This is just what I want! I am deaf but my hearing levels mean I am 2% away from being eligible for a Hearing Dog. I wanted the reassurance of having a dog in the house with me when I’m alone, so went ahead and got a Cocker Spaniel puppy, who is now two and a half. Kinsey is so bright and she picks new instructions up very quickly. Due to recurring ear infections I am supposed to wear my hearing aids as little as possible. Now I can train Kinsey to alert me to the doorbell ringing. And yes, I know there are various electronic devices available but I’ve had experience of them and they’re not always practical. This way, no matter where I am in the house Kinsey will be able to alert me to the bell. Training begins today. Thank you so much for this!
I think that is something that each person must decide. Dogs not only provide the technical aspects of the assistance but emotional support as well. Many people with disabilities have not only one, but multiple disabilities and they often feel isolated. Dogs can help bridge the gap and create connections for the person that otherwise would not exist. Great question!
Donna, Thank you so much for the SUPER informative and VERY well done instructional video. I really appreciate you taking the time to put it together. Please keep up the good work! :-D
another advantage for having a dog is that dogs do not need batteries or electricity to operate. technology often fails us at the worst time, but dogs are always there for us. i think the best thing about dogs however is as you said, they provide emotional support to their handlers and help them form connections to other people. i think many disabled people also have more confidence in themselves when they have a dog.
Excellent! I actually just decided to teach Harmony to alert to low glucose, so this is a great refresher in possible training methods. I'll check-out the other vids too :)
Yay! I figured it out! We are on to the next step! He will be waking my son up for school in no time! =) Thank you again for all of your wonderful videos! My son just got a service dog. He is so smart! We are enjoying teaching him more and more!
Thank you very much for this video! I am training my dog to wake me up and to remind me to take my medication by using an alarm for the time I need to take it. :)
Thank you so much!! My dad is partially deaf and it's difficult to get his attention. We either have to chase him down or practically yell at him. We just got him an adorable little Maltipoo that he absolutely refuses to leave anywhere so I'd like to teach her how to alert him to the sounds he has trouble hearing.
Can you demonstrate training a dog to alert when someone is approaching from behind? This would be very helpful. My Labrador is already well trained for door and phone alerts. I enjoyed your video very much.
This is so amazing. It explains precisely how to do this and it is just what I needed to get started in training my dog. I am grateful for this video. Thank you so much!
These same steps could be used to train the dog to alert you (if you're hearing impaired) when someone is at the door, right? Just replace the buzzer with a knock, the distance work would focus on the handler being in other parts of the house, and you'd need an assistant for that part. Thank you. Your videos -- and training -- are fabulous.
Im deaf and training my own dog (1y/o Australian cattle dog) she has the alert down almost 90% of the time... some times she has a pause before she does the alert behavior to the word "touch" we have been working on it 2 days now... she picked it up in about 5 minutes but how do I know when its time to put the sound to the alert command? And would pawing the air about an inch from the spot count? Also sometimes she uses 2 paws.
Training a service dog starts as soon as the pup goes to his new home. Training sound alerts usually starts after the dog knows basic behaviors. Next is getting the behaviors on cue in public. You could also train the various parts of the behavior (alert, working at a distance (go mat, paw target etc), and make sure the are done eagerly. By about 6 mos the dog could seriously start learning this, assuming the dog is big enough to perform the chosen alert behavior. They need time to be a puppy!
Also is it crucial that only one location is used for the alert indication.... or can the dog use whatever part of the body. She tends to use both of my knees which ever is closer or sometimes my arm if im laying down.
I've been watching some videos on the PAT and in one part the dog must ignore food on the ground, does the fact that u throw the food to her have any effect on how her food manners are in public places such as grocery stores or restaurants?
This is great! How did you teach him to touch your knee? Our dog knows "touch", but I am trying to figure out how to get him to touch another area than the hand to move forward with this task. Thank you for posting your videos.
@ToMakeSilverSing If you set the time to be the current time, it will go when you hit it. Most of the old ones do this. I got mine from a second hand store.
@laurielatorre Have you seen the two way alert? That may help. Also, the videos are CC in case that helps. You can use the exact same prcess to teach each sound. You may have to modify it slightly. For example, if you want your dog to alert you to a door knock, train at the door. If you want an laett for a person calling your name, you'll have to gneralize the behavior to many locations and many different people calling your name once the basic behavior is trained.
This is good training with excellent presentation and documentation, but I have a serious question. With all the advances in technology (eg. flashing lights & vibrate modes, etc) is the dog the best/most reliable assistance for a person with a moderate to severe hearing loss? In other words is there something the dog can hear and alert to that could not be done through technology?
