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New Dachshund in the house!

New Dachshund in the house!

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by: BBQguy Active Indicator LED Icon 9 OP 
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:06pm  
This little foster fella will be staying here for a bit. He turned a year old last week, and is super playful just like any normal puppy would be. I say that because he is deaf. He was born that way, and it is why he was "dumped". Someone paid big bucks for him through a breeder, and were disappointed enough(after discovering his condition) to let him go. Anyway, I'm going to try teaching him sign language. This will be a first for me(and him), and I'd like to know if any of y'all have any experience with that?! Also, he needs a name! I thought Franky would be cool because of his blue eyes, but there is already a Frankie in the rescue. Thanks in advance for the help, friends! Emoticon  4951
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foxymama Active Indicator LED Icon 14
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:23pm  
I haven't taught a dog sign language but I have taught myself and my daughter. It's a really fun language and comes in handy when you and your spouse know it.
Especially, when around kids who can spell so you can still curse without them knowing!
4951
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Ray Active Indicator LED Icon 17
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:28pm  
 Dachshund????? 4951
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SandyKnee Active Indicator LED Icon 12
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:29pm  
[ Removed By Request ] 4951
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BBQguy Active Indicator LED Icon 9 OP 
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:47pm  
 Dachshund?????
 
@Ray: Yep, a wire haired Dachshund to be specific. It almost feels like poodle hair, and doesn't seem to shed. His size is closer to a standard than a mini...He's in the 13-14 lb range. 
4951
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landlady Active Indicator LED Icon 2
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:51pm  
We fostered a deaf great Dane. We taught him simple hand gestures for sit stay and come. He learned quick. It's amazing how quickly they adapt and learn. Congrats! He's a cutie 4951
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landlady Active Indicator LED Icon 2
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:51pm  
We fostered a deaf great Dane. We taught him simple hand gestures for sit stay and come. He learned quick. It's amazing how quickly they adapt and learn. Congrats! He's a cutie 4951
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Annie Active Indicator LED Icon 18
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:51pm  
20+ years ago, Petsmart was teaching how to train with both voice and gesture. Call and ask their trainers if that is still the method.
 
Good luck! 4951
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BBQguy Active Indicator LED Icon 9 OP 
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:52pm  
@BBQguy  He's a cutie!I subscribe to The Whole Dog Journal, and they had a good article on training hearing impaired dogs using hand signals and simple gestures.   It's probably too long to post here, but let me try to PM it to you.  Let me know if that works; otherwise I can email it to you.
 
@SandyKnee: Emoticon I think I found it?! 
www.whole-dog-journa l.com/issues/6_9/fea tures/5570-1.html 4951
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SandyKnee Active Indicator LED Icon 12
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:57pm  
[ Removed By Request ] 4951
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BBQguy Active Indicator LED Icon 9 OP 
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 5:59pm  
Did it come thru?
 
@SandyKnee: No, it was blank. I'll respond with my email. That might work easier. Thanks again. 
4951
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SandyKnee Active Indicator LED Icon 12
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 6:00pm  
[ Removed By Request ] 4951
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ProblemAgain Active Indicator LED Icon 10
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 6:05pm  
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ProblemAgain Active Indicator LED Icon 10
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 6:07pm  
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Training the Hearing Impaired Dog Is Not Difficult
 
 
 


Training hearing-impaired dogs is not difficult, it’s just a little different.





