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Deafness due to aging


ejano

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I'm sure that dogs are as good -- or better -- than humans at developing coping skills for disabilities. It's difficult to determine anything without proper diagnostic testing in either... also, when we are with our animals day after day, small gradual changes often go unnoticed. I'm sure Ladybug's hearing loss didn't happen suddenly this week...but I only noticed it because I had to go hunt her down when we were out for a walk, something I've never had to do the entire five years we've had her. It would be tempting to put it down to willfulness, but she's always been a biddable dog, not a spot of trouble, even if she was hot on the trail of something, she'd have turned right back, if she'd been able to hear me.

 

A bell is a good idea....what about a vibrating collar...does anyone have any experience with those?

 

Liz

 

 

This sounds like my Tam. He will be 14 in October and for the last year - 1 1/2 yrs., he's been nearly entirely deaf. In his younger days, when he was worked a lot on sheep, he got the reputation of being a hard-headed dog, a label given to him by clinicians, and he indeed was a tough dog for me, still a novice at the time. Since he's been almost entirely deaf for the last couple of years, as an old dog, I did begin to think about whether or not he might have been erroneously labled "hard headed", that maybe in fact, he had some hearing loss. I heard his sire was considered a hard head, which is why I probably never really questioned what I was being told, and later I heard his sire had been deaf as well.

 

Tam now goes out either in the run or out on a long line if I can't keep my eye on him, and I've got a bell to put on his collar.

 

In hindsight, I wish I hadn't taken what others told me as gospel, that I'd have known enough to consider that he might have been deaf even as a younger dog.

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A bell is a good idea....what about a vibrating collar...does anyone have any experience with those?

 

I have a friend with a dog that has been deaf from birth and she has a vibrating collar. It gets his attention when they are in wide open spaces. She doesn't use it that often however. So I'm not sure how flexible it is as far as giving different type "commands" (look at me, come, etc.). But even if there is only one signal you can send, you could teach her it means come.

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I kicked myself about Zoe because I should have known - she wasn't the type of dog to "blow me off." But, because it wasn't consistent, I didn't recognize it as a physical problem. . .

 

Killing your own dog is a horrible thing - especially since we (my husband and I) knew that this was a risk and were careful. Zoe was was my constant companion for the last 15 years and a great working dog. The only blessing is that I did it and not someone else . . . Thanks for your sympathy and please watch your dog carefully.

 

Kim

 

What a tragedy. I can imagine the guilt is great. I'm sorry for your loss and hope you find solace in the many years you had working together.

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A surprisingly large % of animals hit by cars are run over by their owners. Mom ran over my deaf cat when I was a teenager. Somehow he had no injuries! Don't beat yourself up for a mistake. I know I am butchering this quote, but here it is anyway.

 

What is the one difference between a wise man and a fool?

 

They both make mistakes, but the wise man learns from them while the fool doesn't.

 

Back on topic... I think a lot of working dogs are deaf or partially deaf but get labeled as hard/insecure/disobedient/etc. I know one story of a nice trial bitch who did great in PN but kept hesitating during the cross drive in Open. Her owner thought she lacked confidence at first. Turns out she was totally deaf in one ear! These are dogs who are going deaf between 2 and 8 years of age, which is a different type of hearing loss than the old dogs are experiencing.

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I would think that it's best use would be as your friend uses it.

Thanks

Liz

 

I have a friend with a dog that has been deaf from birth and she has a vibrating collar. It gets his attention when they are in wide open spaces. She doesn't use it that often however. So I'm not sure how flexible it is as far as giving different type "commands" (look at me, come, etc.). But even if there is only one signal you can send, you could teach her it means come.
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Julie writes:

"I think this mistaking of deafness for hard-headedness might happen more often than we might think."

 

I couldn't agree more, but I have to relate my story of my now 5 year old Border Collie who has been SO resistant to taking commands at distance...he's such a sweetheart, and so willing to please, I began to think that maybe he was partially deaf and that was the reason he was blowing me off with his stops. So... I had him BAER tested. Guess what? He can hear...perfectly. So, he really IS blowing me off at distance!! :rolleyes:

 

Amy

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Julie writes:

"I think this mistaking of deafness for hard-headedness might happen more often than we might think."

 

I couldn't agree more, but I have to relate my story of my now 5 year old Border Collie who has been SO resistant to taking commands at distance...he's such a sweetheart, and so willing to please, I began to think that maybe he was partially deaf and that was the reason he was blowing me off with his stops. So... I had him BAER tested. Guess what? He can hear...perfectly. So, he really IS blowing me off at distance!! :rolleyes:

 

Amy

But now you know! That's a big advantage.

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