What Are Hearing Dogs

Visually impaired people all over the country are helped I their everyday lives by guide dogs

, but did you know that many deaf people are also having the lives made a little bit easier by our canine friends, in the form of hearing dogs?

Hearing dogs for deaf people allow those with hearing impairments to live a more independent day to life, both at home and out of the house, in a safe way, which means they often feel less isolated and can live a more full life.

Noises such as an alarm clock going off, the oven timer pinging or the doorbell ringing are some of the sounds that a hearing dog might alert their recipient to in any given day and in these situations once the dog has heard the sound it will touch the recipient gently to get there attention. The recipient will then ask them what is wrong or where the noise is and the dog will take them to the source of the noise; the door, the kitchen, the phone.

The procedure is slightly different when there is danger afoot, as after getting the recipients attention the dog will lie on the ground, and this is the sign that the recipient understands as danger. The recipient will then act accordingly getting themselves, and the hearing dog, to safety.

Dogs chosen to become hearing dogs are put through rigorous training and as part of the course undergo an intensive four month sound work programme, where they are trained to respond to specific sounds in particular ways. The trainers will condition the dog to see reacting the sounds as fun, much in the same way as they react to going for a walk or having their dinner, and so the dog sees reacting to the sounds as a treat.

Once the dog is successfully trained they are introduced to their new home and start to form the partnership with their recipient. Their training is ongoing and often, as the dogs enjoy alerting the recipients to sounds, they learn more sounds for themselves.

by: AJ Handley.

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