German Shepherd Fails Guide Dog School but Gains a Forever Home in Heartwarming Video

Genny Glassman
·3 min read
42

You win some, you lose some. Or in the case of one German Shepherd named Benson online, you lose some but you end up getting a forever home. His owner recently shared that Benson sort of flunked out of guide dog school. Womp, womp. But his story had the best silver lining.

Benson's owner shared his story in honor of the dog's adoption anniversary.

"POV: Your dog fails guide dog school and you get to adopt him back as a forever pet," he wrote in the onscreen caption of the video.

Of course, no one really wants to fail at something. But in this case it might have been for the best. Benson had "anxiety and reactivity with dogs and people," his dad explained in the text overlay.

Related: Guide Dog Makes History As First Canine To Walk the 'Golden Globes' Red Carpet

He even showed his reunion with the German Sherpherd, which happened two weeks after he left to attend the program and get evaluated to do the work. While Benson may not be a guide dog anytime soon, he did have an owner who loved him.

"He was so happy to see me and he knew at this moment he'd have a forever home with me," the caption reads. "This was certainly the best day of Benson's life."

Benson's owner adopted him on that exact day five years ago. The owner had already been a volunteer puppy raiser with an organization called The Seeing Eye. It was his job to help Benson become a seeing eye dog for someone else. But things obviously didn't turn out that way. So now Benson gets to live his life "as a regular pet."

Commenters absolutely loved Benson's story. "Failing was this dogs plan all along and his dad fell for it!" wrote one person in the comments section. "Some dogs need emotional support people!" another person joked. "Some dogs are just born to be stay-at-home dogs. Nothing wrong with it!" teased a third commenter.

Becoming a Puppy Raiser

If Benson's story has inspired you, you might want to become a puppy raiser. The volunteer position seems like a pretty cool deal. You get to raise a puppy and do some good? It's too good to be true. Organizations like Guide Dogs for the Blind (GDB) will connect you with a puppy when they're 8 weeks old to help them learn house manners, socialize them, and get them ready for life as a guide dog, breeder, or police force canine. At 15 months the dogs return to one of the two GDB campuses where they'll be evaluated — just like Benson was.

While Benson may not have made it as a guide dog, there are so many others who do. So if you love dogs and help others, becoming a puppy raiser might just be the job for you.

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