With a wagging tail and a work uniform, guide dogs for the visually impaired are a staple in our society. But have you ever wondered who started it all? 

On Tuesday, Dec. 3, the “Visually Impaired Persons” (VIP) group will welcome Jim Kutsch to speak about his experiences with The Seeing Eye, the oldest guide dog school in North America which recently celebrated its 95th anniversary. Kutsch is the first graduate of the school to go on to serve as president and CEO (2006-2019), and he also was a member of its board of trustees for a decade prior to that. Kutsch will be joined by his wife Ginger and their guide dogs Easton and Emma. The lecture will commence during VIP’s regular meeting time: 1:15 p.m. at the Community Center in Boothbay Harbor.

“I am absolutely enamored with guide dogs, so I am utterly thrilled that he has agreed to come,” said Joan Stark, the group’s founder. She explained that she started VIP almost 24 years ago with three main goals: Teach about services available to the blind, provide emotional support, and create a place for socialization.  

In an effort to fulfill this mission, the group invites a speaker to every other meeting. VIP has had guests ranging from staff from the Maine State Library, who offer robust services to the blind, to an author of a book on muscular degeneration. 

In addition to discussing the history of The Seeing Eye. Inc., Kutsch will share details about the process of training a guide dog. Fun fact: despite “seeing eye” dog being a colloquial term for guide dogs in general, it's not accurate. Only dogs bred and trained by The Seeing Eye in Morris Township, New Jersey, are true “Seeing Eye” dogs, according to Kutsch. 

Kutsch personally got his first guide dog when he was starting college in the 70s. He has shared every life milestone with one since. Over the past 50 years, Kutsch has had nine dogs. 

“Having gone through all aspects of life with a seeing eye dog at my side has just made it all so much smoother, so much easier, so much more professional,” said Kutsch. “It's pages and pages and pages of little things that the dog does. Getting in and out of a new hotel we haven't been in before, a new airport, or going internationally to different countries. All of that, in my opinion, is easier to do as a blind person with a guide dog.” 

He explained, while it only takes a human a month to graduate the program, the training begins at birth for their furry friends as the dogs are socialized and taught basic obedience, before moving onto a specialized dog trainer at 18 months. One distinct part of a guide dog’s training is problem solving, so they can keep their owner safe while navigating unfamiliar situations. Sometimes this even means engaging in “intellectual disobedience,” i.e. disobeying their handler for safety reasons. 

However, it's not all work and no play. Just like humans have off-hours, so do guide dogs. They even retire. Williow, Ginger’s former guide dog, still happily lives with the couple.  

While the lecture is targeted to people who are blind or have blind family members, Kutsch encourages anyone interested in learning more about guide dogs to attend.