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Going blind and deaf

Monaco

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So, my sheltie Mr Theo is aging quickly. His eyes have been a slow progression, but his hearing is going fast. I'm struggling to communicate with him. Even his smell is altered recently. Something is causing nose bleeds, and I have noticed an inability to locate treats or food if it's dropped.

I've been hunting for alternative techniques for communicating. We're nearly down to touch, but I thought I'd ask. There may be creative ideas that just haven't occurred to me.

He can still hear high pitches, and most everything Monaco says (she just won't call him on command for me!) maybe a dog whistle would work?
 

Lady Jane

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Dogs do respond to hand movements like sit and stay. Can he see your hands?

 

camelotshadow

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Sounds like moms dog who is 16+/...Can;t see or hear but finds the bowl & knows where to do her biz....Then sleeps on her chair on the porch...Thats the way it is...We all get old & we lose some things...But the dog loves to eat & its comfy so all is well...
 

Shezbug

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They can often still feel vibration very well.
My old dog who had very low vision and was totally deaf i the end could be called to me by stomping my feet every few seconds on the ground......she would follow the thumps I made till she could feel me or sense me. Before going blind she was hand signal trained as well as voice commands so moving over to a new form of communication was not too difficult. Once Sammy worked out what the thumping was and why it was happening she took to it easy. The first few times I tried it I had her on a long leash and gently pulled her to me while stomping- took maybe three or four goes before she caught on. I had a tune I would stomp for her so she was not thinking every ground vibration was a signal to find me.
 

JoJo&Loki

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They can often still feel vibration very well.
My old dog who had very low vision and was totally deaf i the end could be called to me by stomping my feet every few seconds on the ground......she would follow the thumps I made till she could feel me or sense me. Before going blind she was hand signal trained as well as voice commands so moving over to a new form of communication was not too difficult. Once Sammy worked out what the thumping was and why it was happening she took to it easy. The first few times I tried it I had her on a long leash and gently pulled her to me while stomping- took maybe three or four goes before she caught on. I had a tune I would stomp for her so she was not thinking every ground vibration was a signal to find me.
I love this! :heart: :heart: :heart:


@Monaco I hope you figure out something that works for you. It’s so hard when our companions get older:(
 

Monaco

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Thanks guys! Yes, if I'm close he can see my hands. He's always been such a polite guy, good manners. I don't have to correct him much, but when I do it's usually time sensitive, so I just physically intervene or yell until he can hear me. I love the stomp method. Most of our surfaces are concrete, but I make as much noise as possible with my feet.

Sometimes I go down a bit of a rabbit hole wondering if he thinks I just don't talk to him much anymore. If it were someone else asking I would recommend a second dog. It's been a while since I've had two in the house. I'm really scared to add a new predator to the mix.

I'm seriously considering a collar that vibrates. It would at least get his attention and build a few seconds into whatever is happening.
 

Monica

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I do not care about Cesar.... would love to see his videos and website disappear.

Lara Joseph has experience training deaf and deaf and blind dogs. (the two she has) I'm sure she could either directly help through consultation or point you in the right direction on where to get that help.

 

Monaco

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I've left some messages here and there. I hope he won't need a halo. We're going to try a different vet to see what we can do about his nose.
 

melissasparrots

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Have you had his teeth checked lately? An abscessed tooth can fester and open up in various places. Could affect his sense of smell and maybe have something to do with his bloody nose.
 

Monaco

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Yes, indeed. He had two teeth pulled several months ago, and we hoped that would be the end of the nose bleeds. He says his teeth are all okay and still clean. I need to find someone who can do an endoscopy. It's that or an mri just to get a diagnosis. From there it's surgery for polyps or something worse that I'm trying not to think about. In the meantime he's got a bit left for the steroids to help any inflammation, and antibiotics for another ear infection. He's such a mess of a little fluff nugget lately. Oddly enough the first nosebleeds started during an abscesses tooth, and the way Einstein has stacked symptoms (me too) I think we've all got some underlying immune issues. Everything seems to flare up when something goes wrong. We all tend to go down like domino's, and I think it's something in the water. But it's more likely heavy pollen loads in the air. Allergies are popping up left and right. They're severe in Oklahoma for some reason.
 
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