Dogs are constantly learning which sounds or behaviors get a response from their owners, but when an owner loses their hearing, pets may need to adapt and find new ways to communicate.
Dogs are highly responsive to their environment and learned experiences, Dr. Linda Simon, a resident veterinarian at Pooch & Mutt, told Newsweek. That means a dog may eventually realize that the person who once responded to their bark, whine or other noises no longer reacts in quite the same way.
“They would use other means of communications, such as positioning themself in front of the owner or through touch,” Simon said.
That’s because dogs aren’t simply making noise. They’re learning what happens when they do.
So how can an owner help their dog make the switch? One way is to pay attention to the behaviors the dog uses to get their attention and respond to those instead. If a dog comes over and touches their owner or stands in front of them, for example, the owner can respond so the dog learns that this works, too.
Dogs Can Learn New Ways to Communicate
Barking and whining are often attempts to grab an owner’s attention. Over time, they learn what happens when they make certain sounds, such as learning that enough whining while someone eats might earn them a nibble of food.
But when those sounds no longer produce the expected response, dogs can adjust their behavior.
“If these barks and whines are mostly ignored, they’ll likely reduce in frequency,” Simon said.
For an owner experiencing hearing loss, this can mean their dog may gradually become less reliant on barking or whining and start using behaviors that are more likely to get noticed.
Owners can also encourage these new behaviors when they happen. A dog that touches its owner’s leg instead of barking, for example, can learn that this is another way to get a response.
Exactly how quickly that happens can vary from dog to dog. Simon said intelligent dog breeds, such as poodles and collies, may catch on sooner.
A dog’s age and previous experiences can also play a role. A puppy that has always been raised in a home with a hard-of-hearing owner may accept the lack of response as normal much faster than an adult dog who previously lived with a hearing family.
Hand Signals Can Help
The good news for deaf owners or those hard of hearing is that dogs don’t need spoken commands to understand what their people want. An owner can introduce hand signals to help them understand they can no longer hear their barks.
“Dogs do great with visual learning and can respond to hand cues and signals rather than vocal commands,” Simon said.
There isn’t one specific set of hand signals that every owner needs to use. Instead, Simon said each owner and dog may develop their own signals that work for them.
For example, an owner could raise a flat palm to ask their dog to sit or quickly wave an arm outward to tell the dog to stop sitting, she said.
Consistency can help the dog learn what each gesture means. Using the same signal each time can help the dog figure out what its owner wants, especially when there is no verbal command to go along with it.
Owners can also pay attention to the ways their dogs naturally try to get their attention. If a dog touches its owner’s leg instead of barking, for example, responding to that behavior can teach the dog that it is an effective way to communicate.
For owners adjusting to hearing loss, the change may require some patience from both sides. But dogs are constantly learning from their experiences and can adapt when their usual methods of communication no longer work.
The result may be a relationship that relies less on sound and more on gestures, eye contact and touch, while remaining just as communicative.