Comments on: Deaf Sheltie Puppy

By: ilovemichigansummers

ilovemichigansummers — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 12:58:16 +0000

He is so adorable. It is unfortuante that the breeder was not responsible in learning about breeding certian colors w/ others can cause deafness and blindness in the offspring. Kudos to you though for taking on a puppy that is a just bit "challenged". Shelties are so smart naturally that I doubt his deafness will be a factor in him being very intelligent and happy!

By: [daniel jones]

[daniel jones] — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 12:01:57 +0000

Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Cats and Dogs , and we'd love to have this added to the group!

By: Ģωєη-ηєŞŞ Hiding in a hollow tree ♫

Ģωєη-ηєŞŞ Hiding in a hollow tree ♫ — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 11:19:24 +0000

aww, poor little guy

By: catherinesorg

catherinesorg — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 10:32:02 +0000

cute

By: catherinesorg

catherinesorg — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 10:15:50 +0000

cut

By: stainedglass199306

stainedglass199306 — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 09:49:20 +0000

Your puppy is cute !

By: darleneandshanna

darleneandshanna — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 09:05:50 +0000

Your dog is cute. My friend who is deaf , has deaf dog. He use sign lanuage. It is very help understanding. He told me that his dog understand his signs.

By: KatieBugg

KatieBugg — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 08:24:11 +0000

Soooo cute!!!

By: Oh_me_oh_my

Oh_me_oh_my — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 07:54:07 +0000

He's a double merle baby.
Eek, people have to watch out when breeding them.
If they are all white they are deaf and blind, depending on where the spot is is what sense it will have.

Your a good person to have adopted this cutie!
I have a sable sheltie, 13 week, but he' s a bit of a grouch.

Hugs for the puppy.
~Becky

By: fuzzycakes

fuzzycakes — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 07:09:49 +0000

Hi! We adopted a deaf australian shepherd (also a double merle)last year. You should learn and use some simple signs (like ASL) to communicate with him. Don't listen to ANYONE who says he's less than perfect just as he is, or that he's not smart. There is a Yahoo group called Deafdogs that will be a big help to you, and also a website by the same name. I can tell you that deaf dogs are great dogs! They don't bark at the mailman, and they love to be very close to you so they know where you are at all times. Ours follows us from room to room and then goes to sleep on our feet. So adorable! Also, our dog really benefits from having a hearing companion dog. If you have room in your life and home for another dog, you might consider this. (We have a hearing aussie as well.) Deaf dogs can be more likely to suffer from separation anxiety, so we have a hand sign that means "I'm going away for awhile," and even if she's sleeping, we wake her up to tell her that we're leaving. That way she doesn't search frantically for us when she wakes up. In the meantime, she has our other dog and plenty of chewies & toys to keep her entertained. You have the advantage of having a herding breed, too - the smartest dogs in the world! (We had shelties before we had aussies.) He will pay close attention to your face and eyes, so make sure to talk to him as if he could hear you - it will help your emotions be "clearer" to him as you use the hand signs. For example, signing "No!" won't mean a thing to him if you're actually laughing beacuse he's so cute when he's naughty. You have to make the "No!" face, too. Only 1 warning that I can think of: don't let him off leash unless he's in a completely fenced area. There are vibrating collars available to "page" your dog to get his attention so you can signal for him to come back to you, but we haven't had much luck with this. Others may be able to help you with this on the deaf dogs site/yahoo group. Congratulations on your new pup! -Kivasmom