R.I.P. Zhuang Zhuang; Farewell to Jiangsu’s First Guide Dog

The Nanjinger

23rd November 2023

R.I.P. Zhuang Zhuang; Farewell to Jiangsu’s First Guide Dog

By Frank Hosack

Guide dogs in China have a working life of 10 years. They are also extremely rare, with only a few hundred in the entire country. That’s what makes the passing of the very first one to work in Jiangsu Province all the more poignant.

On 20 November, Ding Zhiqiang, a blind masseuse from Changzhou, announced through his WeChat Moments and video account that his guide dog, Zhuang Zhuang, who had been with him for 10 years and 10 months, had left this world.

As the first guide dog in Jiangsu, Zhuang Zhuang came to Changzhou in February of 2012, officially retiring in August of 2021. Zhuang Zhuang then continued to live in Ding’s home, becoming good friends with his successor, Odie.

https://www.thenanjinger.com/news/regional-news/r-i-p-zhuang-zhuang-farewell-to-jiangsus-first-guide-dog/