Christine Hibbard, CTC, CPDT
In the past two months, I’ve received calls and or emails from two different shelters asking me for advice on training a dog who is both blind and deaf. There are terrific web sites for training blind dogs and for training deaf dogs, but I’m not aware of a web site 
devoted to training a dog who is both. I thought that publishing some ideas here (ideas I have gathered from many other sources) would not only help other rescue workers, but I’m hoping that it will generate a dialog on how to best train these dogs who not only have the misfortune to find themselves deaf and blind, but homeless as well. Let me be clear, I’m not stating a position on whether these dogs should take up precious rescue resources when plenty of “able bodied” dogs are euthanized every year. That’s a debate for another time. The reality is that some rescues will take these dogs, do their best, and try to place them (or not). So, how do we train these dogs?
Work to Eat: It can be incredibly difficult to exercise a dog who is both deaf and blind so environmental enrichment is absolutely necessary to lower anxiety and tire out the dog’s brain. Don’t feed any food out of a bowl and make sure all the dog’s calories come out of toys or by hand in training. There are an amazing array of work to eat puzzles on the market now.
Stay on a Mat: An excellent way to position (and keep track of) a blind/deaf dog is with a mat. You can reinforce him every time the dog finds the mat. You can make it easier for the dog by scenting these surfaces. According to many people, lavender is the “relaxation” scent. Make sure you dilute the scents with water and spray them on the surfaces. If you can smell it, it’s probably way too strong for the dog. Finding the mat and staying there is the first thing I teach these dogs. Safety first! Giving a dog frozen stuffed Kongs on the mat will help build the dog’s duration on the mat. If the dog rolls the Kong off the mat, lure the dog back to the mat with the Kong (hopefully he doesn’t guard Kongs).
Follow the Carpet: Make paths out of carpet runners or other substrate material and teach the dog to walk on the path. Following the path keeps the dog safe and out of trouble (hopefully). Again, you can scent these paths to help the dog along.
Condition a Marker: You’ve got to come up with a touch somewhere on the dog’s body to let him know he’s getting it right and that’s why he’s getting the food. Decide on a body part (I like the neck for this). Touch the dog in exactly the same way and in the same place each time (decide if you want to use a tap, short touch, long touch, or stroke). Condition this marker just like you would if you were charging a clicker. Touch/food, touch/food as randomly as possible (try not to fall into a pattern). I’ve used vibration collars with deaf dogs to get their attention so I can give them the “thumbs up” but they can be pricey and frankly, any piece of equipment has the potential to be lost or broken. I’ve had trouble convincing owners that they want to have that big remote handy at all times. If you do use a vibration collar (I would use it to train the dog to find his mat), make sure to introduce it to
the dog carefully. You want the “page” to predict a treat, not startle the dog into a panic.
Target Train: Teach the dog to touch a target with his nose. Scent the target so that he can find it. I like using something sturdy like a wooden spoon because you can tap it on the floor and the dog should pick up on the vibration. This is an excellent way to lead a dog around so you don’t have to be hauling him around by his collar all the time.
Training Behaviors: With a dog who is both deaf and blind, I think that lure/reward training is the way to go since shaping can be next to impossible if your “clicker” is a touch to the dog’s body:
- Lure the dog into a sit.
- When his butt hits the floor, touch him in his “clicker spot” to let him know he got it right.
- Give him the treat.
Once he’s offering sits voluntarily, you can add the cue. I like a tap on the butt for this, it seems a natural to me. You insert any cue whether it’s verbal, a hand signal, or a touch in the same way:
- Tap him on the butt.
- Wait a few seconds (at first he won’t know what it means), then lure him into the sit.
- Touch him on his “clicker spot” to let him know he got it right.
- Give him a treat.
Over time, he’ll figure out that the tap on his butt means “if I sit, I’ll get a treat”. You can repeat this with any behavior you want him to learn as long as the behavior can be lured.
Anyone out there with “special needs” dogs? Are there dog trainers reading this with experience training dogs who are both blind and deaf? I’d love to hear all the creative ideas out there!
Update:
My Springer now is completely blind and deaf. All came together this week. But, the good news is I have found a great way for her to exercise. We have several large green belt areas where we live. Large open spaces with no trees. We stand together at one end of a huge tract and as I begin to trot Hannah follows my scent and trot’s along. Each time she has become more trusting and comfortable doing this. Now, she runs full out with me just enough ahead to leave a scent. As she tires I slow down until we are walking. So, that challenge has been met. Still working on the giving of commands though.
