Life as a Guide Dog

Through the Eyes of a Guide Dog, Beethoven

Hello, my name is Beethoven.

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I wanted to share my story so that you will learn about the hard work I had to endure to become my human’s, Guide.

I was born in Smithtown, New York on Long Island. I don’t remember much from those days. I do remember my Puppy Raisers. Puppy Raisers are incredible people who take puppies like me into their homes, their lives, and hearts. They make sure we are good puppies so when we grow up we will be good dogs. My Puppy Raisers are a mix of an amazing woman who lived in a prison in Georgia. I don’t know why she was in prison because she was super nice to me and taught me lots of things. On the weekends I got a pass to leave the prison with Stuart and Scott! I had to be good around them, but not as good as when I was in prison. Stuart and Scott took me on lots of adventures and took me to the doggy spa for a pampering time. They took me to shows, the park, out to eat, and tons of other super cool stuff. I practiced all my good puppy skills so that Stuart and Scott would give me treats and hugs. The treats were delicious, but the hugs were the best!

Right after my first birthday, I had to say goodbye to the nice woman in the prison and to Stuart and Scott. I was super sad, but Stuart and Scott told me that someday I would meet my human that I would be with forever. I was put into a car and we drove for thousands of miles. I did not mind too much because I love riding in the car.

When the car ride finally ended I was back on Long Island where I started. I met a super nice man, Sebastian. I liked Sebastian from the start! He taught me my right from my left. He taught me how to stop at curbs and look both ways. He put something called a harness on me and at first, I was not so sure, but I soon learned that harness meant I was going for a fun walk in the mall or in the park. We even went into the big city of Manhattan! It was super busy and noisy, but I loved it! We rode on subways, buses, and in cabs. Sebastian even put a blindfold on and trusted me to cross streets while he held onto the harness. I knew this was important so I made sure I followed all the rules.

Right after my second birthday I was taken into a room and introduced to a woman. I could tell she could not see very well so I made sure I stuck my face super close to hers. She patted me all over and gasped at my big fuzzy tail. I am still not sure what that was all about. Her name is Penn Street. At first, Penn was not overjoyed with me like every other human in my life. It was like she did not trust me even though I was trying my hardest. Is till liked her and she told me stories about a place called Colorado. My stomach flip-flopped when she talked about the high mountains we would climb. I kept waiting for her to talk about the doggy spa. Everyday all day we went for walks and challenges. We passed all of them!

Penn and I got on an airplane which is a lot like a bus and flew to Colorado. I met Moses and I saw the high mountain that I knew we would be climbing. Penn took me to work with her and introduced me to all her friends. I showed them all that I was a good dog, but Penn still did not seem to love me as much as all the other humans did, until the big truck almost splattered us! We started crossing the street by Penn’s work just like we had the previous nights on our way to catch the bus home. I was keeping my eyes out for danger when I saw a large truck that I just knew was going to run us over if I did not think fast. I leapt forward as hard as I could pulling Penn behind me. She screamed and I might have, too. The big truck made an illegal turn at too high of a speed. I am not sure how I knew we were in danger,but I knew I had to save Penn. A wonderful lady saw the whole thing and helped us to the curb. Penn was shaking all over and I might have been, too. The nice lady got a partial license plate and called the police. Penn knelt down and gave me a gigantic hug and even kissed me on my ears and on my nose. She hugged me hard for a long long time. She cried into my furry neck. I think it was so the lady did not know how upset she was, but I did not care. From that moment on Penn and I was a team and even when I am a little naughty I know Penn loves me more than any human has ever loved me.

Penn is always helping people through Lions and through her work at No Barriers. She has a lot of fun doing it. I heard she even dressed up as a Lion, but I was sleeping so I am not sure if that was just a roomer. We get to visit Lions Clubs and do fun service projects! Next year Penn will be 1VDG for 6NE. I am not sure what that means, but I am sure it will be an adventure!

And YES, we climb mountains!

Penn climbs mountains for all the humans who can’t. She climbs to raise money so that people like her have opportunities to grow up and become Lions!

 - by Beethoven