John Schembri's reply titled Cool And Relaxed While Working, (January 1) to my letter in which I explained that, for a guide dog to work properly, it should be 100 per cent relaxed is, once more, confusing.
His interpretation of the word "relaxed" in his previous letter is that of taking it easy while not working, whereas my interpretation of "relaxed" while working is that of being untroubled and self-controlled under all circumstances, which is a must when guiding the blind. In his previous letter he had stated that "Guide dogs are not pets". This time, instead, he said that by using the word pet he meant patted or fondled while at work. Readers can judge whether the meaning of the word "pet" as he used it, in both instances is one and the same thing.
He says that because guide dogs are trained to avoid dangerous situations one must not pet a guide dog at work. Does he consider patting a guide dog at work a dangerous action? Dogs for the blind are trained to accept and enjoy a friendly "pat" or "pet" by others, without being interrupted. It actually makes their work more pleasurable. The dog is also trained to sense when pats could be malicious and it will ignore them in difficult situations, such as when crossing a busy street.
Mr Schembri suggests that sighted citizens are the ones to be educated because they are the ones who should be cool-headed. In certain cases, I agree with him although I do not know how it fits into the subject matter. I am sure he knows that it is the contents of his letter with which I disagreed. Nothing personal and no hard feelings, I assure him.
Finally he says that one should save a "pet" or "pat" for his neighbour's Chihuahua instead, and not for the guide dogs. He is wrong. Both the guide dog and the Chihuahua need and love the "pat".
The Chihuahua breed's only drawback in guiding the blind is that they are tiny in size, therefore hardly visible even for those with good eyesight. Otherwise, it would have been suitable as a guide dog, and it is quick to learn, besides having the brains of a Giant dog.