Amidst the stress of homework, tests, and projects, Seeing Eye Dogs, an organization that trains dogs for the disabled, brought friendly faces and warmed the hearts of the Hills community. On Monday, November 25th, the Indian Hills guidance department brought the Seeing Eye so students could visit and interact with three puppies during lunch.
These dogs have a deeper purpose than just being cute dogs for students to pet. The Seeing Eye Dogs are raised and trained by individuals through the Seeing Eye Dog organization. This organization works to help people with disabilities by training dogs to help them with directions, support, and more.
The Seeing Eye Dogs organization specifically visits Indian Hills and other high schools in the area to help expose the dogs to public spaces and different environments. This training allows the dogs to become more comfortable with unfamiliar places and strangers, allowing them to perform to the best of their abilities for their future owners.
Mrs. Perry, a counselor in the guidance department at Indian Hills, gives more insight on the training of the Seeing Eye Dogs: “Puppies complete a year of training with their ‘raiser’ before going back to school at the Seeing Eye (in Morristown, NJ) to complete their training specifically in connection as a guide dog.” The Seeing Eye Dogs organization came to Indian Hills not only to help spread awareness about the mission of the Seeing Eye organization, but also to help further train the puppies in obedience, socialization, and reinforcing manners.
The Seeing Eye Dogs were a huge hit for students. Senior Vinci Introna says, “It was so good to know that animals like them can help people so much.” With the start of the holidays, some students and faculty members may have been experiencing high stress levels that come with the season or the number of tests, projects, and homework before the break. Mrs. Perry explains, “There is scientific research that confirms dogs in a workplace or school environment help reduce stress, increase overall morale, and increase attendance. We can learn a lot from their inclusive behavior and nondiscriminatory socialization.”
Bringing the puppies to Indian Hills changed the pace of everyday life and allowed for socialization for not only the puppies but also the students. Senior Miah Guzman says, “I loved interacting with the puppies. It was good to know that they are going to help people in the future.”
Not only were the puppies a cute way to brighten students’ days, but they were also a way to bring tremendous benefits to students, faculty, and the puppies themselves. The Seeing Eye coming to Indian Hills had a win-win outcome; students came over to bond with the puppies while benefiting the puppies’ training.
