LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — A local program is pairing children who may need seeing eye dogs one day with the perfect pets.
The PAWSitive Pals Partnership Program, run by Guiding Eyes for the Blind and Lancaster-based VisionCorps, united 7-year-old Lancaster County boy Chase Musser with his new pal Wesla. The program is designed for blind children ages five through 15.
PAWSitive Pals pairs dogs who don't quite pass the certification to become a guide dog with kids looking to prepare for the responsibility of a pet when they do need a service animal.
"Wesla was a dog guide in training, learning how to guide people who are blind or experiencing vision loss," said Chris Ament, the director of rehabilitation services and education at VisionCorps. "While Wesla didn't have enough confidence to become a dog guide, she's still a fantastic pet."
Chase's mom, Jennifer Musser, said her son is already taking on the new responsibility.
"He is learning how to care for her, [and] he can walk her a little with our supervision,” said Musser. “He is able to feed her everyday. He has taken on that responsibility and gives her lots of treats also."
Officials with Guiding Eyes for the Blind say they hope to place more dogs with local families soon.
The organization serves almost 1,900 individuals with rehabilitation services in Lancaster, Lebanon, Chester, York and Adams counties. VisionCorps' prevention services include KidSight, which screens more than 7,200 children annually for vision loss.