The Seeing Eye

We are The Seeing Eye, and we are proud to be the oldest guide dog school in the world. Our purpose is to partner specially trained dogs with people who are blind, enhancing their ability to navigate the world with independence and confidence. Our story began not in America, but across the Atlantic Ocean in the 1920s with our founder, Dorothy Harrison Eustis. She was an American dog breeder who was living in Switzerland at the time, where she was raising and training German shepherds.

Her work led her to learn about a remarkable school in Germany. This school was training German shepherds to serve as guides for military veterans who had been blinded during World War I. Inspired by this innovative partnership between humans and animals, she wrote an article about the program for a popular American magazine in 1927. The article reached a young man in Nashville, Tennessee, named Morris Frank. Morris, who was blind, was determined to find a way to live a more independent life. After reading about the guide dogs, he wrote a letter to Dorothy, making a simple but powerful request: would she train a dog for him? This letter marked the beginning of a life-changing partnership between Dorothy, Morris, and a German shepherd who would soon be named Buddy. Together, they would lay the foundation for our entire mission.

After completing his training in Switzerland, Morris Frank returned to the United States with his new guide dog, Buddy. His goal was to show America what he and Buddy could achieve together. At the time, many people did not believe that a blind person could navigate the world safely and independently, especially in a bustling city. Morris and Buddy set out to change that perception. They traveled to busy urban centers, where they publicly demonstrated their ability to work as a team. Onlookers watched in amazement as Buddy expertly guided Morris through crowded sidewalks and across dangerous, traffic-filled streets. Their success was undeniable proof of the freedom and mobility a guide dog could provide.

These demonstrations were a turning point. They captured the public's imagination and inspired Dorothy Harrison Eustis to bring the guide dog movement to America. She realized there was a great need for a formal organization that could train these incredible dogs and match them with people who needed them. On January 29th, 1929, we were officially established as The Seeing Eye in Morris Frank's hometown of Nashville, Tennessee. Just a couple of years later, in 1931, we moved our main operations and headquarters to Morristown, New Jersey. We have been based there ever since, working to fulfill our founding goal: to make our expertly trained Seeing Eye® dogs available to people who are blind throughout North America.

From our earliest days, we understood that the success of our mission depended on a rigorous, scientific approach to our dogs. Not every dog has the unique combination of traits needed to become a guide. We developed a careful process for breeding dogs specifically for this important work. While we started with German shepherds, we soon learned that other breeds were also exceptionally well-suited for the role. Today, we breed and train Labrador retrievers, Golden retrievers, and crosses of these breeds. We select them for their excellent health, high intelligence, and calm, willing temperament, which are all essential for a successful guide dog.

Our training program is a multi-stage journey. For their first year, our puppies live with dedicated volunteer families. These 'puppy raisers' provide a loving home, teach basic obedience, and socialize the puppies, getting them comfortable with all the sights and sounds of the human world. After this crucial first year, the dogs return to our campus in Morristown for four months of intensive, specialized training. Our team of professional instructors teaches them the complex skills needed to safely guide a person, from stopping at curbs to navigating around obstacles. At the same time, we have a detailed application process for our human students. Once they are matched with a dog, they come to our campus to learn how to work with, trust, and care for their new canine partner. This creates a bond built on mutual respect and cooperation.

For more than 90 years, our core mission has not changed. We exist to enhance the independence, dignity, and self-confidence of people who are blind through the use of Seeing Eye dogs. It’s important to know that the term 'Seeing Eye dog' is our registered trademark and should only be used to refer to a dog that has been bred and trained by our specific organization. We are honored to have matched thousands of people with guide dogs, creating powerful partnerships that unlock a special kind of freedom and self-reliance.

Today, we continue to carry that legacy forward. We are constantly working to refine our breeding and training programs, applying the latest scientific research to ensure our dogs and our instruction are the best they can possibly be. As a non-profit organization, we are not funded by the government. We rely entirely on the generosity of people who donate to our cause. These contributions allow us to breed, raise, and train our remarkable dogs and then provide them to people across the United States and Canada who need them to live fuller, more independent lives.