Service dogs for CI users and deaf people

Beach girl said:
Anyone in a close relationship (marriage or living together) comes to depend on that other person. That's part of what marriage is about. I depend on my husband for lots of things; he depends on me for lots of things (good back-rubs, for instance). :lol:

It has nothing to do with feeling "helpless and insecure." Doesn't have anything to do with being hearing or deaf. It's about loving the person you're with and gradually, automatically, coming to depend on each other more and more.

If I couldn't depend on him in many, many ways, why would I want to be married to him? It all comes with the commitment.
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no. not quite the same... see? you still keep equating it with something else. People marry each other for love and support. That's a normal healthy relationship. But there are some people out there who marry a very specific type of people because of their insecurity. That's not a normal healthy relationship.

Examples:
1. In America, Asian women prefer to marry white men because of higher social status and better financial security.

2. Deaf women prefer to marry a hearing man because she would feel nice & safe. He can hear intruders and baby crying. and he is more likely to have a stable-earning job than a deaf man. oh and perhaps for a higher social status too.

3. I think you get the picture.
 
posts from hell said:
Totally different situation. The service dog I see often is a guide dog for the blind. I totally understand.

But for the deaf......... cmon. Seriously, come on. Thats my opinion. I just don't see how much a service dog will benefit me in the real world. The only way would be alerting me to a doorbell, but any conventional dog would do that task just peachy.
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But in my case I reward my dog every time he does something like that...

I totally, T-O-T-A-L-L-Y respect your opinion! :thumb:
 
Jules said:
But in my case I reward my dog every time he does something like that...I totally, T-O-T-A-L-L-Y respect your opinion! :thumb:
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And then I reward mine for shutting the hell up, too!! :laugh2:

They are supposed to bark, then be quiet and sit a certain distance away from the door when I open it. They are both pretty good at that. Amazes some people, really, to see the two dogs sitting quietly, looking up at them.
 
<< not impressed. My mom dog while unleashed will go to the side of the dirt road and sit down while a car passes. The guide dog will chase the car. The results of treating a service dog as a companion. :sigh:
 
posts from hell said:
<< not impressed. My mom dog while unleashed will go to the side of the dirt road and sit down while a car passes. The guide dog will chase the car. The results of treating a service dog as a companion. :sigh:
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Yeah, that shouldn't happen. Some people are better trainers than others.

Some dogs are smarter than others, too, and some dogs have less of a prey instinct (to follow moving things) than others. If a dog has a high prey drive, then management has to go along with training.
 
Beach girl said:
Yeah, that shouldn't happen. Some people are better trainers than others.

Some dogs are smarter than others, too, and some dogs have less of a prey instinct (to follow moving things) than others. If a dog has a high prey drive, then management has to go along with training.
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but... before & during training, dogs with such traits will be weeded out by professional trainers. Certification process is not that easy. and if a service dog was later found with undesirable trait, he no longer can be a service dog.
 
Jiro said:
but... before & during training, dogs with such traits will be weeded out by professional trainers. Certification process is not that easy. and if a service dog was later found with undesirable trait, he no longer can be a service dog.
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This.
 
posts from hell said:
I respect everyone's point of view, and up the stakes to tell everyone that we don't need a dog because we are disabled. My reasoning: We are NOT disabled.

If you want to feel dependent on a dog to do your daily thing - fine by me. It's just a thing I wouldn't do. I've lived on my own the past 14 years and get this; I currently don't have any alerting devices or animals. I'm doing just fine.
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Posts From Hell...............AMEN!!!!!!! There are just SO many other ways to deal with sound, then with an alert dog.
 
posts from hell said:
^^ this kind of comment combined with the context being discussed is displaying that the deaf are inferior. And we all know what that is called in one word.
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I did not feel inferior when I had Finlay! I did feel safer knowing Finlay would warn me if anyone behind me or near my home! And he was made other people feel good when he gave them a hug. I can only wear one HA now and I miss a lot this way.
 
posts from hell said:
Totally different situation. The service dog I see often is a guide dog for the blind. I totally understand.

But for the deaf......... cmon. Seriously, come on. Thats my opinion. I just don't see how much a service dog will benefit me in the real world. The only way would be alerting me to a doorbell, but any conventional dog would do that task just peachy.
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Exactly........And actually did you know that seeing eye dogs are only used by a very small percentage of blind people? Virtually all that a syd does can be done by using a cane for example.
Besides, IMHO a service dog is a dog that is used primarily to serve (ie guiding the blind) A dog who has been trained to respond to sounds is basicly a pet that has been trained. Nobody who uses a hearing ear dog is 100% dependent on it, the way a blind person would be if you took away the seeing eye dog.
A hearing ear dog is a dog that just has a few tricks.....and 95% of the time you can function WITHOUT those tricks. Make sense>
 
deafdyke said:
Exactly........And actually did you know that seeing eye dogs are only used by a very small percentage of blind people? Virtually all that a syd does can be done by using a cane for example.
Besides, IMHO a service dog is a dog that is used primarily to serve (ie guiding the blind) A dog who has been trained to respond to sounds is basicly a pet that has been trained. Nobody who uses a hearing ear dog is 100% dependent on it, the way a blind person would be if you took away the seeing eye dog.
A hearing ear dog is a dog that just has a few tricks.....and 95% of the time you can function WITHOUT those tricks. Make sense>
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Actually a guide dog helps the blind walk a LOT faster. Its amazing.

