Blind woman 'caged up' at home due to guide dog refusal

Mrs Evans still cares for her retired guide dog, Zebedee

A blind woman says she has been forced to live "caged up like an animal" for nine months after being told she was no longer eligible for a guide dog.

Thelma Evans, 64, of West Moors, Dorset, has had guide dogs for 37 years but says her latest application was rejected on the grounds of her health.

She described the decision by charity Guide Dogs as "inhumane".

Guide Dogs said it was working with Mrs Evans to help her meet the fitness criteria for looking after a dog.

Mrs Evans, who has been blind all her life, used to walk to the shops near her home every day but stopped nine months ago when her seventh guide dog, Zebedee, retired.

She said: "I was on the wait list for an eighth dog but in January I had a phone call telling me I was taken off the list."

Mrs Evans says, without a guide dog, she is no longer able to make her daily trip to the shops

She said the reasons she was given included not being able to pick up after her dog in her garden, getting out of breath when walking and that her daily walk of less than a mile was not adequate for a dog.

According to the Guide Dogs website, owners must be able to walk for about 40 minutes or a mile, five days a week, and be fit and healthy enough to care for a young and active dog.

Mark Sanderson, the charity's south-west head of operations, said: "The door is absolutely not closed.

"When somebody reapplies to work with a guide dog, we have to reassess where they are.

"We have to look at their health and fitness and, at this time, we are working with Mrs Evans to see what we can do to help her meet those requirements to be able to work with a guide dog."