"Leo is my best friend, companion, and my ears. He’s helped me through some of my darkest times."

 

“I remember sitting by the window, watching, and waiting, longing for the car to arrive with its very special passenger, my sound support dog Leo. I had so much hope invested in him, but never did I imagine just how much this wonderful dog would give me.

 

“I’d started to lose my hearing in my early forties. My husband began to notice that I didn’t answer him even when he was sat next to me. Then my son came home one day and said that he could hear the television at the bottom of the drive.

 

“Unfortunately, by the time I sought help for my hearing, it was too late to save it. The cause was a condition called cholesteatoma – an abnormal collection of skin cells deep inside the ear that if left too long can leave hearing permanently damaged. I had an operation to remove the cholesteatoma and was given hearing aids for both ears, I was 44.

 

“Losing my hearing really affected my confidence. One of my sons has learning and physical disabilities. I'm his registered full-time carer and being unable to hear him if he woke during the night meant I had to rely on my other son or my husband to tell me.

 

“That was very stressful. I’d also miss the phone ringing and couldn't hear on my mobile. If I was expecting a parcel, I’d always miss it as I couldn’t hear the doorbell. It was frustrating and sometimes embarrassing.

 

“I came across Hearing Dogs quite by accident when I was looking online for something to help me hear the doorbell and telephone. When I received the email saying I’d been matched with Leo I felt so excited and emotional, I was just so happy.

 

“My confidence has grown since Leo came to me. He nudges me to tell me about the doorbell, telephone, alarm clock and smoke alarm. I sleep better knowing that Leo will alert me if there’s a fire or if my son wakes during the night. He comes into my son's bedroom in the morning to help me wake him up and then looks out of the bedroom window. He loves to do that.

 

“Leo’s sound work is absolutely brilliant – a smoke alarm went off on the TV a few weeks ago and he immediately nudged me and lay down in the danger signal.

 

“He even makes me aware of things he’s unsure of such as a burst pipe in the loft – I wondered why Leo kept looking up at the stairs and then I noticed there was water splashing off the banister!

“Leo is my best friend, companion, and my ears. He’s helped me through some of my darkest times.

 

“During the Covid lockdown my dad was diagnosed with dementia. We were shielding so I couldn't go to see my parents. Dad's memory loss was so rapid that by the time I was able to see him he’d forgotten everybody, even my mum.

 

“Whenever I felt overwhelmed with sadness Leo would sit on my knee, lick my tears from my face and then bring me a toy. Later, when dad died, I don’t know how I’d have coped without Leo helping me through it.

 

“Leo brings a lot of fun into our lives. He’s cheeky, mischievous and is very much loved as part of our family. Every day he helps me to cope better with the challenges of hearing loss and I’d like to thank everyone involved in helping Leo to become the amazing dog that he is. He means the world to me.”

What is a sound support dog?

Our sound support dogs are highly trained to alert deaf people to sounds in the home, but when they are out and about, they don’t wear a Hearing Dogs jacket and don’t accompany their deaf partner to places a pet dog wouldn’t be able to go.

Sometimes a dog gets to the end of their training and is excellent at alerting people to sounds in a home environment, but doesn’t necessarily thrive in certain other environments, such as busy town centres or on public transport. This could be because they get a bit too distracted by the hustle and bustle, or they just feel more comfortable in quieter situations.

We match sound support dogs to people with deteriorating hearing or moderate hearing loss who need to be reliably alerted to sounds within the home, but do not need a dog to accompany them everywhere they go.

If you think you may benefit from a sound support dog, please get in touch with our friendly team at applications@hearingdogs.org.uk.