Dog Helps Graduate

Brigitta Hegedüs and her guide dog Artúr graduated with flying colours from the University of Miskolc. Artúr proved that he is not only a guide dog but also an emotional support dog, helping Brigi in more ways than one. Some of the university professors even put the dog’s name on the register to check is he was present at the lectures.

“Getting this diploma will always remind me how my life turned out for the better in so many ways” – said Brigi. “Artúr has been extremely helpful to get me where I am today.”

Artur, the emotional support dog

As a visually impaired child, Brigi suffered from negative experiences, isolation and discrimination in primary and secondary school, even at her first university. All this changed when she got her first guide dog. “Since I’ve had Artúr, it has been easier for me to make contact with people, my classmates or my teachers” – Brigi said. “I have a nice group of friends and I’ve really enjoyed my student years. One of my teachers even put Artúr’s name on the register and read it out load to check if he was there for the lectures. Artúr is not only a guide dog, he offers me emotional support as well. I used to get very nervous before and during an exam, but since he is by my side, I feel a lot more relaxed.”

Brigi wanted to express her gratitude to Artúr and her professors and university friends.

New plans: starting a walking society for the blind

Brigi and her partner Zsolt often enjoy organised walks in the countryside. Some organisers issue a certificate even for Artúr for completing a course. “Some organizers really appreciate that we take part in their hikes” – Brigi said. “It would be nice, however, to have our own society of walkers where we could help blind people participate. Maybe I will start one!”

A future in law

Brigi is carrying on with her studies at the Faculty of Law at the University of Miskolc. “Having had negative experiences, I want to become a lawyer to help educate people about the rights of assistance dogs and their owners. A lot of people still don’t know about them. Due to some legal loopholes, the rights of visually impaired people is still not 100% clear. So that is why I wrote my diploma assignment about the negative experiences of blind people in Hungary.”

You can read Brigitta Hegedus’s diploma assignment (in Hungarian) at the Univerisity’s webiste here. Brigi is exteremly grateful to Evelin Rito who helped her complete her diploma assignment.