footage of canine partners at work – bringing crutches telephones and keys, opening and shutting doors, unloading the washing machine, pressing buttons and switches, fetching milk from the fridge and even inserting a credit card and retrieving cash from a bank machine – although the human side of the partnership did have to enter the PIN number!!

A most impressive story was of a lady who suffers regular seizures and would not usually be able to live alone. Her canine partner is trained to recognise a seizure, to let itself out of the door, go to the neighbour’s house, knock on the door and bring help. Quite remarkable.

The charity selects and trains the dogs, typically Retrievers, Labradors and ‘Doodle’ crosses for what is typically a 10-year working life. The training starts at around 8 weeks old and includes puppy training, advanced training and final special training for the individual needs of the human partner. The cost is £20,000 for a lifetime of partnership and support.       

Following many questions, club member Roderick Skinner proposed a vote of thanks for an eye-opening and fascinating talk. More about Canine Partners is at (http://www.caninepartners.org.uk)