[nagdu] Question concerning Deafness with guide dogs

[The Pawpower Pack]

Hi Chaim and all, 
Deafblindness is a spectrum term. It can mean low vision and full deaf, or hard of hearing and full blind, and anything in between.  
I'm Deafblind, with sight in one eye, about 20/900.  I am able to wear a hearingaid in one ear and can hear a little bit but prefer not to use it for several reasons.  
I'm an owner trainer, so cannot speak to the Deafblind program experience as Marsha did.  I have trained my last 2 dogs as a Deafblind person.  
To cross roads, I can see somewhat, but will get assistance if I need to.  The fixed route bus drivers here know me and are super helpful.  I have put a lot of effort into traffic training my dog for deliberate disobedience.  my dog also alerts to sounds in my environment, fire alarms etc. She also provides balance support as the same disease which caused my deafness also causes vertigo and mobility issues.    
I'm very independent, and travel all over.  For communication, I use my iPhone with braille display and a small QWERTY keyboard which I give to the hearing person with whom I'm communicating.  Then I type back using my braille display.  
I use tactile interpreters for work and have an SSP which stands for support service provider which is a person who goes with me to places like the store, or out to events like museums etc, also using tactile ASL to relay environmental information.  
Hope this answers your questions, let me know if you have more! I don't bite, smile. 

 Rox and the kitchen Bitches: 
Mill'E, Laveau, Soleil
Pawpower4me at gmail.com
Sent from my iPhone

> On Feb 25, 2015, at 2:52 PM, "Chaim B. Segal via nagdu" <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Hi All:
> 
> This question is primarily for Marsha and all other deaf-blind folks out here. I am asking this solely out of curiosity 
> 
> Two classes back at Seeing Eye, there was an older woman in my class who was losing her hearing. When the instructors spoke to us as a group, they each needed to attach some type of microphone to him or herself for her  to hear them speak, and I am unsure she even got most of what was being said. I believe they worked with her separately from the rest of the class. I did not get a good shot at asking her about some specifics of working a dog with her circumstances.
> 
> For those of you who are completely deaf and blind, or even mostly deaf, how do you know when to give your dog the command to cross the street at a lighted intersection? In my neighborhood, there are a few audio signals which also vibrate. However, most older signals do not do this. Of course, the dog cannot tell when the light changes?
> 
> Also, considering the fact that the dog responds to auditory commands, such as "forward", "right", left", "Leave it", how does a guide dog user, who is totally mute command their dog? I am guessing that a deaf-blind person's mobility on the outside might be slightly more limited than ours, but I don't want to make any unfair assumptions.
> 
> Last but not least, how are you people trained if you are totally deaf? I have heard that Leader Dogs trains deaf-blind handlers, but don't know the specifics. Do the instructors use hand-to-hand ASL? Or, do they use some other type of technology to communicate with deaf clients?
> 
> Again, I'm just curious.
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> 
> Chaim 
> 
> Chaim B. Segal
> Customer Service Representative: Sinclair Community College, Dayton, Ohio
> 
> Every man, woman every boy and girl,
> Let your love light shine and make a better world
> 
> Daryl Hall And John Oates 
> 
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