Miss-Delectable
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Can you help deaf dog Eli to find a new home? | This is Hull and East Riding
HE IS loveable, loyal, energetic and eager to please, but his deafness makes him an unlikely candidate for a new home in time for Christmas.
Staff at The Hull Animal Welfare Trust, in Pinfold, near South Cave, say it is notoriously difficult to re-home deaf animals.
But they are hoping Eli, a one-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier, will be the exception.
Eli was found wandering the streets by East Riding's dog warden.
Now, he spends his days sitting on the windowsill in his kennel, dazing longingly at the outside world.
Sue Sewell, chairman of the trust, which runs the Sunnydene Animal Shelter, said: "We often encounter problems re-homing dogs with hearing problems.
"But Eli really would make a fantastic pet.
"He has spent the statutory amount of time in stray kennels and, unfortunately, no one has claimed him.
"An experienced home is needed, with someone who understands the needs of a deaf dog."
Mrs Sewell said Eli has a great personality.
"He is really friendly, fussy, loving and eager to please," she said.
"I am sure he can be trained to respond very well to dog sign language."
Mrs Sewell said Eli would suit a couple, or family, with time to teach him to respond to hand signals.
She said: "Ideally, he would be homed by a retired couple or a family with older children.
"Because of his deafness, he may not respond very well to someone creeping up behind him or a child playing with him."
Amy Bryan, kennel manager, said: "Eli would make an ideal pet, but he does need to go to the right family.
"There is lots of information on the internet about training dogs to respond to sign language.
"All that is required is a bit of patience."
Kim Hepple is founder of Hull-based Pet Respect, which tours schools and teaches pupils how to care for their pets.
She said: "My dog, a Cairn Terrier, is 15 years old and deaf.
"But he responds extremely well to signs.
"Eli is a very young dog so I am sure whoever takes him on will manage fine."
Ms Hepple said deaf dogs often tend to be more loving than those with perfect hearing.
She said: "They tend not to wander off and prefer to stay close to you.
Ms Hepple said hearing is often the first sense to go in older dogs.
"A dog's main sense is smell," she said. "If that sense goes, they tend to be miserable.
"But deaf dogs can be perfectly happy."
The Hull Animal Welfare Trust was established in 1982.
Over the years, it has re-homed tens of thousands of animals, including dogs, cats, rabbits and other small animals.
It also incorporates the Hull Hedgehog Hospital.
Eli, along with other dogs desperately in need of a new home, is featured on the trust's website www.hullanimal welfare.co.uk
Anyone who can offer Eli a home is asked to call Hull Animal Welfare Trust on 01430 423986.
HE IS loveable, loyal, energetic and eager to please, but his deafness makes him an unlikely candidate for a new home in time for Christmas.
Staff at The Hull Animal Welfare Trust, in Pinfold, near South Cave, say it is notoriously difficult to re-home deaf animals.
But they are hoping Eli, a one-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier, will be the exception.
Eli was found wandering the streets by East Riding's dog warden.
Now, he spends his days sitting on the windowsill in his kennel, dazing longingly at the outside world.
Sue Sewell, chairman of the trust, which runs the Sunnydene Animal Shelter, said: "We often encounter problems re-homing dogs with hearing problems.
"But Eli really would make a fantastic pet.
"He has spent the statutory amount of time in stray kennels and, unfortunately, no one has claimed him.
"An experienced home is needed, with someone who understands the needs of a deaf dog."
Mrs Sewell said Eli has a great personality.
"He is really friendly, fussy, loving and eager to please," she said.
"I am sure he can be trained to respond very well to dog sign language."
Mrs Sewell said Eli would suit a couple, or family, with time to teach him to respond to hand signals.
She said: "Ideally, he would be homed by a retired couple or a family with older children.
"Because of his deafness, he may not respond very well to someone creeping up behind him or a child playing with him."
Amy Bryan, kennel manager, said: "Eli would make an ideal pet, but he does need to go to the right family.
"There is lots of information on the internet about training dogs to respond to sign language.
"All that is required is a bit of patience."
Kim Hepple is founder of Hull-based Pet Respect, which tours schools and teaches pupils how to care for their pets.
She said: "My dog, a Cairn Terrier, is 15 years old and deaf.
"But he responds extremely well to signs.
"Eli is a very young dog so I am sure whoever takes him on will manage fine."
Ms Hepple said deaf dogs often tend to be more loving than those with perfect hearing.
She said: "They tend not to wander off and prefer to stay close to you.
Ms Hepple said hearing is often the first sense to go in older dogs.
"A dog's main sense is smell," she said. "If that sense goes, they tend to be miserable.
"But deaf dogs can be perfectly happy."
The Hull Animal Welfare Trust was established in 1982.
Over the years, it has re-homed tens of thousands of animals, including dogs, cats, rabbits and other small animals.
It also incorporates the Hull Hedgehog Hospital.
Eli, along with other dogs desperately in need of a new home, is featured on the trust's website www.hullanimal welfare.co.uk
Anyone who can offer Eli a home is asked to call Hull Animal Welfare Trust on 01430 423986.