From the Director

In December, I retired my Seeing Eye Dog Korbin after seven years of excellent partnership.
Korbin was ready to retire, but I am not. So I flew to New Jersey and over a period of three weeks trained with my new guide dog, Jimi.
I have partnered with a Seeing Eye dog since I graduated from high school, and for me, using a guide dog is as natural and imperative as walking. However, here at the IDB, our emphasis in training is on the long white cane.
The cane is the basic mobility tool every blind and visually impaired person needs to travel safely and independently. Without the solid mobility skills learned with the long white cane, those who choose to use a dog guide are not equipped to be successful.
Using the dog guide requires all of the basic mobility skills learned with the cane, plus a complex of new skills involving not only the actual work with a dog, but also the care, feeding and management of a valued working animal.
The majority of blind people don’t choose to take on that challenge and can do the things they want using a cane.
Whether to use a cane or a dog is a highly personal choice, but the important factor is that the basic mobility skills with the cane must come first.
In this issue, you will see what makes the Iowa Cane an effective mobility tool, and you will discover how, with the cane in hand, blind Iowans have recaptured their independence and moved forward with their lives.
Sincerely,
Karen Keninger