philosophical question: sporting events

[Raul Gallegos - NAGDU]

Hello everyone and happy October. I have a philosophical question to ask. There are no right or wrong answers.

 

Now that the World Series season is upon us, I’ve been thinking, what is best practices for taking your guide dog to sporting events. Following are a series of questions to ponder.

 

• Should you go to these events with or without your guide dog?
• What are the pros and cons of doing either?
• Why might you do it sometimes and sometimes not?
• What may cause you to change your mind?

Let’s get some meaningful discussion about this going. I’m genuinely interested to find people’s perspectives on this.

 

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Raul Gallegos, President

National Association of Guide Dog Users

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[Morgan Estes]

I personally wouldn’t take my dog to a sporting event. I rarely go to things like that so I don’t think it would be worth it to take him and potentially stress him out. Also if I was going to go to an event like that which I most likely wouldn’t go anyways I would be with friends or family that could help me out. I probably wouldn’t take him because of the volume level and maybe not having enough space for him on the seats. But I know people have taken their guide dogs to sporting events and they’ve been fine. So that’s just my opinion of what I would do. 

Warm regards,

Morgan A Estes

On Oct 3, 2025, at 1:14 PM, Raul Gallegos - NAGDU <rgal...@nagdu.org> wrote:



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[Kelly Snyder]

Hello everyone, I really post but figured I’d jump in on this interesting question.

I’ve taken my dog to both professional and college sporting events. Each time I’ve gone, my dog has been fine. The only caveat when I do decide to go to a professional, sporting event, I always make sure that there is no fireworks at the end of the game. If there are fireworks, I’ll go hang out in the souvenir shop.

I tend to not go to baseball games in the heart of the summer season because it’s hot, and it’s difficult to get into shade with your dog. So, when I do go to baseball games, they’re usually at the beginning or the end of the season. As for football games, I’ve gone to a couple and I’ve sat in both accessible and non-accessible seating. I tend to gravitate towards accessible seating because there’s a little more room for the dog to spread out a bit.

I’ve never gone to any indoor sporting events, such as a hockey game or basketball game. But I wouldn’t necessarily not take my dog to either of those it would all depend on the noise level I suppose.

But as others have said, it’s your choice on whether or not you take your dog. I feel comfortable in taking my dog, so I will continue to do that when it’s appropriate. Now that I’m actually in the process of getting a successor dog, I probably will not take my current dog to any Sporting events due to the stress level. So I guess to answer this question in a nutshell, I will take a younger dog to a sporting event within reason. But you know your dog best, so you do what you feel comfortable with in regards to sporting events.

I also have plenty of food reward on hand if I do go to a sporting event. I also try to tick the dog to do his business prior to entering the stadium and right after when I leave.

Sorry, I hope this makes sense, I kind of jumped around a bit. Sorry about that!

I hope everyone is having a great Friday and enjoying the fall weather!

Best,

Kelly 

Please excuse any errors, including misspelling. This email was generated using both dictation and voiceover via my iPhone.

Kelly Snyder, M. A. The University of Toledo. Management analyst, federal aviation administration.
Ph- (419)573-9668

[Al Elia]

This question reminded me of a wonderful time out with my first guide dog, Levi.

Levi was a 100 pound black and tan german shepherd. Many of you may have heard me tell stories of our adventures together, most of which focus on me being an idiot and Levi being the smart and tolerant person in the relationship; who waits for his idiot handler to realize that he was right and to let him do his job, thank you very much. However, there are also a few stories that focus on Levi off-duty, and those almost always involve fetch.

Levi LOVED fetch. In his hierarchy of affection and duty, it went Al, fetch, and then everyone and everything else. Given the choice between food and fetch, fetch won every time. The only thing that could distract him from work when guiding was walking by a tennis court, where he would continually turn to watch the tennis ball being batted back and forth with his ears straight up and a quiet whine to let me know that he must really love me because a ball was in motion right there...RIGHT THERE… but he was still guiding me and I needed to understand the depth of his devotion.

Now, let me say that I am not a sports fan. I go to sporting events for camaraderie, not for any love of the games. When I started my first job after college, the company I worked for had an annual outing to see the Red Sox play at Fenway park to welcome the new hires, and I figured I’d go so I could get to know my new co-workers.

What I hadn’t realized until that day was that baseball is basically a game of professional fetch for humans. How did I realize that? You guessed it – Levi was watching the game with intense focus. His ears were straight up, he was sitting at rigid attention, and his head was flicking back and forth as he followed the ball as it was thrown, hit, caught, thrown again, chased after, etc. He was like a coiled spring wound-up with pure excitement. I had visions of a stray ball being hit into the stands and Levi leaping over the heads of the fans to snatch the ball mid-flight, possibly out of the hands of another spectator. Fortunately, at least from my perspective, no such foul ball came our way, but Levi watched that entire game with clear excitement. When we left, he kept looking back to see if he could catch a glimpse of the ball in the air.

I don’t have children, but I think I felt what a parent would feel upon taking their baseball-loving kid to their first game. It was a great feeling. Recalling it lets me relive that feeling, and remember Levi at his most joyous.

So to answer Raul’s question, I would definitely take my guide dog to a sporting event. The only thing that might change my mind is if my dog would be uncomfortable due to age or weather. I suppose if I had a dog who was very bothered by loud noises, that might also weigh against taking them, but that has never been an issue with my dogs.

