ok... is my dog deaf? (crosspost from Pets Forum)

[mtnmenagerie]

hi everybody - hoping you can help me out here. we picked up a new great pyrenees puppy yesterday. he was intended to be our second LGD for my little herd of milk goats.
he is very interactive and friendly... but now that i have him home, i am basicly positive that he is deaf.

a few questions...

1. are there any tried and true methods of testing his hearing? (besides my insane calling, clapping, and whistling after i sneek up behind him)

2. is this a hereditary problem? (if i traded him for one out of the same litter... could i run into the same scenario?)

3. is it possible that he COULD work out as a "work" dog... learning to work WITH my other great pyrenees. or would it be better for him to be in a "pet" home?

sorry to ramble... just very confused. i need to call the breeder as soon as possible, but i'm not sure how to proceed. any help will be appreciated.

[thaiblue12]

Have you taken him in for a vet check yet? I would do that asap. If he is not reacting to any sounds I would be wondering too and a vet could tell you better then sneaking up behind him with a pair of pot lids. Since he is a new pet I would take him to the vet anyway for a good once over.
I do know that deaf "house" dogs can be trained using hand signals but as a working dog he cannot hear any predators sneaking up, coyotes/wolves howling and etc. He would only be able to use sight and smell. I am not positive but I think that would really hamper his ability.
I would call the breeder right away and tell her that you have concerns about his hearing and are taking him to the vet. This way if you need to take him back you told her as soon as you noticed it.

[Ernie]

Supposing he is deaf, that wouldn't rule out his being able to guard livestock. It would depend on the territory you want him to cover. If it's dense brush or hilly terrain (and a lot of it) that would obscure his vision then he'll be at a disadvantage for sure. However if it's a relatively confined area where he can see the entire scope of his area of responsibility then it's not going to be as big of an issue.

These dogs like to get up on something high and watch things anyway. They aren't just holding still and listening. I'd take a deaf, good, dutiful guard dog over one who can fully hear any day.

[mtnmenagerie]

thank you for posting! i actually spoke with her again... she said she would refund my money and let me keep the dog if i wanted to try him out... or i could get another one and keep them as a "pair"... or just swap it. i'm so confused.

[lyceum]

Our 12 year old Border Collie is deaf. If you wake her up, she jumps awake. You have to be careful how you work around her. She still thinks she can go out with the other dogs, you just have to watch her if she wants to go to the road since she can't hear a car coming.

I second taking it to the vet. They will be able to tell you once and for all.

Carisa

[mtnmenagerie]

thank you... i forgot to mention that i called my vet first thing this morning... he is referring me to someone else... will be tomorrow before i go see him though

[HappyFarmer]

mtnmenagerie

We bought a 4 year old as our 2nd guardian, to train our 9 mo old pup a couple years ago. Turns out she is deaf, we found out after a few months. I should have known something was up when on the sales receipt, the “no returns or refunds” was highlighted. Live and learn.

At any rate, Bella’s deafness does not interfere with the protection of our flock. Bella sleeps with her charges, as does our normal lgd. When the normal one goes off protecting, Bella stays with the flock, asleep. It is my understanding that normal lgd's do this also, but they are not sleeping!
She lifts her head every so often to check on everyone. When she sees the normal lgd go off, she often follows. Often, Bella is the one who spots the hawk first, before the normal lgd. I do believe her senses are a bit heightened due to her lack of hearing.

Initially we did inquire with our vet regarding a hearing test. Our vet said it is hard to tell with this breed of dog, as they often ignore you anyways, but we could have her tested but it would be fairly expensive. We opted not to do that.

Bella will remain here on our farm, until her death, despite her shortcoming. Bella is a wonderful guardian, and to be effective she has her companion, and they make a great pair.

You may be in a better situation than we were, being you are buying a pup. If you decide not to keep the pup, I certainly hope the breeder is honest about the situation, as it will be the poor pup who will suffer perhaps with someone who is not so open minded as you.

Good luck and I hope this has helped.

[mtnmenagerie]

thank you so much. you have helped a lot! i believe i will keep the pup. although i am considering taking one of his brothers (hearing) to raise together. my hope is that they will become a "super team" the deaf one relying on his brother more readily than our adult pyrenees.

oh, just so everyone knows - the person that i got this pup from let me know that one of the pups was deaf. there was two that looked almost exactly alike, and she got them mixed up. it just so happend that i fell for the one that was!
thank you again - i think i will work through this with the pup. i feel like i can give him a good home.
anymore advice/input will be appreciated!

[mtnmenagerie]

[HappyFarmer]

Aaaw he's adorable!

I forgot to mention in my post about training your pup. My dog came to me trained already-no jumping, basic mannerisms, things like that, we trained the younger dog come, sit, and NO!. You should work extra hard on how you want to call the deaf adult dog off of something-it would have to be a visual, or perhaps he could take the cue off of your other, trained dog?. Our setup is basically non-escape, and my other dogs know the basic commands, especially NO!, so in our situation it is really a non-issue.

But, I feel I should warn you that the downfall of my deaf female is that I couldn't call her off of something if I wanted to.

Just something to think about.
HF

[southerngurl]

Oh how stinking adorable!

I have a 15 yr old Border Collie that has lost almost all of her hearing. It was confirmed when she was nearly ran over by my uncle in his loud diesel truck. She was happily laying down, with her head turned away from the truck and my uncle, thankfully, turned just before he hit her (he didn't notice she hadn't moved) to park to the side. He went RIGHT by her, she was totally happy until the truck came into her vision and she jumped, so yea, can't hear. She can sometimes hear a whistle if it's really loud. She absolutely sleeps like the dead. We have mistaken her for dead a couple times in fact.

[mygoat]

A dog can still obey even if it doesn't hear using hand signals. Pick exaggerated signals that are easy for your dog to recognize during training, repeating the gesture in sight of the dog instead of telling it what you want.

The main problem is getting their attention. I've heard of people getting a dog training collar (shock collar) that has a VERY LOW setting (sometimes called a warning setting, but make sure the warning setting is a vibration and not a tone), and making sure it is always on that low setting. To call the dog, teach it to come when you activate the collar using a leash and a drag line. Also, teach the dog to pay attention to you when you activate the collar - just like you teach a dog to pay attention to you when you say it's name.

[mtnmenagerie]

thanks again for everyones input! it means a lot to me to have a community of such great people.
the puppy is doing well - most definately deaf. he is going to stay here on our farm (with one of his brothers). it should be an interesting experience - but i have high hopes for him.

thanks again