Posted on 03/23/2011 5:42:16 AM PDT by Daffynition
hree-month-old Alice, a black and white springer spaniel, is learning non-verbal commands including sit, come and roll over.
She was dumped by a breeder in Ireland at just eight weeks after he realised she couldn't hear — and was taken in by animal charity The Blue Cross.
Staff were worried no-one would want her because she could not respond to an owner's calls.
But Alice has found her perfect match in couple Marie Williams, 41, and her partner Mark Morgan, 43 — who are both deaf.
Miss Williams, from West Mersea, Essex, said: "She was so beautiful and the fact that she was deaf just made us fall in love with her even more — we knew that she would fit right into our family.
"When we went to visit her at the centre I had tears in my eyes, because she was so cute and we bonded straight away." Quantcast
Less than a month after being rescued, Alice was rehomed with the couple and their three sons Liam, 16, Lewis, 13, and Owen, five.
Miss Williams said: "I feel so angry that someone abandoned her because in their eyes she was not 'perfect'.
"It goes to show with a little effort it is easy to cope with a deaf puppy. She has already learned the signs for several basic commands."
Julie Stone, manager of The Blue Cross animal adoption centre in Lewknor, Oxon, said: "Alice is such a loving and responsive dog and she proves that with a bit of time and effort, a deaf dog can be trained and become a wonderful pet."
How does it make the signs that require a thumb?
“Deaf puppy learns sign language”
There’s hope for Obama!!!
Thanks for the “feel good” story of the day. That’s so sweet!
*shrugs* No big deal... I teach my dogs a sign for every command. Dogs are very visual in their communications anyway, and often learn the sign quicker than the verbal command.
For instance, to have my dog take a treat from my hand gently, the command is “easy,” and the sign is to tap upon the treat with my first finger, while holding it in-between the thumb and second finger.
But for the most part, such signs are done with a broad hand position (mimicking a dog’s tail), and the purpose is for handling the dog far afield.
Well now ain’t that cute.
Training dogs to obey hand signals is the oldest trick in the book.
How do you think they get dog-stars like Laffie and Rin-Tin-Tin to perform on camera?
We’ve adopted a blind kitten and a three legged dog. It is absolutely amazing to watch them adapt. They don’t realize that they’re handicapped and figure out ways to get into trouble just like the other animals. The other animals are very protective of them.
Our rottweiler use to bring toys and treats to Trooper, the three legged pitbull.
That pup is hold-your-breath cute.
It sounds like a miracle, but really all dogs are sensitive to human posture and movements. In fact, voices often confuse and over-excite a puppy. My little pup Mandy learned at least 30 sign-language signals before she was a year old. I was following the procedure to train service dogs for the hearing-impaired. It sounds like a big accomplishment, but really it was easier than the voice equivalents.
Of course great hearing is part of the brilliance of most dogs, so the pup has stuff to overcome, but having to learn silent hand signals will not be an obstacle.
They are uber cute, but they are gonna get enormous (now they're 30 lbs at 4 months!) and I want to curb certain behaviors now, while I am still physically able to.
Roamer, I am gonna incorporate your "tapping on treat" thing into my training regimen. Right now they see the treat in my hand and go ape. I want to stop that.
Great story. Some of the comments on the thread are unfortunate. Good post.
Gorgeous pup goes to perfect forever home. Thanks for the uplifting ping.
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