By Mardi Richmond
Each year, as many as tens of thousands of dogs are born or become
deaf. Unfortunately, given the number of hearing-impaired canines, there
is a lot of misinformation promulgated about deaf dogs, even among dog
lovers. Well-meaning but misinformed breeders and other “experts”
commonly perpetuate myths about deaf dogs – that they are difficult to
live with, hard to train, aggressive, and that they are only suitable
dogs for a few “special” people. But the people who really know deaf
dogs – those who live with and love them – tell a very different story.
“We got our first deaf dog when going to a pet fair ‘just to look’ at
the cute dogs,” says Deb Sell, an animal chiropractor in Prunedale,
California, and the proud guardian of four dogs. “We already had a 1½-
year-old Aussie mix, Hawi (pronounced Ha-Vee; it’s Hawaiian), and really
hadn’t planned on getting a second dog.”
Echo
is an adorable mini-Aussie adopted from a shelter by Dr. Deb Sell and
her husband, Stacey. Echo is also deaf, something that does not prevent
her from learning and joyfully demonstrating her agility skills. Her
owners have since adopted two more deaf dogs.
But when Dr. Sell and her husband Stacey got to the pet fair that
night, they saw one cute little white dog quietly watching everyone and
became intrigued by her calm nature. They didn’t adopt Echo right away.
Deb and Stacey went home that evening without her, but couldn’t stop
thinking about her all week.
“We decided that if she was at the pet fair the following Friday
night, we could consider adopting her. As fate would have it, she was
there!” Echo soon came to live with the couple. Echo would begin for Dr.
Sell what some might consider a “calling” into the world of living with
and loving deaf dogs. The Sells now share their home and lives with
three deaf dogs – Echo, Nefe, and Cooper – as well as their hearing dog,
Hawi.
Suzan Mark and Gary Lomax of Santa Cruz also found their deaf dog,
Cleo, somewhat through chance. They were visiting a local shelter,
searching for a small dog, when they first met Cleo. Anything but a
small dog (she is a Dalmatian), Cleo nonetheless caught their attention
when in the midst of kennels full of barking, jumping dogs, she came to
the kennel door and sat looking at them.
“It was as if she was saying, ‘OK, I’m ready to go home,’ ” says
Mark. Not knowing Cleo was deaf, they went into an exercise yard to meet
with her. It was then that one of the volunteers at the shelter
mentioned that she might be hard of hearing. Gary experimented by
clapping his hands over Cleo’s head. When he got no response to the
sound, they realized that she was probably completely deaf.
Suzan and Gary also went away that day without Cleo. “We just weren’t
sure about having a dog with a perceived handicap,” says Mark. They
were also concerned that a Dalmatian might simply have too much energy
for them.
The couple left the shelter with Cleo on their minds and in their
hearts. Though they did look further for a small dog, they also did
research to find out more about living with a deaf dog and living with a
Dalmatian. They decided it just might be something they could do.
“We were still very nervous. We tried to think about all of the
advantages – like she wouldn’t bark at the doorbell!” In the end,
though, it was Cleo’s personality, not the fact that she could or could
not hear, that won them over. “She is just a really sweet dog!” says
Mark.
Why are some dogs deaf?Dogs are deaf for many of
the same reasons that some people are deaf. Many deaf dogs are born
that way – called congenital deafness – and there is often a genetic
component. While the causes of genetically determined deafness in dogs
are not completely understood, experts seem to agree that in many cases
there is a relationship to a dog’s coat and eye coloring.
“I think that everyone agrees,” says Jack Edwards, Executive Director
of the Deaf Dog Education Action Fund (DDEAF), “that the genes for
merle patterning that affect the color of individual hairs, the spotting
patterns (especially the piebald series) that overlay whole sections of
coat color and even eye color, all carry a portion of the code that
determines whether a dog can hear or not.” But there may be other, less
understood, genetic factors involved as well.
Edwards also notes other reasons – not related to color or pigment –
that may cause a dog to be born deaf. A malnourished mother dog, birth
difficulties, illness during pregnancy, plus the normal occurrence of
birth defects can all be factors.
Dogs, just like people, can also lose their hearing later in life.
Illness, infection, or injury to the ear can cause deafness. Older dogs
may also experience a sudden or gradual loss of hearing. Dogs can be
deaf in only one ear (unilateral), in both ears (bilateral), or
experience only a partial deafness.
Many people with deaf dogs know their dogs are deaf without having
any special medical evaluation. Some people do “sound tests” at home,
much the way Gary Lomax did with Cleo at the shelter – whistling,
clapping hands, or making other noises to see if the dog responds. These
are not foolproof testing methods, as a dog may respond to the
vibration of a sound or the movement of the air caused by making the
sound, and appear to hear a certain sound when she does not. However,
home tests can be helpful indicators and are a way for people to confirm
what they may suspect.
For dog guardians who want to know absolutely the extent of hearing
loss, there is a procedure called a “brainstem auditory evoked response”
(BAER) test that measures hearing loss through measuring brain
responses. Electrodes are placed under the skin on the dog’s head and
hooked up to a computer that records the brain’s response to sounds. The
test does not appear to cause the dog any pain, but some dogs do become
agitated because of being restrained and because of wires dangling
about their faces. BAER tests are performed at some university
veterinary schools, hospitals, and specialty clinics.
“Special needs”?Sell, Mark, and Lomax all agree
