For the bind or partially sighted, having a guide dog becomes part of everyday life. They’re a special friend in their most vital time of need, and can help increase the confidence of those who own them. But what happens to the guide dogs who are too old to fulfil their duties?

Most Guide dogs usually retire from their work at around 10 or 11 years old. If it is not possible for the dogs to remain with their owners, then it’s up to Guide Dogs to rehome the animals accordingly.  As with many dogs at this age, most of them will be showing signs of age related health problems such as arthritis. Most of these dogs have been in company their whole lives as well, so it’s of the upmost importance that they have lots of interaction at their new home where they can enjoy their hard earned retirement.

Peter Lee’s, 60, from Bradford, has had his retired guide dog Bernie for over three years now. At 15 year old, Bernie is now enjoying life to her fullest from the comfort of Peter’s home. However, her transition to retirement did not go smoothly at first.

Peter explained: “Bernie had a very close relationship to her owner and was her loyal friend for over 8 years. Unfortunately due to medical reasons, Bernie’s owner fell ill in the middle of the night and tragically passed away.”

“Bernie stayed loyally by her owner’s side for over 12 hours until they were both found. When Bernie first came to me, she was actually showing signs of depression and pined after her old owner for at least 2 months.”

“Once Bernie had settled in with me, myself and my wife had to start training her not to be a working dog anymore-but just a normal pet. This was often really sad, as we could see the confusion in her eyes as we tried to explain to her that it was ‘bad’ to help people. I think this was the most difficult part of the re-homing process.”