Not everyone is aware of the challenges that come with caring for a deaf dog. The training process itself requires a lot of commitment and patience since you are basically substituting words with physical signs and facial expressions. The luxury of yelling commands across a room in order to stop your dog from digging in the trash is unfortunately not your best option. However, do not be discouraged! Dogs are smart and they will surprise you in how quickly they’ll adapt to your new sign language. You will notice that it is easier to interact with your dog while you’re indoors, but the exciting setting of being outdoors may hinder your communication making it more difficult to retain your dog’s attention. Here are a few helpful tips in how to keep your deaf dog’s attention.
- Loose Leash: keeping your dog on a leash is very important in the early stages of training for the obvious reasons. However, make sure that while trying to establish contact, the leash is not tight. That way they are forced to watch you rather than just feel you through the leash, so keep that leash loose!
- Reward: the act of praise plays a vital role when training a dog, deaf or not. Since they cannot hear the sound of your voice, giving them a treat is the best way to reward a deaf puppy. Each time they respond correctly to a sign, reward them by instantly whipping out a tasty treat! Remember; keep the food out of sight until you are ready to give it. This will prevent the treat from becoming, in the dog's mind, an actual part of the command--or a bribe.
- Creative attention methods: if your dog is facing away from you, one of the simplest things to do is to wait until they turn around. Indoors, if you walk up behind your dog, they may feel the vibrations of your approach and turn around or touching them lightly so you don’t startle them. Outdoors during the day, you can also try tossing a small stone or ball near your dog to get his attention. Be very careful not to hit your dog!
- Vibrating Collar: possibly the best way to retrieve your dog’s attention when they are distracted is with the use of a vibrating collar. A vibrating collar works much like a pager. It has 2 parts, a hand held unit for the person, and another unit that the dog wears as a collar. This device is very popular for owners with deaf dogs and usually become less necessary once their dog is past their adolescent phase and are trained to the point that their owners feel confident that the dog will "check in," and come when called.
Remember to always train your dog in this sequence: 1) do the sign, 2) move away, 3) give praise when they follow, 4) take out treat, 5) give it. Always conduct at least 3 to 5 repetitions in a row before you release the dog's attention. This is what teaches them to sustain that attention on you until you release it. Be patient and loving and your dog will do the rest!
