Arthur's super soundwork

Welcome back to Arthur’s Puppy Pen!

In this episode, we are going to take you behind the scenes of Arthur’s soundwork training.

Arthur has been practising his soundwork with Liz, his volunteer puppy trainer, who is teaching him to alert to different sounds around the home. This highly specialised skill will help Arthur to become a life-changing hearing dog for his future deaf partner.

Arthur began by learning to alert to the exciting noise of a squeaker. When Arthur hears the squeaker, he has been taught to nudge Liz with his nose. This is known as an ‘alert’ and it is Arthur’s way of communicating that he has heard a sound…

Once Arthur was confident in alerting to the sound of the squeaker, he could begin learning to alert to everyday sounds around the home, such as the alarm clock…

What an adorable way to be woken up!

A lot of deaf people can’t hear their alarm clock, which can often cause them to be late for work or miss important appointments. This can cause feelings of anxiety, loneliness and frustration. By teaching Arthur to alert to the sound of the alarm clock, Arthur will help his future deaf partner to regain their confidence and independence.

Another sound now! Here is Arthur alerting to the doorbell…

What a superstar!

Time for the portable cooker timer now…

As you can see, when Arthur correctly alerts Liz to the sound, Liz gives him lots of praise, fuss and a treat. Reward-based training helps Arthur to feel relaxed and safe. It also makes soundwork a fun and enjoyable experience!

For all the sounds mentioned so far, Arthur has been taught to lead Liz to where the sound is coming from.

However, for sounds like the smoke alarm, Arthur has been taught to react differently. We don’t want Arthur leading his future deaf partner into an unsafe situation, so for the smoke alarm and fire alarm, Arthur has been taught to lie down. This is known as the ‘danger alert’.

This is one of the most important alerts that Arthur has learnt in his training, as it could potentially save his future deaf partner’s life. The ability to recognise and alert to various types of sounds is what makes hearing dogs so special.

Arthur is going to be a fluffy superhero!

We think you’ll agree, Arthur is doing amazingly well in his soundwork training. This is thanks to the time and patience of Liz, his volunteer puppy trainer and Ailsa, his dog training instructor. They make an incredible team!

That’s all for today. We hope you’ve enjoyed this update. Arthur has grown into the most beautiful and clever dog, full of personality and charm. One day, Arthur will help a deaf person to feel reconnected with the world around them. Together they will live in a new and exciting world, full of possibilities and adventure.

This would not be possible without your generous support.

So, from everyone at Hearing Dogs, thank you so much for sponsoring Arthur.