Sarah Blake LaRose

Today, social media makes it easy to know who is doing what in dog training. People can easily follow the progress of a friend or family member who chooses to post updates on Facebook or in a blog. The Seeing Eye installed a technology center in 1994 so that students could access reading machines and computers while in class, and wired Internet access was available. Today, wireless access is available in student rooms and lounges.

Because of these innovations, I was motivated heavily to write about what was happening in my later trainings. In 1991, I did not do very well with documentation. I was busy socializing and exploring. We were instructed to learn the layout of the building without our canes.

Yes, I did say that. Without our canes. What would that teacher from my high school think now after nagging me so much about my cane use in the halls?

There was good reason for leaving the cane behind. Once we met the dogs, we would spend the first three days learning the basics of working and relating to the dogs. Bonding with the dogs was of utmost importance; and the dogs must learn to accept us as their new humans. The dogs would only wear their harnesses on trips during the day. For this reason, it was important that we be able to navigate the large Seeing Eye building as we would our own homes: without a cane.

We all learned to listen for each other’s movements and to communicate our comings and goings. When one person was on the stairs, the next person waited at the top until the first person was all the way down and indicated that she was beginning the next flight. In this way, there was only one person on a particular flight of stairs at any given time.

Lectures and discussions about dog care, behavior, and other training topics were held in a large lounge on the second floor. Several couches and chairs were positioned around the lounge; and a few tables were strategically placed among these. We communicated with each other in the lounge area as well, asking about who had just arrived and the location of empty chairs. I was not accustomed to being around large groups of people who were blind; and sometimes the barrage of “Who’s that?” questions annoyed me. It did not take long for me to decide that things went a lot better if I simply stepped into the lounge and said, “Hi! Are there any open seats on the couch?”

My roommate and I finally got acquainted after dinner. I learned much later that she thought I was a country hick, and she also feared that we might not get along. I was, in fact, from the suburbs of Houston and had not lost my Texas accent while attending college in Indiana. She was from Philadelphia and was planning a move to New York City in the fall. We were only three years apart in age. I was, in fact, the only person in the class who was under 21.

I have a vague recollection that neither of us slept well that first night. We had both had family dogs; but both of us were very apprehensive. In the morning we would take one walk during which our instructors would play the part of a hypothetical dog named Juno. This exercise would introduce us to basic commands, and the instructor would experiment with different levels of pace and strength of pull on the harness handle. In the afternoon, we would meet those live beings with stinky breath and slimy tongues.

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About Sarah Blake LaRose

Sarah Blake LaRose teaches Biblical Hebrew and Greek at Anderson University School of Theology and Christian Ministry in Anderson, Indiana. She is one of three blind academic scholars who received the Jacob Bolotin Award from the National Federation of the Blind in 2016 in recognition of innovative work in the field of access to biblical language texts and tools for people who are blind. In addition to her work as a professor, she provides braille transcription services specializing in ancient languages. Her research interests concern the intersection of disability, poverty, and biblical studies.

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