- Conferences
- Becoming a Member
- Facts and Figures
- History of IGDF
- Gifts in Wills
- International Guide Dog Day
- IGDF in the Media
- IGDF and ADI Joint Position Statements
- Starting a Guide Dog Organisation
- Section 1: Governance and Management
- Section 2: Administration support services, record-keeping systems and resources
- Section 3: Fund raising and public relations – media and communications
- Section 4: Staff education and ongoing professional development
- Section 5: Source of dogs
- Section 6: Puppy raising programme
- Section 8: Guide dog assessment and training
- Section 9: Client services – applicants, clients and graduates
- Section 10: Veterinary Care
- Section 7: Kennel services and /or boarding facilities
- Section 11: Adoption/career change services
- Development journey towards IGDF membership for emerging Guide Dog Organisations
- Organisation Structure
Launch of Position Statement: ADI and IGDF Joint Position Statement on Client Services and Ethics
ADI and IGDF are delighted to launch our new Joint Statement on Client Services and Ethics. This is the latest collaboration between our two organisations and demonstrates our continuing commitment to the people we serve.
The statement is intended to guide our relationships and engagement of our members’ staff, volunteers and any external consultants as they carry out their day-to-day interactions with the people we serve. Like the existing Joint Position Statement on Dog Health and Welfare, this new statement compliments and provides an ethical context for the ADI and IGDF Standards and values, as well as demonstrating a strong commitment to the human-dog partnership.
The statement has been developed by a group of leading experts from the guide and assistance dog sector. On behalf of the ADI and IGDF Boards we would like to extend our thanks to the following volunteers who contributed to this work:
- Melissa Allman, The Seeing Eye, Inc.
- Christine Baroni-Pretsch, Foundation Romande pour Chiens Guides d’Aveugles
- Felicity Beaulieu, Guide Dogs WA/TAS
- Antoine Bouissou, Association des Chiens Guides Grand Sud Ouest
- Chris Diefenthaler, Assistance Dogs International
- Mark van Gelder, Canisha vzw
- Melinda Sowers, Canine Companions
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the Joint Position Statement, please contact Chris Diefenthaler (ADI) or David Maynard (IGDF) enquiries@igdf.org.uk
Launch of Position Statement: ADI and IGDF Joint Position Statement on the eithical training and care of guide and assistance dogs
The world’s two leading organizations for assistance and guide dogs have strengthened their joint commitment to the health, welfare and ethical treatment of dogs trained by their member programs.
Assistance Dogs International (ADI) and the International Guide Dog Federation (IGDF) issued a joint position statement re-affirming their commitment to the ethical training and care of dogs. They aim to
“support the ethical training and handling of all our dogs and puppies by our staff, volunteers, clients, and any external consultants”, while acknowledging that training methods and the understanding of dogs’ health and welfare needs have evolved significantly over recent years.
“ADI and IGDF are rightly proud of our work to promote the ethical care and welfare of dogs, but that doesn’t mean we are resting on our laurels – there is always more to learn and put into practice,” said ADI Board Chair Danny Vancoppernolle. “Our joint commitment represents the latest evolution of decades of work to ensure the physical, psychological, and emotional needs of assistance and guide dogs are met.”
“As the two leading global organizations for setting standards and accrediting assistance and guide dog training programs, our experience shows that assistance dogs work at their best when supported with good welfare,” he added. “There is growing scientific evidence that positive reinforcement training has a significant impact on the success and well-being of both assistance dogs and their human partners.”
The joint position, which was developed in collaboration with experienced practitioners, external experts and by reviewing current scientific literature, recognizes that dogs are sentient beings, capable of feeling emotions such as pleasure, happiness, fear, and anxiety.
“We aim to manage our dogs’ physical and functional needs and experiences so that our dogs, at all life stages, have good physical, psychological and emotional health,” said Bill Thornton, Chair of the IGDF Board of Directors. “Our member programs have a responsibility to meet the physical, psychological and emotional needs of their dogs – and that includes using positive reinforcement training methods.”
“This statement marks a further strengthening of ties between ADI and IGDF, which recently signed a Memorandum of Cooperation,” he added. “Both organizations have been working for decades to put the health and wellbeing of their dogs front and center, and this position statement represents the latest evolution of that work,” said Thornton. “However, it’s important to note that the statement is a living document which will continue to evolve over time in line with new evidence and practice.”
The joint commitment emphasizes the need for positive renforcement and reward-based training methods, backed up by growing scientific evidence that the ethical training and handling of assistance dogs has a significant positive impact on the success and well-being of both the dogs and their human partners.
“We advocate for humane, evidence-based training methods such as the LIMA (least intrusive, minimally aversive), because the needs of our dogs and our commitment to dog welfare will always be our top priority,” said Vancoppernolle.
