Carol and Ezra

Meet Graduate Carol

Graduate Team:    Carol and Ezra
About the Team:   Ezra, a male black Lab, is Carol’s 4th Guiding Eyes dog
Location:   Tucson, Arizona
Training:   August 2024 Home Training

Carol lived and worked in New York City, first in the publishing business for ten years and then for a real estate acquisition company. Carol and her husband Richard were together for 36 years prior to his passing while they were living in Tucson. Carol lived life as a sighted individual until age 33 when she suffered a head trauma in an accident. Within a couple of years, she reached out to Guiding Eyes with the goal of maintaining her independence for herself, and for her husband. She successfully completed the program and graduated with her first guide dog, Licorace. Carol now lives in retirement with her fourth guide dog, Ezra, and enjoys the time they spend together, and the bond they share.

How would you describe your guide dog?  “Ezra is smart, sensitive, quiet, and so very sweet. He is a phenomenal dog.  He’s happy and he brings me his squeaky toy and we play. He loves to be groomed, and I whisper to him the whole time and he loves it. He is so trusting, and the bond we have is beautiful.  In harness he is great. I call him God’s helper because that’s the Hebrew definition of the name Ezra. We have full trust in each other.  He loves me and guards me.”

What made you decide to apply for a guide dog from Guiding Eyes?  “It was my mobility instructor who told me about Guiding Eyes.  For my third dog, John, I did residential training at the school. I had never been away from my husband, so I said, OK, I’ll go to the training school, stay a couple of days then I’ll come home. They were so kind and encouraging, that after a couple of days, I called my husband from Guiding Eyes, and said, ‘I’m staying’.  I felt like I got my eyesight back. The school was relaxed, and I loved my trainer. It was great.”  

How has a guide dog impacted your life?  “Ezra is great, and because I love to exercise, we walk a third of a mile around my building 3 times every day, plus I use the exercise room regularly. When we come to a curb, he looks up at me to make sure I know that it is there. I can tell him things once or twice, like ‘go place’, and he remembers it every time after that. I take Ezra when I go to a local low-vision group, and we have a group that raises money for a holiday fund that’s distributed to staff at a fun gathering. So now, Ezra will attend all of that with me. The bond that we have is so important.”

Were there any training highlights? “My regional guide dog mobility instructor was Mike, and he is an angel. He is soft-spoken, doesn’t make me nervous, and is very encouraging, saying things like, ‘I know you have it in you, I know you can do it.’  Mike is wonderful and gave me pointers when Ezra and I went to a restaurant with a friend. Once I checked to see that there was nothing on the floor, I let Ezra lie under the table. I took Mike’s word for everything, and it worked. He is phenomenal and I cannot find enough good things to say about him.”

Meet Guide Dog Ezra

DOB:  5/17/2022
Litter ID: 1EE22
Color/Breed:  Black/Labrador Retriever
Gender: Male
Brood: MacKenzie
Stud: Darren
Littermates: Eliza, Elsie, Ella, Elon, Esther, Ellison, Edward
Region:  Bay
Regional Puppy Instructor: Cindy Tait
Puppy Raiser:  Jeff Engl
Facebook: Bay Puppy Raisers

Photos of the Team…