Tips for when

Cyclamen

Hello, I am looking for ideas and tips to help our dog and us as she ages and her hearing deteriorates please. 

Our lovely dog is getting a little greyer,  a little stiffer, a little older and finding it harder to hear us, treat packets, the door etc.  We have had a vet check and been told its just her age. 

So what can we do to help her... I know there will come a time when we can't let her off the lead but we want to let her explore and sniff freely for as long as is safe. 

Difficulties we are having .. 

Unintentionally startling/ scaring her as she doesn't hear us coming close even if we talk.. i've started walking in front of her and waiting for her to sniff and wake up, or tapping her bed.  But I have mobility issues and can't always approach from in front of her. 

Calling her in from the garden, now she is always reluctant to come in, but i don't think she is able to hear a lot of the time.  She always used to look up then come slowly with a few detours.  Now she doesn't look up, not willfully ignoring as she would always come for a treat. 

I am a wheelchair user and when I want to cross the road or turn the chair i use voice prompts eg 'over', 'on the path' and 'turn', etc.. hand signals wont be possible as she is a little dog and i'm sat far higher and also need one hand to drive and one to hold the lead. 

Any ideas of how to help her, things we can do differently or habits to learn now whilst she still has some hearing very welcome.  This is new to me, all my other dogs have had reduced hearing but not to this extent.

LinLui

Also disabled, with an assistance dog so it's a little different, but....

For better "prompt control", try using a "figure of 8" lead. There are lots of types  but I prefer one that is soft braid or padded for the dogs comfort. They are marketed for stopping dogs pulling, but they are much more useful than that. Giving you compete control of the head, you can gently pull up the head so the dog can see you - if she can see you speaking to her there's a better chance of her hearing you. In terms of hearing, although dogs can go deaf, it isn't generally common (although some breeds have a higher rate of deafness) - what does happen is that they lose some of the hearing spectrum; so you could experiment using higher or lower pitches to see whereabouts in the spectrum she hears you best. To get her attention you could try using a whistle - but not the type for dogs as that's the most likley hearing spectrum to go first, so go for an ordinary whistle. Or I would assume you have a reacher of some sort? Use that to gently tap on her bed to get her attention. Or you could use it to hold an item with your scent on it - her nose will detect it's you.

A long training lead for the garden - you'll need to tie the end up higher for you to reach it rather than let it trail, but if she can't / won't come in it gives you control to get her in or get her attention. 

Some dogs respond to training to use light signals - but if you are going to try that, do be careful not to shine it at her, but in front of her to get her attention. It may be that at her age the best it can achieve is alerting her to you wanting her attention, but if she takes to it you could try other signals - it isn't true that you can't teach an old dog new tricks! The same is true of vibrations - some dogs respond well to vibrations, so you could think about claps or knocks to get her attention. 

Brie

I was going to suggest stomping a foot on the floor until I got to the bit about using a wheelchair!  Not always practical obviously. 

But that's what we used to do with our dalmation who was deaf from birth (breed trait unfortunately).  Stomp or clap.  The repercussive sound was easier for her to "hear" than speaking or shouting.  Obviously the vibrations worked for her.  If you have a cane or similar lightly tapping that on the floor might work?

I agree about a whistle but wonder if a bike bell on your wheelchair might work too.  And if you had one in the house so there was a consistent sound to respond to?  

And something rattly that stretches from the door across the garden - something with suncatcher type things that would flash the sunlight so she could come to know means you are calling her?  

And apparently the American Vet Association suggests a vibration collar.  Might be worth investigating!!

BARK COLLAR, Waterproof & Rechargeable with Vibration and Tone, Nylon - Chewy.com

And it may not be practical but after a couple of years we got a second dalmation who could hear but turned out to be half blind (we didn't have much luck picking dogs).  The two dogs together were great - the one could see and the other hear and so rarely got into trouble.  We even saw them run across a busy intersection once unharmed when they escaped from our garden.  

Cyclamen

Thank you both.
Some things to try.
I'm an ambulatory wheelchair user so can stamp a little.
I like the idea of a bike bell .. sometimes breathless and blowing could be tricky, also would like options for others to use.

We have rattle boxes for treats we've used for years but she doesn't always hear now.

elsien

Gitdog has lost most of his sight due to cataracts and most of his hearing due to age and I’m having similar problems in attracting his attention. 

So the hand signals we’ve always used for commands have  gone because he can’t see them -  at the moment a clap is working to get his attention, but very little else. And that will probably go fairly soon as well. 
He can still see the very big gestures if he looks towards me so e.g. for come, I’m just waving my arms around like a lunatic. I’m carrying more smelly treats because his sense of smell is still ok, and I’ve gone back now to every time he looks at me reinforcing it with a treat because if he’s looking at me, he’s not off doing something he shouldn’t be. 

He’s never gone off  lead anyway, but even if he had, I think now I would just be keeping him on a lead. 

I have wondered about whether I could use signals on the lead such as a couple of sharp tugs for come but  become his cognitive abilities are also declining so I’m not sure how much new stuff he can now learn.

I think you have to presume that all commands and signals could  go out of the window and keep him safe  accordingly, even if that means he has a lot less freedom than before. 

Cyclamen

Thanks Elsien

Oh  I remember reading about 'Gitdog' quite a few years back.. even reading a bit out to my husband and chuckling as he got up to mischief.

Hmm.. smellier treats are an excellent thought.. i hadnt made the leap from letting her sniff my hand to wake up in the morning as she couldnt hear me as well, to using her sniffer for other things.

Yes there will come a time 'off lead' isnt an option.. i do mostly use a lead anyway ..as i use a wheelchair i dont feel confident i could get to her if she was offlead and in trouble... but hoping the garden can remain lead free.  Although night time visits are now on lead as she stays out having a jolly time as she cant hear us call her in, even my usual knock on the window that would always get a look doesnt often work. 

Its hard watching our puppies grow older.. she came to us at 3 and Im still surprised 9 years later to see her fair grey speckled..