In honour of Deaf Pet Awareness Week, our in-house vet, Dr Anna, shares some insight into understanding deafness in dogs. Our expert vet offers helpful tips for caring for a deaf dog and training a deaf dog.
Deafness in Dogs
Dogs can be born deaf or become deaf rapidly or slowly after birth, especially with old age, like with humans.
Dogs tend to be born deaf due to genetics, for example, the merle gene, which leads to a merle coat colour in dogs is linked to blindness and deafness. Double-merle dogs (where both parents are merle) are particularly at risk as their lack of pigmentation will likely lead to deafness or blindness.
Some breeds, such as Dalmatians, Border Collies, and English Setters, are prone to deafness – this is an inherited condition.
The Kennel Club recommends at-risk breeds are BAER (brainstem auditory evoked response) tested at 6 weeks old to determine deafness and whether the dog is unilaterally or bilaterally affected.
Dogs can lose their hearing if they have chronic ear infections. This can happen if the infection spreads to the middle ear and damages the delicate hearing tissues.
As with humans, exposure to frequent loud noises, such as that experienced by a gun dog, can accelerate hearing loss. Older dogs can lose their hearing, especially if they also show signs of brain function decline like confusion and excessive barking. This is similar to dementia in humans.
Floppy-eared dogs (spaniels, retrievers, etc.) or those with narrowed ear canals (French Bulldogs, Pugs, etc.) can suffer from poor hearing due to their outer ear obstructing the pathway of sound through the ear! This can be likened to wearing ear muffs. These dog breeds are also more prone to ear infections and thus secondary deafness (temporary vs. permanent) from these, too.
How to Tell If Your Dog is Deaf?
It's hard to tell if a dog is deaf. Simple tests like clicking or dropping cotton balls near their ears can be done, but they are not always accurate. Specialist veterinary referral centres can perform BAER testing. This more controlled version detects electrical signals in the brain induced by noise.
Deaf dogs may bark in response to stimuli, especially if they used to be reactive to noise and have become less so with age (i.e. age-related or chronic deafness), and may be more startled by physical stimuli if they cannot see it (such as an owner going to stroke their dog from behind).
This change can induce aggression in dogs, as they feel threatened and vulnerable, unable to pick up auditory cues. They may also bark with an abnormal pitch, particularly if they have congenital deafness. Suppose a dog becomes deaf gradually, like with dogs who develop blindness slowly. In that case, they often cope and adapt to their surroundings well if they are familiar.
Treatment for Deaf Dogs
Vets are often approached with hearing loss/reduction complaints and frequently diagnose and deal with deaf dogs. Ruling out a physical cause of hearing loss, such as an ear infection, impacted wax, or a mass in the ear canal or brain, is important, as left untreated, these can make an animal cause more permanent damage.
Many dogs will become deaf with age or develop 'selective hearing', where they are not quite as obedient as they were when they were younger! It is important not to assume a hearing dog is going deaf because they are 'getting old' and that veterinary advice is sought if you're worried.
A vet can help advise how to best look after a deaf dog to make sure their quality of life is still good. A vet will check if your dog is suffering from hearing loss due to ear disease. They can also help with treatment to minimise the deterioration in hearing.
Caring for a Deaf Dog
If your dog is diagnosed as deaf, then many changes can be put into place to aid their day-to-day life:
- Teaching hand signals rather than using vocals. Dog hand signals such as sit, stay, or lie down, that it is dinner time or time to go to the toilet is a good idea.
- Make sure not to startle your dog when approaching them, particularly if asleep. If approaching from behind or if asleep, make sure to walk up slowly and make vibrations with your steps so they can detect the movement before being touched. Let your dog sniff you and see you before interacting physically with them.
- Be careful allowing a deaf dog to roam freely, particularly in a built-up area.
- A deaf dog should ideally be kept on a lead when outside of the home, as they will not respond to verbal communications if distracted by another dog, human or animal when out and about. This may leave them vulnerable to becoming injured. Leads and collars, and even microchip details, can be adapted to inform others that a dog is deaf.
- In the dark, using lights as a signal to an animal can make them aware of your location, which is particularly valuable when walking with a deaf dog.
- Deaf dogs will still have a very strong sense of smell, so scent work is excellent to occupy their brain to prevent boredom or depression.
Teaching your dog hand signals from an early age can be helpful if they do become deaf later in life. It'll be harder to teach a deaf dog new tricks. Always remember when approaching a deaf dog, to feature positive facial expressions and body language. If you think your dog may be going deaf, don’t hesitate to visit your vet. They will be able to help you with a BAER test and help you every step of the way.
Everypaw Dog Insurance
Everypaw's Dog Insurance comes with 24/7 unlimited access to vets and vet nurses that can help with your pet's health, care, nutrition and behaviour. So you can rest assured your pup will be well looked after.