Many dogs lose their hearing for different reasons. Some dogs simply become old and they start to lose sharpness in their senses. Genetic factors may also play a role in whether or not a dog will lose his hearing. And of course, disease can be a root cause of a dogs hearing loss.
If your dog is experiencing loss of hearing then it should be assuring to know that he can live a full life and function just the same as he did when he had his full hearing intact. However, in order for your dog to live without injury resulting from lack of hearing, you will need to follow the advice of the below precautions:
1. Animals are very defensive, especially if they are startled. If your dog does not hear you approaching him and his head is turned away from you, he may suddenly snap and bite simply because of the surprise of an approaching entity. So be certain that your dog knows you are coming in his direction and do not go to pet him if you don’t think he is aware of your presence.
2. Never allow your deaf dog to run freely outside. This may sound like common sense but you would be surprised as to how many injuries and deaths occur each year due to dog owners letting their pets run free outside while knowing that they had limited hearing ability, or even no hearing ability at all. When a deaf dog is running on the sidewalk and into the streets he does not hear oncoming traffic, which can result in a fatal injury.
3. If you want to continue training your dog and are used to using a clicker, learn how to work with a flashlight instead. It may take some practice and even some training classes on your part, but there is an efficient way to use a flashlight to train your dog in obedience. The signals that you can give off by clicking the flashlight on and off can replace the noise that a clicker makes.
4. Although your dog may have lost his hearing, there are many cases where these animals can actually pick up on high frequency noises. For example, an item that creates a high-pitched noise that may work to get your deaf dog’s attention, such as a dog whistle.
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