that living with a deaf dog, for the most part, is really not so
different than living with a hearing dog – they are, after all, just
dogs! Some are friendly, some are shy, some are cautious, and some
approach life with gusto. Each dog – hearing or deaf – has his or her
own personality characteristics and needs. Deaf dogs do not have
“special needs” per se. Sell emphasizes that living with her deaf dogs
has “taught me that deafness is such a non-issue when it comes to dogs.”
Teaching
“look at me” or “watch me” is helpful for all dogs, hearing and deaf.
Using a treat in your hand, you can draw the dog’s attention to your
face, or have him focus on your hand.
DDEAF’s Jack Edwards agrees that deaf dogs really don’t have “special
needs.” He emphasizes, “Every dog needs food, water, shelter, and
routine veterinary care. They need owners to love, exercise, and train
them. They need protection from man-made dangers like household
chemicals and street traffic and that nasty little boy down the street.
Whether they are deaf from birth and unaware that something is missing
or deaf from old age where the sounds of life slowly fade away, deaf
dogs do not have any needs beyond those of every other companion
animal.”
Edwards argues that “special needs” are those that take extra care or
work. He cites examples of dogs with medical conditions that require
specific diets or medications, dogs with allergies and skin problems
that need special shampoo, or even dogs who have behavioral problems
that require additional training or behavior modification as having
“special needs.”
The exception may be a dog that experiences a sudden deafness later
in life. “There are differences when working with dogs who became deaf
at different times,” says Edwards. “Congenital and geriatric deafness
are really not a lot different. One never heard anything and the other
learned to compensate while the surrounding world grew quiet. The
biggest challenge working with these dogs is getting the owners past the
initial shock and ‘what do I do now’ stage.”
“In the case of sudden-onset deafness, whether from a trauma, a toxic
reaction, or a surgery, it is a little more difficult,” Edwards says.
“These dogs are used to getting information about their surroundings
that is no longer available – and they have grown to depend on that
input. They do have a special, albeit temporary, need. You may have to
help them adjust the changes they are living through because of suddenly
not being able to hear.”
But there are other considerations for a person considering adopting a
dog who was born deaf. One in particular, Sell says, is that you have
to be much more careful about letting your dog off leash in an unfenced
area. In fact, many deaf dog guardians choose not to have their dog off
leash at all unless the area is fenced.
Gary Lomax and Suzan Mark agree that the fear of losing Cleo, of her
wandering off, is the one thing they consider significant and different
about living with a deaf dog. A hearing dog, obviously, can also get
lost or run away, but they believe Cleo’s lack of hearing would make it
more difficult for them to locate her if she were to become lost.
Because of their fear of losing her, they are careful to allow her off
leash only in secured areas, such as a fenced dog park.
Dogs don’t speak EnglishOf course, people who
decide to adopt a deaf dog will need to be willing to overcome any
reluctance they may have to communicating nonverbally. Dogs, whose
primary mode of communication appears to be body language, don’t seem to
have a problem with nonverbal communication; they don’t depend on
English or any other spoken language to begin with! But some people do
fear that they will not be able to adjust to using hand and visual
signals rather than words to communicate.
Mark and Lomax said they had expected communication to be a problem,
but discovered that it really hasn’t been. Cleo, Mark notes, is very
intuitive about body language and picks up on hand signals very quickly.
“A slight flick of the wrist tells her to sit,” she says, “and using your whole arm is like shouting at her.”
People who live and work with deaf dogs do develop a whole series of
nonverbal communication signals – including facial expressions, body
postures, hand signals, and even high-tech devices such as vibrating
collars. Some of the communication signals are intentional. Others
happen naturally, for example when the dog learns what it means when
people open a certain kitchen cabinet or reach for the leash. Of course,
many people continue to talk to their dogs, too. When people speak, we
incorporate a whole slew of facial expressions that may actually prove
beneficial in communicating in spite of the fact that the dog doesn’t
hear the words.
Do you have to learn special hand signals, like American Sign
Language (ASL), to communicate with a deaf dog? Not necessarily. For
some people, adopting signals from ASL means that they do not have to
invent their own. Others use a combination of ASL signals and common
obedience hand signals. Still others use whatever hand signals come
naturally. One advantage to using certain ASL or “obedience” style hand
signals is that other people may also know them and be able to
communicate with your dog. For example, if you take your dog to a
training class, the instructor is more likely to already know
traditional obedience hand signals.
Isn’t training more difficult?Deaf dogs, like
hearing dogs, do not train themselves. Just as with any dog, your job
will be to devote time and energy to their training and socialization in
order to help them become well-adjusted members of the community. The
principles of training apply to a deaf dog in the same way they do to a
hearing dog. The main difference in the way you train a deaf dog is just
in the way you communicate.
“I expected it to be difficult and it wasn’t. ‘Deafies’ (at least the
deaf Aussies I have) are so tuned in to your hand signals and body
language, they seem to stay more focused on me when I am training them
