Gyömbér recently retired. Five years ago, he protected his owner with his own body from a vicious dog attack. The heroic guide dog is now spending his retirement years with his owner and his successor, Tangó.
Five years ago, Gyömbér and his owner, Barnabás Kiss, were attacked by another dog. Barnabás was on his way to work in Abaújszántó when a dog escaped from a yard and attacked him and his guide dog. The blind man fell, and the yellow Labrador suffered such severe injuries that the tip of his tail had to be amputated.
After the attack, the dog was understandably distressed, but he calmed down within days and seemed to be recovering. Then Barnabás noticed that the bone at the end of Gyömbér’s shortened tail could be felt by touch. He immediately contacted our foundation, and it turned out that after the first surgery, the tissues had contracted during healing and no longer protected the bone properly. Because of this, the tail stump had to be shortened further. During the first surgery, the veterinarian removed 3 centimeters, and during the second, 5 centimeters.
Gyömbér Continued Working, but Was Injured Again
The difficult wound eventually healed, and afterward Gyömbér worked beautifully for another two years. Fortunately, neither the attack nor the surgery broke his spirit. However, last year he suffered a torn cruciate ligament in his right hind leg. The orthopedic clinic did everything possible for our dog and stabilized the injury. Gyömbér can now move without difficulty and still happily runs around the garden, but he would no longer be able to handle guide dog work.
“I travel several hours every day between my home and workplace by train and bus, which would have become too exhausting for Gyömbér, so together with the foundation we decided to retire him. I insisted that he stay with me. I don’t want to let him go, because these 9 years have been truly important, and our bond is so strong. Meanwhile, Tangó entered training at the foundation, and it quickly became clear that we work very well together. We are already practicing for the mobility safety exam,” said Barna.
The Happy Retired Life Has Begun
Retired Gyömbér is just the same as before: playful and goofy. He constantly brings the ball so his owner will throw it for him. He is not a quiet retiree. Fortunately, Tangó also enjoys playing together. When Barna arrived home in Tornyosnémeti led by Tangó, the two dogs immediately began chasing each other wildly, then tugging on a rope. They often went over to their owner for petting and cuddles.
Dog Owners: Please Protect Guide Dogs!
In the small village near the Slovak border, there is no dog park, so after daily work Tangó is exercised elsewhere by his owner. Because of his age and operated leg, playing in the garden is enough for Gyömbér.
Barna said that unfortunately, even after the surgeries, they were attacked again by dogs both in Tornyosnémeti and near his workplace in Abaújszántó. Gyömbér was not injured again, and so far neither has Tangó, but it is difficult to live with this risk. Therefore, our visually impaired clients and our foundation would like to ask dog owners the following:
“We ask owners to protect the physical safety of guide dogs, because they are a true treasure for their visually impaired owners, and our foundation can only replace dogs permanently retired from work through great expense and effort. The total lifetime cost of a guide dog is more than 6 million forints.”
Dogs are usually retired mainly because of old age, since after 8–10 years of work they deserve a well-earned rest. Secondly, unexpected health problems may arise. That is why we strive to train as many dogs as possible. However, it is very important that human carelessness does not become another reason for retirement, because then visually impaired people who depend on guide dogs would have to wait even longer for assistance.
Our foundation currently has a long waiting list, with 47 people continuously waiting each year for a guide dog.
We consider it important to inform the public about such attacks, because endangering the physical safety of a guide dog and its owner must be condemned and prevented. Our foundation had never had such a case before, and we hope never to have one again.
How Much Does a Guide Dog Cost?
The total lifetime cost of a guide dog is more than 6 million forints.
A guide dog usually works for around 10 years, and the total costs include: breeding dogs, breeding programs, puppy raising, screenings, medical costs, care, equipment, training (2 million forints of this is trainer wages), owner training, handover, examinations, follow-up support and care for ten years, replacing equipment, extra medical costs for an aging dog, retirement-related expenses, utilities, vehicle use, and more.
This is how the total cost over ten years exceeds 6 million forints.
Barna arrived by train at Miskolc Tiszai railway station, then practiced with our trainer Viktor Tóth.
Where Does the Money Come From?
Ez egy fontos és nemes felhívás! A fordításnál figyeltem arra, hogy a hivatalos adománygyűjtési kifejezéseket használjam, miközben megmarad az alapítvány barátságos, segítőkész hangneme.
Where do we get the funds?
Our Foundation provides guide dogs to visually impaired applicants free of charge in every case. We raise the necessary funds for training through 1% tax donations and charitable contributions.
We are celebrating our 20th anniversary this year. Over the past two decades, we have provided more than 200 guide dogs free of charge.
Please support their training with 1% of your tax! Tax ID (1%): 18449149–1–05 Baráthegyi Guide Dog and Service Dog School Foundation
If you provide your mailing address, we will send you our guide dog calendar for next year along with our thank-you letter. The easiest way to donate 1% of your tax is through the NAV (National Tax and Customs Administration) online portal via “Ügyfélkapu.”
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