Deaf Dog Myth # 2

Deaf Dog Myth # 2
Deaf dogs are harder to train than hearing dogs.

 

On the contrary!  Deaf dogs pay such close attention to our cues and the cues from the environment around them, that they learn at an astonishing rate.  However, they can just as easily learn behaviors that we don’t want them to do, as they can learn to do what we do want.  So it’s important to establish a signal right away that lets your dog know that you liked what she is doing.  This way you can reinforce behaviors quickly that you like.  The more you reinforce those behaviors you like, the more often those behaviors will happen.  And set up the environment and always supervise so you can interrupt and redirect behaviors you don’t want right away so they don’t become habits.  No dog is born understanding human words or body language, so it is up to us to teach them – both hearing and deaf dogs.