Perhaps I could try this to get my pup to tell me when there is a customer in my store. Currently she gets anxious when new people enter, so if I give her a job instead, that may help her. . . and the customer. . . and me. Now I must figure out the sequence.
how do you train a medic alert dog such as blood sugar or seizures, I once had a dog that naturally notified me, but after 16 years she has passed away.
This is a great video! Thank you so much for posting this!!! This video was made with an alarm clock as a sound source which can be easily controlled. How I can train other sound sources that can't be readily turned on and off - like a smoke alarm?
You could have someone help you by pressing the test button on the smoke alarm and ring your doorbell. If you don't have someone to help, buy a battery operated smoke alarm and a battery operated door bell so that you can set them off yourself.
@MsFluffle It takes at least several training session to teach each part of the ebhavior, then you combine them and add distance. If you train it 5 days a week, the dog should have a very solid understanding of the basic behavior in a month.
Im am a 12 year old deaf child, and i use a device called the cochlear implant (CI). And i have two dogs, one rott lab mix and she is almost 7 years old and she is my baby. Anyways my other one is my dads and he is a bird dog, which is a yellow lab and he is 1 and half years old. And my dad and I wanted to train him to be my service dog... how did u train your dog to touch right there, like with a piece of treat on ur pants or what?
@MsFluffle Depends on the dog and the environment. Some catch on right away but take a long time to generalize, others take abit to get it but generalize more quickly.
@mavericksblaze Service dogs are taught this transfer all the time. Start by training the behavior on yourself, then have the client practice with the dog starting right back at the beginning with the nose touch on them. Train the rest of the behavior with tem as you idid with you. The dog is only rewarded for alerting to them. No reward for alerting you. As soon as possible, fade yourself out of the training area. Good luck!
Once the nose nudge has been well-trained (dog can generalize it in many places), pair it with the location where you want the dog to nudge you. I.e. your face (or some other accessible place where the dog won't get scared). Practice that on cue. Next, pair the cued nose nudge with the kicking and thrashing. In other words, lie down and pretend to have a nightmare and cue the behavior. With much practice, the kicking and thrashing will become the cue to nose nudge your face. Good luck!
What ever works for you that the dog understands. In the beginning I would teach one knee then teach the other so she knows you want her to be flexible. If they are not available, then your arm after. It depends where you think is more accessible to her generally? Where does she do most of her alerts-with you standing or laying down?
I am training something similar. I was wondering if you would be able to help me think through how to handle the extinction process. I am training Calamity to bring me my phone when it rings. She has learned to bring the phone on cue ("get it") nearby and we have started to pair the ringing phone with the cue. Now she will get the phone when it rings BUT also when it's not cued. She will keep shoving it at me even if I don't take it. She's used to offering behaviors in a training session.
Thank you..... I would love to be in touch with you to ask quesyions when im stuck. Trainers here ask for $150us an hour and I can not afford this on disability (im 100% deaf but I can talk) on the 2 paws, its mainly when she misses the mark with one paw....I restate the alert word and she will either paw again or use 2 paws, also to answer ur other question I am asking for a paw....since a nose wont wake me up or get my attention as well as a paw... (push and claw lol)
Or you can get a kitchen buzzer for the alarm clock training but make sure its going to be the same sound that you plan to have your dog alert you with. If it too many different sounds, it can lead to confusion.
@truemirror It's trained the same way. if you check out my assistance dog blog (listed on this channel) and do a search of the archives for diabetic alert, you will find your answer. If you want some help and have a webcam, we can set something up. Donna
The rule of thumb is when the dog gets to an 80% accuracy or better, it's time to ask for more. Decide what your criteria is and stick to it. If the nose touching is part of it, then not touching the nose means that repetition was incorrect. So if the dog does that 3 times out of 10, the dog is not ready to move to the next step yet.
I'm attempting to train my dog as a hearing dog, I would like her to wake me to my alarm, alert for the doorbell(or a knock), stop me for cars, and alert for people talking to me, ect. Would this concept work for the doorbell/cars/talking and my alarm? I'd love to get her mostly trained up before I completely loose my hearing and have to completely rely on her. Also, is it ok/safe to dual train service animals for other things? She does not respond to clickers, but she does respond to food. I've been using a remote collar (tone only) for correction (when I first got her at 13 weeks she was in need of rehab for behavioural and aggressiveness issues) and she responds better to this than anything I have tried previously.
Yes and yes! The same process can be used for all sounds.You just have to identify the behavior you want and pair it with the sound. Many SD are trained for multiple disabilities. If she is not responding to a clicker, it is not being trained correctly. The most common reasons service dogs fail in programs is fear and aggression. Sadly, fear and aggression can be worsened with the use or correction. Timing, and intensity of correction is key in using punishment. Why not use positive reinforcement instead and build a strong bond with your dog?
