Do guide dogs use traffic lights when crossing streets?
No, the decision is based on teamwork. Guide dogs are trained to stop at every curb to indicate to the visually impaired or blind person that the sidewalk has come to an end. The visually impaired or blind person then listens to the flow of traffic to determine when it is safe to cross and gives the guide dog the “forward” command in a suggestive tone. This lets the guide dog know to assess the situation visually, at which point the guide dog will go forward if it is safe, or disregard the command if the situation is not safe (this is called intelligent disobedience).