than a hearing dog,” says Sell. “We have been involved in agility
training and use only hand signals to do so. Echo buzzes around the
course like a pro!”
Just as when training a hearing dog, you must first teach a deaf dog
to understand when you want her attention. This is akin to teaching a
hearing dog to understand her name. You can choose a signal for her name
or teach a signal for “look at me” or “watch me.” In addition, you can
teach a physical cue, such as a tap on the shoulder, for attention. Some
people choose to use lights or vibrating collars (not shock collars) to
get their dog’s attention.
In addition, you will need to teach a deaf dog one or more reward
marker signals, and signals that are the equivalent to verbal praise. If
this seems like a lot, just remember that we must also teach our
hearing dogs what these things mean. No dog automatically knows his
name, nor does he know the word “good” is praise.
Special issues around training do come up in regards to calling your
dog at a distance – especially if she is not looking at you. Using a
laser light (shined in front of a dog who is looking away, not at his
eyes!) or a vibrating collar are two good solutions to getting attention
at a distance, and thus being able to signal your dog to come.
“At the dog park,” Suzan Mark notes, “it is a little harder to get
Cleo’s attention to call her back to us than it is with other dogs. Of
course that does depend on who you are comparing her to – lots of dogs
at the dog park don’t respond when they are called!”
Getting a deaf dog’s attentionMy students with
deaf dogs frequently relate that their biggest challenge is getting
their dogs’ attention, whether at home or out in the world. I watched
one student, early in her training, do some incredible acrobatics to try
and keep herself positioned in her dog’s line of sight. She seemed very
happy when she realized she could teach her dog to look at her,
instead. Here are some tips for getting a deaf dog’s attention (these
tips work well with dogs who hear, too.)
• Reward “offered” attentionOne of the most
important ways to teach dogs to pay attention to you is to reward all
“offers” of attention. This will encourage your dog to check in with you
regularly, whether you ask for attention or not. At first, just for
giving attention, you can offer a reward. In other words, if you are out
on a walk and your dog looks up at you, give him a treat!
Once your dog starts to realize that checking in with you regularly
earns rewards, you can start asking for additional behaviors before
rewarding him. For example, if your dog looks at you expecting a treat,
ask for a “sit,” then reward. Do continue to occasionally reward simply
“checking in” with treats, play, or petting.
Jack Edwards from DDEAF suggests a game of “hide and seek” for
teaching a dog to offer attention. “It starts out as ‘find me and get a
reward.’ Then it turns into ‘whenever you see me, you get a signal to do
something rewarding.’ Sometimes it’s a signal to go back to playing and
sometimes it’s a ‘how fast can you get here’ recall. These games sure
teach the dog to pay a lot of attention!”
• Hand signal for his nameJust as you teach a
dog to respond to “Max” or “Spot,” you can teach a deaf dog to respond
to a signal that means, “I’m talking to you now.” A simple finger point
or a wave will each work and are easy to teach, but any signal will do.
To teach that the finger point or wave means “Max,” start by simply
pointing or waving at the dog, then offering a reward such as a great
treat. Throughout your daily life, use his “name signal” much as you
would a verbal name. If you are about to feed your dog, point or wave in
her direction, then walk to the kitchen and prepare his dinner. Before
walks, point or wave to your dog, then get out the leash.
Soon the dog will respond to the hand signal just as a hearing dog would respond to the sound of his name spoken verbally.
• “Look” or “watch me” hand signalMany dogs,
hearing and deaf, need to be taught that they must pay attention at
times. A “watch me” signal is a great way to teach them that they need
to focus on you.
Take a treat between your thumb and middle finger. Briefly swipe the
treat under your dog’s nose, then bring your hand up to your face and
point your index finger to your eyes. As your dog’s eyes follow the
treat to your eyes, give your “thumbs up” or other reward marker and
give the dog the treat.
As your dog learns the game, begin to do the hand motion without
having a treat in your hand. Do continue to give your dog the “thumbs
up” and a treat for looking at your face.
Keep playing the game, increasing the length of time your dog
“watches” you, before giving the thumbs up and the treat. One to three
minutes of sustained eye contact is a good goal for a solid “watch me.”
Once your dog knows the signal from sitting in front of you in the
living room, teach it with your dog in different positions. For example,
ask him to watch you as he walks beside you as if walking on a leash.
Then begin to practice in a variety of environments.
• Tap on the shoulderIn order to avoid the
acrobatic antics of trying to make your dog see a hand signal, you can
teach a physical cue that means “look” or “watch me” too. I like a tap
on the shoulder or rear end as the signal for “Hey, look at me now.”
Start by tapping your dog on the shoulder when he is already looking
at you, and offering a treat. Then move to tapping on the shoulder and
treating when he is off to your side. Gradually move so that you are
behind your dog. Tap him on the shoulder, and when he turns his head,
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SandyKnee Active Indicator LED Icon 12
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 6:42pm  
[ Removed By Request ] 4951
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BBQguy Active Indicator LED Icon 9 OP 
~ 8 years ago   Jun 28, '15 6:43pm  
How to Train Hearing Impaired Dogs Using Hand Signals and Simple Gestures
 
@SandyKnee: Emoticon Emoticon 
4951
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