Summer Academy goes to the dogs
Summer Academy goes to the dogs
It was cuteness overload at Plymouth Elementary School on July 22 when about a dozen puppies from The Seeing Eye Puppy Club stopped in for a visit at Summer Academy.
The theme for the third week of Summer Academy is “Community Helpers,” and through The Seeing Eye Puppy Club presentation, students learned that the furry, four-legged friends were in training to become helpers for those with visual impairments. The dogs’ handlers, who also attended the presentation, serve as volunteers for The Seeing Eye organization, helping to raise and train the puppies to become future guide dogs.
Mackenzie Jacobs, a Colonial Elementary School student who is part of the club, shared information with Summer Academy students in grades 3 and 4 about her experience being a puppy raiser. She talked about the intensive training that Seeing Eye dogs must go through.
Students learned from other presenters about how the dogs protect their owners, by stopping them from walking into traffic, guiding them around objects or dangerous situations, and obeying their owner’s commands (turn right, turn left) when they are trying to navigate to their destinations.
The children also asked and answered questions about safe ways to interact with dogs, such as asking a dog owner for permission to pet a dog; offering a hand for the dog to sniff before giving scratches; petting a pooch under his or her chin instead of the head; and resisting the urge to approach dogs that are working to keep their owners safe or to perform tasks.
Most of the dogs who visited were under one year old with many puppy-ish qualities on display as they sniffed each other and occasionally chewed on their handlers’ sneakers. However, when called to attention by their handlers, they showed the students that they can sit, lie down, and stand up on command. They were also very excited to receive some pets from the students once the presentation was over.
The Seeing Eye organization is based in Morris Township, NJ. They train three primary breeds of dogs: German shepherds, Labrador retrievers, and Golden retrievers. According to the presentation, up to 260 people with blindness and low vision are partnered with Seeing Eye dogs each year.
