Training Deaf Dogs - It Can Be Done!

I spent part of my afternoon with Alice, a gentle and curious deaf Pit Bull mix, during a volunteer training at Oakland Animal Services, our city shelter. Like many deaf dogs, Alice is learning how to understand obedience commands through hand signals. Training deaf dogs is really not much more challenging than training hearing dogs - it just requires different techniques. Check out these articles for more information:

Training The Deaf Dog: Just Because She Can't Hear Doesn't Mean She Can't Learn
By Stacy Braslau-Schneck, CPDT

Training The Hearing Impaired Dog Is Not Difficult
By Mardi Richmond, The Whole Dog Journal

Deaf Dog Training Tips
Deaf Dog Education Action Fund (DDEAF)

Training Deaf Dogs
By Dr. Jennifer Messer, Modern Dog Magazine
___________________________________________________________

One final thought:

"For perhaps, if the truth were known, we are all a little blind, a little deaf, a little handicapped, a little lonely, a little less than perfect. And if we can learn to appreciate and utilize the dog's full potential, we will, together, make it in this life on earth." -Charlotte Schwartz