The History Of The Seeing Eye Dog
The actual time of when somebody first happened on the idea of using animals for assistance to the blind has been lost to history. It is assumed that using dogs for the blind has been happening for a very long time. What is known is that the first guide dog for the blind program came into existence not long after the First World War.
Many people have often wondered about why a lot of seeing eye dogs are actually German Shepherds. There is a couple of reasons for this. The first , as a breed in general, German Shepherds develop a strong sense of loyalty to their owners, which breeds a natural tendency to be very protective of them. A guide dog that is protective of it’s owner has it’s obvious advantages. Seeing a rather large dog protecting an otherwise vulnerable person is a big deterrent to all but the most foolhardy criminal.
The other reason for the popularity of German Shepherds as guide dogs is simply the fact that the first guide dogs were trained in Germany to provide assistance to veterans of the war who had been blinded in action. When Germany went into financial depression and many private businesses failed, the Potsdam school, where the dogs were trained, was one of them.
A new Beginning
Dorothy Eustis from America heard about the German program and decided to try to train German Shepherds for the blind. Dorothy already had a company that was training German Shepherds as working dogs so it was simply a matter of designing the program.
Thinking about the idea, she wrote a story and submitted it to The Saturday Evening Post where it was read by a man named Morris Frank from Nashville. He wrote to Ms. Eustis and asked her to train his German Shepherd which she did. Mr. Frank is officially the first person to use a Guide Dog.
Mr Franks started training Guide Dogs in the United States as part of an arrangement he had made with Ms. Eustis. The foundation he started was titled “The Seeing Eye” and so the Seeing Eye Dog was born.
Guide dogs aren’t just for the blind. Today dogs are trained for a variety of disabilities. We have Hearing Ear dogs to assist the deaf and other dogs are specifically trained to assist the physically disabled. All of these Guide Dogs however have their roots from the organization started by Mr. Morris Frank of Nashville, Tennessee.
Leigh likes to write and make websites about anything and everything. For more examples go to 12 Days of Christmas Ornaments and Outdoor Bar Sets.
