Hearing dogs are ears for the deaf

Press, 4 January 1988, Page 18

Hearing dogs are ears for the deaf

Stray dogs in Britain are being trained to do a worthwhile job, reports JACK PLEASANT.

Dogs are being trained to be more than just pets to deaf people. They act as their “ears.” In a clever scheme that has already proved to be a great success in

America, carefully selected dogs are taught to let their deaf owners know when, for instance, a baby in the house is crying, a whistling kettle is boiling or there is a knock at the door. The first dog to complete its training in Britain, a two-year-old labrador, Chum, recently went to a deaf couple in Devon. It is expected that another eight or nine will be placed with other deaf owners shortly. According to the expolice dog handler, Tony Blunt, who is in charge of training the animals at Oxfordshire, mongrels often prove best at the job. Most of those currently under training have been strays chosen from hundreds in dogs* homes. They are between four and two-years-old and need to be alert and affectionate. Each dog is selected with a particular deaf owner and his or her life style in mind: a small one, for instance, for somebody in a modest flat.

When the trainer is satisfied a dog is ready to start work, a placement officer — the scheme is under the auspices of the Royal National Institute for the Deaf — spends about a week with the dog and its new owner, teaching the deaf person how to fully utilise the animal’s abilities.

The Hearing Dogs for the Deaf Scheme is so far not government assisted. The money needed — it costs around £2500 to train a dog — has been raised by donations from sponsors and fund-raising from organisations such as the scouts.

Says a spokesman: “As well as a practical means of ‘hearing’ certain sounds, a properly trained dog can give a deaf person a new feeling of independence, as well as the blessings of companionship and protection.” The dogs are taught to let their owners know when they hear a particular sound by reacting in various ways — nosenudging them or touching them with a paw — and

they then lead them to its source. They will even warn their owner if, for instance, he or she drops some keys. Not being able

to hear this sound, deaf people can be more likely than hearing ones to lose them. —Copyright Duo