I suppose there are potential cons, such as the risk/certainty that the dog will find and eat popcorn, peanuts, and other stadium detritus, but now that I have a lab whose devotion to guiding is rooted entirely in his being able to graze city sidewalks, that doesn’t bother me.

I look forward to everyone’s contributions to this discussion.

Yours,

/Æ

Al Elia

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[Stacie Gallegos]

Hello Everyone, 

This is a great question. When I got my first guide dog, Ascot, I was teaching and coaching. Ascot accompanied me to countless track meets, wrestling tournaments, and a couple of swimming meets. Ascot had no problems with any of these activities. However, I found the swim meets a challenge, because Ascot loved the water, and he just couldn’t understand why he was not allowed to join the swimmers in the pool Fortunately, Ascot only attended 2 swim meets in our time together.

While I attended a few college football games when Ascot and I were together, I never took him  with me to these. By this time, Ascot and I had been together for a few years, and he was fine staying at home, or at a friends house.

When Cash came along, he accompanied me to an Astros game once. I’m not sure why I took him with me, but I decided after that experience, that for me personally, taking my guide dog to any sort of  sports event was not the best option. Cash did fine, but he was a little cramped in the seating area, and let’s not even talk about how dirty the ground was. Let’s just say that after the game, the next day, he went to the spa for some much needed pampering. Cash was a real trooper, and was happy anywhere as long as we were together. Ultimately, the decision of when and where you take your guide dog is up to   each handler. However, I would encourage people to consider how you would feel about this sort of thing if the roles were reversed. I might also say, that this is a great reason that guide dog users should maintain excellent cane skills. . Thanks for the great question. 

—
Stacie Gallegos / Secretary

National Association of Guide Dog Users

Https://www.nagdu.org
(346) 439-7444  |  SGal...@nagdu.org
“You can live the life you want. Blindness is not what holds you back.”

[robert stigile]

Hello all,

Well, I am an avid sports fan, baseball basketball hockey and football.

I go to several baseball games each year and was just at dodger Stadium last month and I am looking at playoff tickets for next week!

I have taken my dog with me to baseball games and I have left her at home. Usually the reason I leave her at home is that there is not enough room in the car when you're going. I like being able to move quickly and freely about the stadium with 50,000+ fans when traveling with my guide dog. She usually lays underneath the seats where I'm sitting and is tucked away so that if someone's coming through, they will not step on her. I  I have had times when she has gotten a hold of Hotdogs and had a beer or two spilled on her. She loves watching the game. I will find her completely enthralled in what is going on on the field rather than sleeping underneath the seat I'm sitting on. I have been to games when there are fireworks after the game and it has not bothered my guide dog at all. However, I know that many people have guide dog that fireworks bothers their dog, and it is a personal choice of whether you take your dog with you or not. It can be overwhelming for dogs that large of a crowd, but mine have never had an issue. I hope this helps everyone who may be deciding whether or not to take their dogs with them to sporting events. Have a great day!

Robert Stigile, Second Vice-President

National Federation of the Blind of California

President San Fernando Valley Chapter

818-381-9568

Kn6uvd

On Oct 3, 2025, at 10:55 AM, Al Elia <ae...@nagdu.org> wrote:



[Steve Cook]

Hi All,

 

I have had 3 guide dogs and currently working my 3^rd. I have not taken any of my guides to sporting events or concerts especial if they are in doors. My reasons are as follows: normally the seating at theses events are extremely tight and therefor, my guide would not have room. Also, with people spilling beer and soda, I would not know if my guide was laying down in the liquid. Another reason is due to the noise factor especially at concerts.

 

Steve Cook, Board Member

National Association of Guide Dog Users

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(803) 260-1292

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[Steve Cook]

FYI, forwarding to the list serve.

 

Steve Cook, Board Member

National Association of Guide Dog Users

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(803) 260-1292

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From: Julie A. Orozco <kayb...@gmail.com>
Sent: Sunday, October 5, 2025 9:40 PM
To: 'Steve Cook' <sc...@nagdu.org>
Subject: RE: [NAGDU-Discuss] philosophical question: sporting events

 

Hi everyone,

 

Interesting question. My third dog is pretty new, and I’m not much of a sports person, so this hasn’t come up with him yet. But I took my other two dogs to sporting events from time to time. I took my first dog to a few sporting events where I was asked to sing, and she did well. I remember singing the national anthem at the start of a big race once. They wanted me to stand on the back of a big truck so people could see me. So there I was, dog leash in hand, several feet above my dog on the ground, singing and hoping my dog didn’t try to lay down and pull me off the truck. Thankfully, she did well and the noise and crowds never phased her.

 

My second dog was less heat tollerent, so there were a couple times I left him home for sporting events. But when I interviewed to work at the NFB national center, I was invited to go to a baseball game. I didn’t want to leave him back in my room, and it was late September, so I took my second dog. He did so great and was such a joy to have at the game. It was cool enough that he wasn’t bothered, and our seats weren’t packed, so he had a spot to lay down.

 

I think it really just depends on the circumstances, the dog, and our preferences as handlers. I doubt I would take any of my dogs to a super hot sporting event. But if the heat wasn’t a concern, I would consider it more seriously. I live near a big city, so my dogs are used to crowds and love that kind of chaos. But it might depend on the noise level too. I’ve heard football games are the loudest. Again, I would consider whether or not to take my dog on a case by case basis, though my general default is to figure out bringing my dog.

 

Thanks for all the discussion,

 

Julie