There are no secrets which The Seeing Eye uses to make the shepherd an
effective guide, but there are several essentials to success. The first
is experience. The knowledge gained by the years of work which have gone
into the development of The Seeing Eye is called upon in the education of
every student. A second essential is that the carefully selected dog is
educated, not trained. She is taught to think for herself and in her
instruction learns certain principles which she can apply to problems she
will meet later. If she reacted only to commands she would be useless in
guiding blind people. Another essential is the fact that she loves to
work. To her, service is a pleasure and not a duty. Her master's hours
are hers. Her main compensation is her master's affection and his utter
reliance on her.
Blind students, men and women, come to the school in classes of eight,
the maximum an instructor is able to teach at one time. While their major
objective is to learn through practice and instruction how to direct the
dog and follow her guidance, some of them must learn other things, too.
Many of them since blindness have lost the faculty of finding their way
in known surroundings. Others have fallen into the habit of shuffling
feet and groping walk, with body bent forward and hands outstretched.
Some never have walked down stairs unaided. These are things which must
be unlearned if the dog is to bring independence. At The Seeing Eye the
student is taught to free himself from these habits of helplessness, so
that self-reliance and courage gradually return. Anticipation replaces
despair as the dog opens a new world for her master, one he dreamed of
but never hoped to have again.
All the practice work of the student with his dog takes place on the
streets of Morristown. Here, morning and afternoon each day, the student
gradually assimilates his lessons. Near the end of his month's course he
is able to go easily and fearlessly about the city without an instructor,
just as he will in his various activities on his return home.