Hearing Dogs
Rapsody woke her owner in the middle of the night, jumping and clawing on Eileen's back. When Eileen got up, Rapsody dropped to the floor and lay down, the signal a trained Hearing Dog gives to alert someone of smoke or fire. Eileen grabbed her robe, picked up Rapsody and headed for the door. Out the window, she saw her neighbor's home going up in flames.
Hearing dogs are trained to alert their owners to various important sounds, such as an infant's cry, a doorbell, a telephone, an alarm clock, a smoke alarm, or someone calling the person's name. These specially trained dogs give hearing impaired persons greater peace of mind and the security of knowing that someone is keeping an ear out for trouble. You can identify Hearing Dogs in public by their special collar and leash, vest or gold tab, and ID card.
Dogs are matched up with people who are deaf or hard of hearing after extensive training. Some dogs spend as much as two years studying.
Applicants usually travel to the training site to work with their dog in hands-on aspects of dog handling, care and ongoing obedience reinforcement skills.
If you are interested in learning more about Hearing Dogs, contact our office or visit www.canineworkingcompanions.org.