Deaf? Or selective hearing...?

BobMaya · 05-22-2007, 10:29 PM

Hiya, silly question maybe, but is there a surefire way to tell if your dog has hearing problems?

we recently adopted Bob, a fun little 4 month old spitfire. Based on a few replies here and some internet research, I think he may be partly or mostly a Dogo Argentino/APBT mix. Interestingly enough, one website reported a 10% born-deaf rate amongst Dogo puppies..

Anyway, the scenario is.. after nearly 3 weeks of having Bobzilla, he really doesn't know his name and doesn't seem to respond at all to voice prompts. (thank goodness for our other dog, who listens well, since he follows her everywhere!) Since I've started to suspect his hearing ability I've tried testing him several ways: 1) when his back his turned and he doesn't know I'm there -I'll speak, or whistle, 2) he's outside in the yard and I am in the 2nd story window, I'll yell or whistle and 3) make a sound with some vibration, like stomping on the floor or knocking on the wall.

The thing is 90% of the time I swear he doesn't respond to anything, and he is startled almost every time I touch him if he's not looking at me. But there's that 10% of the time that erase all my doubts and he looks at me when I speak. It's getting kind of silly, and I wish I could just know for sure so we can start doing some signing with him, or something!

Do you have any suggestions? It may be tough to give advise from my rambling, but do you think this is just a puppy thing that he'll grow out of? Does he just have selective hearing, as our vet jokingly suggested? (he was turned around and she clapped her hands about 2 ft from his head - and he turned around)

One of the things I keep coming back to is that I've read that when dogs are playing they will learn their limits by the sounds of the other dog... like if he grabs Maya's ear too hard and she yelps, he should know that's her limit. Well, he grabs, she yelps, and he doesn't seem to care! he just holds on

Also.... he still barks, growls, whines, etc... Dumb question, but does a deaf dog do these things?

Any ideas?
Thanks much,
Ian

borzoimom · 05-23-2007, 07:01 AM

He could be partially deaf. I would have his ears checked. Sometimes some of the things that cause partial deafness can be corrected.
The reason for this flinching could be he wasnt handled alot as a puppy. In other words- people there- but didnt reach over and pet him. Not faulting the breeder- but sometimes this happens with a large litter. Having a large litter can also make pups so use to being bumped they ignore contact or not handled enough just the person in the room etc, and someone reaching over to pet him could startle him- especially if he were touched only to stop something- like chewing on things .
Remember suddenly looking at you once in a while in speaking to him could be any number of things that is not hearing. Pups, especially one already showing other signs of being startled, have been known to hide deafness in other ways. Dogs feel vibration ( your voice- especially if you have a deep voice) suddenly smells ( no offense but like if you just ate something), and as well if he is deaf or partially deaf he has learned to take his cues in life by looking at things. ( not hearing them).
YOu didnt mention what color he was. If he is white, there is even a higher chance he is deaf. Or if he has blue eyes. While I have met deaf dogs that were not white, or without blue hazing or blue color in the eyes- its just a question.
Ask your vet if they can do a hearing test. Mine can- they scope the ear first looking for something obvious like skin flaps near the ear drum. Then they have a machine that gives impulses and it records the movement of the ear drum. If he is deaf- best to start now with how to brain a deaf dog. Its really not hard- but starting early makes all the difference in the world. I bet you have a trainer in your area that has trained deaf dogs. If not I can help you. I have had a few in my classes I teach. But first lets find out if he is just aloof or deaf. These are trained two different ways.
Good luck- I will be waiting for your response what happens...

BobMaya · 05-23-2007, 08:33 AM

Wow, thanks for the reply. Some good things to think about there. I probably should just schedule an appt somewhere to see if they can do a test.. and yeah I agree if he really is deaf I'd love to start some proper training with him now since he's only 4-5 months old.

Yes, he is white! Also, his eyes are not blue, not grey, not black.. just dark! I really can't tell a color. Here he is:

borzoimom · 05-23-2007, 08:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobMaya

Wow, thanks for the reply. Some good things to think about there. I probably should just schedule an appt somewhere to see if they can do a test.. and yeah I agree if he really is deaf I'd love to start some proper training with him now since he's only 4-5 months old.

Yes, he is white! Also, his eyes are not blue, not grey, not black.. just dark! I really can't tell a color. Here he is:

Yes if he is white, I would take him to the vet right away to rule this out while he is stilll in that rapid learning stage of 4-5 months. Just ask questions of your vet to make sure they can perform a real test- not just clapping their hands over the dogs head etc- remember- a dog has some side vision and can see movement, even feel moving air fast. And if the dog is actually deaf those other senses are hightened.. Alot of deaf dogs are detected deaf too late where as the first tests said they were not actually from these other senses awareness.
Its not hard to train a deaf dog- just totally different. I can help you until you find a trainer that knows how to help you train a deaf dog, however you will need a local trainer. In my last class session, I had two deaf dogs.