But for the deaf, its like o.O. Then we have these hearing people coming in with their "intelligent input" telling us what we need. Nothing new though.
 
I have never met anyone in the Deaf community needing a service dog. Maybe it is those who are not culturally Deaf who get service dogs?
 
shel90 said:
I have never met anyone in the Deaf community needing a service dog. Maybe it is those who are not culturally Deaf who get service dogs?
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Check out that board member of Gallaudet that has a service dog and you get your answer.
 
posts from hell said:
Actually a guide dog helps the blind walk a LOT faster. Its amazing.

But for the deaf, its like o.O. Then we have these hearing people coming in with their "intelligent input" telling us what we need. Nothing new though.
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Yeah, but even compared to cane travel and O&M?
 
I realize hearing ear dog/hearing service dog/whatever you want to call them is not for everyone. What I like about having one is that I get to receive the same information that I would have gotten had I been hearing, but in a visual/touch way (she NEVER barks, only nudges and leads me to sound). In a way it makes me feel a step closer to Deaf Culture (value of visual). Especially since growing up all I was given is sound and told to make do. I don't know if my Deaf Culture comment sounds weird and hope I do not offend people who are "D"eaf as I am trying to embrace being deaf and embracing "D"eaf culture and rid myself of relying on hearing cues, which hardly work anyways.

Of course, she is not JUST a hearing service dog. I don't know if I mentioned in any previous posts, but she also helps with mobility as I get light-headed and dizzy and have a lot of trouble "not falling over" at times due to a number of small medical issues that compound to make my life difficult. When I was little I thought I was just an extreme klutz. Before Leah, I couldn't even hold a conversation (in spoken English-had to lipread- or in ASL-watching signs) down a straight hallway without stumbling. I was also petrified of stairs, metal stairs doubly so since I once fell down a flight of them in college and really damaged both legs (all better now other than light numbness at my shins). A cane wouldn't help, a walker is not appropriate, and not everywhere has adequate railings. But I guess that gets away from the main point about the necessity of "hearing service dogs".

About the comment about hearing service dogs just being pets that know tricks, are bombing-sniffing dogs pets that know tricks (try not to think that they are "owned" by law enforcement and more about what they are taught to do) since there is technology that can do the same thing. This is an obvious extreme (I know it's not a perfect argument), but I don't see the things Leah does as "tricks". I am not going to carry a suitcase full of technology to alert me to different sounds (phone flasher, doorbell flasher, oven timer flasher, alarm clock with lamp/bed vibrator, etc etc ad nauseum), since those tools are not available everywhere (a family/friend's home, various indoor and outdoor public locations, etc), so that I don't have to rely on a person or rely on an animal. I am not a technophobe, but I believe some people go overboard on gadgets (not talking about technology for alerting deaf here, just in general).

I do see service dogs as companions, not in the traditional sense where everyone can pet them, give them food, and give them attention, but a companion to their "owner". It is a really amazing bond to see, I don't think I've seen a closer one in everyday companion dogs. Also, I would never think of "discarding" Leah when she retires, I will always see her as my partner for life. I think we saved each other.
 
I like what you write Raptor.

For about two year I research the concept of Service Dog. Not sure if I want or not but, because l'm alone, think it will become necessary as I become empty nest.

Finally decide on 'AD dog from hell' :giggle: and think to raise him as puppy and let him *be* puppy and then send him for training. He is English Labrador Retriever and, at first my son want to breed him for easy money.:roll: Me, I want him trained to be Service Dog. Now, not so sure I want to but it is still in back of my head.

I'm not into changing my home to have flashing lights and whatnot everywhere. It's just not my thing. Why not have animal who can do these same things and provide company if you are alone?

Where/how did you get your Leah?
 
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rebeccalj said:
Where/how did you get your Leah?
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I was actually volunteering for A Forever Home Rescue in Fairfax County, Virginia. One weekend, they handed me Leah and I heard about her story and told to look after her, let people see her, and help answer people's questions about adopting. She had been found at a pound and she was pregnant, severly underweight, had mange, had fleas, etc. The rescue took her in, nursed her back to health, and her pups were adopted out when they were old enough. Although uncomfortable about other dogs (she was apparently attacked by other dogs in her past and abused by her master, unfortunately, she is still/again uncomfortable around some dogs as she was attacked again this summer), but she seemed to like me right away. While walking her, I started to have some problems with my balance. I usually just sit down on the floor or some ledge, but it came on suddenly, faster than normal. Before I knew it she was bracing for me. I was able to lower myself to the ground to let it pass, and she started to stand by me for support and protect me from injury from passerbys (this was at a petstore on the weekend with lots of customers). She also gave me a few kisses for added measure. I had previously thought about getting a service dog, but not about training my own. After I met Leah, I realized she would be perfect and decided to adopt her, give a good home, a nice job, and lots of love.
 
That is *beautiful* story!! :kiss:

I have two kittens that I adopt from kitty mill if that make sense? The girl is firey, like me, :giggle: but the boy is still scared of his own shadow. Girl want to be out in the world and explore. Boy sit at front door, which is open during the day to cool off here, and sometimes he go out but sometimes he do not. Any noise and he run inside. Still scared little boy. Make me sad.

Puppy much wanted. Paperwork for boy, how do you say, registered? Beautiful and smart boy and thinking to have him sent off to train for Service Dog.

Thank you to share you story. Oy, words bad.:giggle:
 
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