The Asbury Park Press in NJ reports that one of the most popular events at the recent Ocean City Fair was the Seeing Eye dog demonstration. Visitors packed into the tent to see the 4-H Puppy Power Seeing Eye demonstration, where trainers were displaying the puppies' talents."Dogs can easily adjust to various situations, and they need to think for themselves," said Christine Higham of Toms River, who is co-leader of Puppy Power with her mother, Barbara Semanchik.
The foster families in Puppy Power get puppies around 7 weeks old from The Seeing Eye, an organization based in Morristown, NJ, which provides blind or visually impaired people with service dogs. The puppies stay in the foster homes for 16 to 18 months, where they are housebroken and taught everyday commands.
"Dogs give a person dignity and freedom," said David Lindsay, 83, owner of Spock, a 6-month-old German shepherd Seeing Eye dog. "The dog and the person become so bonded it's like one unit."