Anyone can live with a handicapped dog sometime in your life, since you can adopt a puppy with birth problems or a disabled adult dog that has been abandoned in a shelter.
In this case, we are aware of the problems that we will have to face and we know about them. But sometimes, living with a disabled dog is not at all an option and is that an animal can become deaf with age or due to very serious ear infections.
Living with disabled dogs
Blindness is also common in dogs older than a certain age, so dogs with diabetes or degenerative diseases they may lose their sight.
Of course, a physical disability It can also occur in any dog, whatever its breed or age (dysplasia, osteoarthritis and / or bone tumors requiring amputation, trauma after an accident ...)
In the case of disabled dogs, it is absolutely essential to work with positive methods, without positive punishments or coercive means. The dog should live in a climate that is as free as possible from anxiety and create a strong bond of trust with its owner.
His education and learning, which in this article will be called «training, and«, (We quickly forget the negative aspect that this term can have due to the individuals who try to control and domesticate dogs by force calling it training), something that should start very early.
With a puppy or a adopted dog recently, we will work on bonding, self-confidence, autonomy, socialization and familiarization. With an animal already present in the home at the time of disability, we will try to expand this bond of trust, but we will work on a new learning, a new way of educating your dog to make life easier and safer.
Living with a deaf dog
What are the special characteristics of the deaf dog? A deaf dog often tends to watch more, we can even say that it is hyper-vigilant, more nervous.
They may have a greater tendency to react, to have bad reactions if surprised, to have problems sleeping, to have hyperlinks (if its owner is its only reliable point of reference in your particular environment).
They are dogs that need tranquility, patience, confidence and adaptability. It is not allowed to wake them up by tactile contact and approach them from behind or when they are absorbed by an activity.
And it is that although you may not believe it, it is very common acquire a deaf puppy, as some breeds are predisposed to it, such as Dalmatians, Jack Russells, etc.
What tools can help you?
A vibrant collar will surely be your best ally to attract your dog's attention and communicate with him.
You can also use a flashlight as a "marker"Like the button, but you should know that this has its limits, so imagine, this in broad daylight will not help you much. Another option is choose a guide dog and it is that dogs learn a lot and often act by imitation. Work alongside a dog that knows how to do will encourage you to do the same.
How to work with a totally deaf dog?
Positive methods, of course;) It is important to understand that you will need communicate with your dog through gestures. Therefore, your hands should not be associated with anything dangerous, negative, or threatening.
The dog by nature has a great importance for the gestures, mimics, postures I facial expressions. The deaf dog will be helped by this "non-verbal" nature and it is that for him, no need to adapt too muchBut for you, as a "verbal" human being, it will certainly be more complicated.
The «shapping» (reinforcement of all small behaviors going in the direction of what is expected of the dog), it will be used as much as possible to correct behaviors without using commands.
Normally and if you teach him, the dog will look at you when you ask. This is the basis of your training, since if your dog doesn't look at you, you can always have a good command of the gestural commands.