GRAFTON — With each successive day Diana Gerard’s hearing has deteriorated more and more.
The Grafton resident first started noticing her hearing loss in high school. In college she struggled to understand her professor’s lectures.
“I’ve been steadily going deaf,” Gerard said. “And the doctors don’t really know why.”
Nowadays, Gerard has trouble hearing sounds such as a knock at her door or the telephone ringing. Gerard added that occasionally friends would come to visit her, but she didn’t know they were at her door because she couldn’t hear them.
“People would say that they came over but they couldn’t get me to come to the door,” she said.
But those days are at an end because of the new addition to Gerard’s household. Now Jim alerts Gerard to any knocks at her door as well as when her phone rings. Jim is a hearing dog supplied to Gerard by Dogs for the Deaf, a non-profit group out of Central Point, Oregon.
“Now I can breathe a sigh of relief,” she said.
Jim, a small, mixed-breed dog, is a home-hearing dog, Gerard said. Dogs for the Deaf also provides public-assistance dogs to people with hearing disabilities as well.
A public-assistance dog is allowed to go into such locations as restaurants and other locations where dogs are not normally permitted.
“But Jim can go anywhere a dog can go or where I get permission to take him,” Gerard said.
Jim was rescued from an animal shelter in Texas. He then was shipped to Oregon where he received his initial training before making his way to the Mountain State.
However, he did not arrive in West Virginia by himself. He was accompanied by a trainer from Dogs For the Deaf who helped Gerard and Jim get to know one another.
“She stayed to help train me and the dog,” Gerard said.
According to Gerard, Jim was taught basic doggie manners such as how to walk on a leash, obedience training and how to heel along with his other responsibilities. He has also been trained to not only obey voice commands but to also recognize hand signals as well.
“That’s because a lot of deaf people can’t speak,” Gerard said.
Jim has been trained to recognize different sounds. For example, if someone knocks on Gerard’s door then Jim will go to his owner, and perform what is called a hop. He jumps up on Gerard’s led to let her know that something is going on. He will then lead her to the door to let her know what it was that he heard. He can also do the same for the phone or the timer on the oven, Gerard said.
Dogs for the Deaf is a non-profit organization that is supported entirely by donations, said Robin Dixon, president and CEO of the organization. Dixon stated that around 99 percent of the dogs supplied by the organization are rescued from shelters. However, that does not mean there is not a cost involved with providing the animals, Dixon added.
“With all training, placement costs and the follow up work, we probably have $20,000 to $25,000 invested in the dogs,” Dixon said.
However, that cost is not passed on to the recipient of the animal. There is a $50 application fee which the candidate must pay, Dixon said. Once the application is approved, then the recipient must pay a $500 deposit for the dog, she added. However, that deposit is refunded after the recipient has had the dog for one year.
“We charge the deposit for two reasons,” Dixon said. “One is to make sure the person is serious about taking the dog, and the other reason is to make sure that the person has the financial means to take care of the dog.”
Dogs for the Deaf was founded in 1977 by Roy Kabat. Kabat was a Hollywood and circus animal trainer. Since then the organization has placed over 3,000 dogs.
The organization also provides dogs to people with special needs, seniors.
The organization will also provide career-change dogs as well. Career-change dogs are animals which could not be placed with seniors, special-needs people or those who are hearing impaired. This is because the dogs either too young or energetic to adapt to those people’s needs. The career-change dogs are then placed in good homes. No animals are returned to the shelters.
“These dogs have saved people’s lives,” said Dixon explaining how important the animals are to the recipients.
Dogs for the Deaf is a 501(c)(3) organization, which means all donations are tax deductible. Anyone wishing to apply for an animal or provide a donation can contact Dogs for the Deaf by calling 541-826-9220 or by going to the Web site at www.dogsfordeaf.org.
E-mail Paul Fallon at pfallon@timeswv.com.
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Related Photos
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PHOTO BY PAUL FALLON
February 10, 2008
‘These dogs have saved people’s lives’
Grafton woman gets needed assistance from Dogs for the Deaf
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