The Seeing Eye grew out of the vision of an American woman, Dorothy Harrison Eustis, who wrote an article for The Saturday Evening Post of November 5, 1927. At the time she was conducting a unique experiment in Switzerland-breeding German shepherds, not for show-ring points, but for stamina, sagacity and responsibility. Her article told how such dogs were guiding blinded veterans of World War I in Germany. She called her essay The Seeing Eye.

In Nashville, Tennessee, the article was read to Morris S. Frank, a young man who had recently lost his sight. He listened with excitement, then wrote Mrs. Eustis: Thousands of blind persons like me abhor being dependent on others. Train me and I will bring my dog back and show people here how a blind man can be absolutely on his own. Impressed by his letter, Mrs. Eustis invited Morris to come to Switzerland. There he met Buddy, the dog that she and her staff associate, Geneticist Elliott S. (Jack) Humphrey, had selected to be Morris' guide.