Scout: Beaches, cooker timers and super settles

Scout is so confident and familiar with so many different scenarios and environments now!

First, let's take a look at her 'settle', whether happily watching the world go by under a table...

... or being the most well-behaved dog in the world on public transport.

As you can see, she's also looking very smart nowadays in her 'I'm learning to be a hearing dog' burgundy coat.

There are so many great things going on here. First of all, her ability just to 'zone out' under the table means that her eventual deaf partner will be able to go anywhere - coffee shops, restaurants, libraries - and be confident that they're little friend will be no bother to anyone. But Scout can do this on public transport too, where there is often a lot of hustle and bustle and noise. It's really no problem for her whatsoever. She knows that she's 'working' because she has her coat on, and so she understands that this is the time and place just to relax and take it easy. She's so clever.

But even the burgundy coat is important. A lot of deaf people tell us that one of the most difficult things about hearing loss, is that people don't see this 'invisible disability'. They assume everyone can hear. So, people can be rude, not through malice but more ignorance. As soon as they see the burgundy coat however, all this changes completely. People are friendly and helpful instead. It makes an absolutely massive difference to deaf people's lives.

That's not all Scout is great at. How about a bit of soundwork?

Scout doesn't know it yet, but in ten seconds' time, the cooker timer will beep...

And there it goes! Zero seconds.

Scout knows where the sound is coming from. It's the beginning of her ability to recognise sounds, and then tell deaf people about them. From this, she will move on to nudging them with her nose, and when they say 'What is it?' with their palms held upward, Scout will lead them to the source. She'll then get a treat and a fuss. Everyone wins!

The only sounds Scout will not do this for, are the fire and smoke alarms. For them, we're training her to lie down. This will tell a deaf person 'There is danger nearby, but I'm not going to lead you towards it.' This can save deaf people's lives, and in fact it has, on a number of occasions. So life-changer Scout could even one day be life-saver Scout.

But it's not all training. Scout has learned to perfect a number of poses on the beach.

This is her 'What are you waiting for, there's a lot of perfectly good sea to splash around in?' pose:

This is her 'OK, maybe not the sea because there's another dog in the way, but how about running about a lot, by the way do you like my bone-shaped name tag' pose:

And this is her 'Meh, the sea's not all it's cracked up to be, I think I'll just look magnificent instead, by the way I think you'll find this is my best side' pose...

We hope you enjoyed this update. Scout's life is so varied and so full of interesting, exciting things for a puppy to do. All the while however, she's growing up to become an amazing hearing dog who will transform the life of a deaf person, helping them to leave loneliness behind.

This is thanks to you for supporting her. So, as always, from all of us, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you so very much for sponsoring Scout!