The sense of hearing is the second most important sense to a dog and the dog may have difficulty surviving on its own without it. Some owners would rather take pity on the dog and put the dog out of its misery. On the other hand, some owners acquire an attachment and affection towards the dogs and dread putting them to sleep. They would rather let the dog live out its life at home and under the care and supervision of the owner. Still others may take it a notch higher and attempt to train the dog.
Training a deaf dog is a worthy challenge and a great feat if it can be accomplished successfully. Here are some comments and ideas that may help you train a deaf dog.
Imagine having a litter of puppies crawling around and enjoying themselves. You will not know if a newly born puppy is born deaf until after a few weeks when you notice they do not respond to your voice. Although you may have taken care of a large number of dogs and had a great number of years of experience, it is always good to have your dog inspected by a professional veterinarian.
In serious cases, you may even want to have two or three opinions from different professional veterinarians before deciding on what to do. Get an expert assessment on the extent of hearing defect of your dog. It is possible that your dog is not totally deaf and might still have some auditory perception. It is also possible the deafness can be cured with proper medication. There are several tests that can be done to determine your dog’s deafness. One of the more reliable tests is the Brainstem Auditory Evoked Responses test. It uses computers to determine the brain activity and responses of the dog.
If you plan to train your deaf dog, you should be committed with lots of patience and perseverance. Dog training requires communicating with your dog, and in this case it means being able to gain the attention of your dog at all times without the use of audio. First and foremost, you must ensure that the dog is attentive to your actions. Without the ability to hear, a dog can get distracted by all the things they see around them. Remember that although they can see for a far distance, they are mostly attuned to moving objects.
You cannot be constantly moving around as it is tiring and may conflict with the visual commands you will be executing. Since dogs have an excellent sense of smell, you might try bringing something that will produce a smell to attract the dog’s attention. Reward them every time they notice the smell and look in your direction. Use simple and clear hand signals to signify your approval. Establish other gestures for other commands. You can train them later on to look recognize your smell and look in your direction for instructions. This exercise alone will take a great deal of your time and effort but it will form a firm foundation to teach them other commands.
Always repeat your gestures and reward them when they respond correctly. Repetition is a good approach in teaching the dog to remember the basic commands and how to respond to them. Do not sneak up on the dog. Remember the dog cannot hear you approaching and if you surprise them, they might get shocked and attack you as part of their defense mechanism. Go in front of them and show them you are approaching. If they are asleep, make sure they can smell you. Do not wake them up abruptly. Seek the help of a professional trainer to help you establish a relationship with the dog. A professional trainer has experience in these matters and may have other approaches to help you along.
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