• I don’t come when you call my name.


• I sleep through the alarm but never meal time.


• I’m not afraid of the vacuum cleaner.


• If I am asleep or not looking at you, I may jump if you touch me.


• I may play more rough than other dogs.


• I seldom take my eyes off you and follow you from room to room.


• I like to lie in the doorway or with part of my body touching you.


• I literally notice every spider on the wall.

These behaviors may seem odd but they are very understandable when the senses of sight, smell, and touch replace the ability to hear. Thousands of dogs are killed every year simply because they do not hear. Countless others are given up to shelters or horribly abused because they are labeled dangerous, unpredictable or dumb.

Fortunately, there are also thousands of individuals who have been blessed by the companionship of these special dogs and are fighting to dispel the misconceptions that threaten their opportunity to live.

Often they had no idea their dog was deaf when they purchased it or adopted it from a shelter. Once they questioned some of these odd behaviors and realized their dog was deaf, it was too late to follow the advice many receive from vets and breeders to take the dog back and get another one. They had already fallen in love and simply asked the question, "Now What?"