I’m a trainer with a deaf and blind (since birth) collie. I’ve mainly used lure and reward with him but want to introduce a touch marker. Eventually I would like to see if we can free shape behaviours too. I’m just not sure which body part to use for my touch marker.
Claire,
you can tap almost anywhere as long as you are consistent. I actually have started tapping on different parts of the body for different commands. Sit/stay is a tap on the chest. Come is a tap on the tail. It’s a real challenge but keeps the two of us learning. At 13 and 1/2 may Srpinger Spaniel can, indeed, learn new tricks.
Help, please? We are fostering a blind (she seems to have some awareness of light/dark with one eye) and deaf dog rescued from a terrible breeding situation. Her blindness and deafness is genetic and stems from faulty selective breeding practices. She is a year old. She accepts pets from us and seeks comfort from us when she is scared…but she is scared of almost everything. Unfortunately, she is so scared that she takes little pleasure in things that typically bring some joy to dogs . For example, she has no concept of what to do with an antler, nylabone, kong toy (even filled with peanut butter), rawhide, pup .toy, etc. She is sometimes willing to follow a trail of hot dog pieces to “find” us..sometimes this is too difficult. She is able to find her water and drinks pretty regularly; she is usually willing to eat most of her food. She probably needs to put on a few pounds so we are working toward that.
She improves just a tiny little bit every day; we are working towards increasing her comfort, confidence and general understanding of indoor, family living.
We are struggling with any aspect of crate training or housebreaking. Per the volunteer who secured her from the breeder, she had been living in an outdoor pen with her mother; the pen was filled with feces and urine. She has learned to walk on a leash pretty well but she will not urinate on walks (she will go on a 25 minute walk, we’ll put her in her crate and she will urinate in her crate within five minutes. of the walk…or maybe she will not urinate…it is completely random.) We have crated her with a pillow, without a pillow, with her food and without her food. We have tried a larger crate and a smaller crate. We have borrowed a dog-owner’s fenced yard so she could wander without a leash and catch the scent of their urine…no luck. We brought her home after this exercise, put her in her crate and she urinated within maybe ten minutes. We have tried walking every 1-2 hours…we have tried establishing a specific walking path and routine …still no luck. We have actually absorbed some of her urine on puppy pads and placed the puppy pads outside…she sniffed at them, then ignored them but did not do her business. There is no consistency to when she chooses to urinate and when she chooses to hold her urine.
Interestingly…she is willing to poop during her walks.
Any ideas, please? Thank you!
I live in Alabama. I have a friend I’m trying to help her find someone to train her and her 3 month old pit puppy that is blind and deaf and albino. I rescue dogs and I have 5 pits and one had a stroke and is blind in one eye and she can’t walk to good but not a puppy blind and deaf. Please tell me who can I contact or how can I contact you or do you have a website or book she and I can go to and read on how to train the puppy and train her in helping the puppy. She is keeping the puppy. Please contact me asap
Such a heartbreaking history. My thought is that this dog was “trained” to pee in her crate and so this is where she goes. I would set up a wire crate outside without a pan in the bottom and put her in there for a short time at the end of her walk before bringing her back inside. Give her a great treat when she goes there to reinforce that behavior. Monitor her intake of water and try to predict when she’ll need to go. I’m guessing if she is regularly given a familiar place to go potty, she’ll be more consistent. Then you’ll be able to alter her walking schedule in keeping with her needs.
We’re located in Seattle, WA, so I’d recommend your friend talk to trainers in your area to find out who might have experience with blind and deaf puppies. As always, we recommend only trainers who use scientifically proven training methods that do not include the use of force, fear, or pain. One good internet resource for blind and deaf dogs is https://www.pawstoadopt.com/blindanddeafdogs/.
Hello,
I have an Australian Sheppard who is a lethal white. I believe she is blind and partially deaf, but it is hard to tell just how blind and deaf she is because she is only seven weeks old.
I have gotten potty training down pretty well with touch and reward. The issue I am having is nipping and her crate. She is starting to bite to hard after play time.
With her crate she absolutely does not like being in there even if I but water, toys, and her bed in there. Any advise?
Cassidy
Not all of your puppy’s senses are impaired, so take advantage of her sense of smell to help calm her. Put a t-shirt or other article of clothing that you’ve slept or exercised in with her in the crate so she can have your smell to comfort her. Work up to the crate slowly until she’s able to feel more comfortable. Remember that not all dog do well in a crate. If she is panicked by being confined, you may need the help of a behavior consultant.