She does get positive reinforcement as well, treats when she does things correctly. She's flat out ignored the clicker from day one, even when paired with treats(I gave her basic obedience classes through PetSmart where they only use positive reinforcement). I only use the correction tone with serious problems, and hope to one day not use at all. She's not gotten worse, thankfully, with the use of this method. I'm actually wanting to train her for service and protection, but I do not know if trained aggressive protection would disqualify her SD status.
If you want to make sure she doesn't (i.e. have a chow hound, simply hand deliver the rewards so it never touches the floor or use a manners minder type gizmo.
Donna, how would you get a very tiny dog to do the alert? I want to train her so she can accompany me out in public to alert me when people are trying to talk to me. I am completely deaf in one ear but have near normal hearing in the other. If I am approached on my deaf side I frequently miss that someone is trying to talk to me.
@supernaturalbc2008 Oh Ok, I will go check it out, I don't have webcam hooked up yet, but ty sooo much for the offer (I may request later), what I didn't do was to thank you for generously sharing how to train our dogs properly, you are an amazing and very giving person, words do not express the gratefulness for people like you. Also, I am teaching my dog this on the video, and she loves that she can nudge me & get a treat, she is much happier, and so am I that we are starting to communicate.
Start with the one that she will use more commonly, build skill with that before training the other area. That way if she can't get to the ideal one, then she will be persistent to get another one.
What are you using as a indication behavior? If it is a paw touch, if the paw touch doesn't hit the mark, then that is not correct. If she uses two paws and one is your criteria,only you can decide if you will accept that!
@misschelsieblue I am glad they are useful! If you are interested in other 'how to clicker' videos, check out our other channel: supernnaturalbc2009. They are more for tricks, dog sports and general behavior.
We had to put down a great service dog a couple of months ago. It was bittersweet. What a fantastic life he lead.
This is just what I want! I am deaf but my hearing levels mean I am 2% away from being eligible for a Hearing Dog. I wanted the reassurance of having a dog in the house with me when I’m alone, so went ahead and got a Cocker Spaniel puppy, who is now two and a half. Kinsey is so bright and she picks new instructions up very quickly. Due to recurring ear infections I am supposed to wear my hearing aids as little as possible. Now I can train Kinsey to alert me to the doorbell ringing. And yes, I know there are various electronic devices available but I’ve had experience of them and they’re not always practical. This way, no matter where I am in the house Kinsey will be able to alert me to the bell. Training begins today.
Thank you so much for this!
I think that is something that each person must decide. Dogs not only provide the technical aspects of the assistance but emotional support as well. Many people with disabilities have not only one, but multiple disabilities and they often feel isolated. Dogs can help bridge the gap and create connections for the person that otherwise would not exist.
Great question!
I love watching your video... I think you are doing a great job for people with disabilities.... good job.
Donna,
Thank you so much for the SUPER informative and VERY well done instructional video. I really appreciate you taking the time to put it together. Please keep up the good work! :-D
thank you for showing me how to start shaping the behavior of my sdit - this is much easier than scent training
This made me think of an automatic doorbell to crate behavior....hmmm. Might have to try that. Thanks for the inspiration!
Thanks for captioning!
another advantage for having a dog is that dogs do not need batteries or electricity to operate. technology often fails us at the worst time, but dogs are always there for us. i think the best thing about dogs however is as you said, they provide emotional support to their handlers and help them form connections to other people. i think many disabled people also have more confidence in themselves when they have a dog.
Excellent! I actually just decided to teach Harmony to alert to low glucose, so this is a great refresher in possible training methods. I'll check-out the other vids too :)
Well very well done! You show the steps very clearly and all the way through.
Thanks!
Yay! I figured it out! We are on to the next step! He will be waking my son up for school in no time! =) Thank you again for all of your wonderful videos! My son just got a service dog. He is so smart! We are enjoying teaching him more and more!
Thank you very much for this video! I am training my dog to wake me up and to remind me to take my medication by using an alarm for the time I need to take it. :)
Thank you so much!! My dad is partially deaf and it's difficult to get his attention. We either have to chase him down or practically yell at him. We just got him an adorable little Maltipoo that he absolutely refuses to leave anywhere so I'd like to teach her how to alert him to the sounds he has trouble hearing.
THANK YOU! this is so straight forward and really well demonstrated. Can't wait to try it out :)
Can you demonstrate training a dog to alert when someone is approaching from behind?
This would be very helpful.
My Labrador is already well trained for door and phone alerts.
I enjoyed your video very much.
This is so amazing. It explains precisely how to do this and it is just what I needed to get started in training my dog. I am grateful for this video.
Thank you so much!
Very well done! Keep them coming!
you make it look so easy,great job
Excellent tutorial!
You are welcome! There are lots of other applications for this idea, if creativity is used! Good for you!
beautiful!!! thank you!
Nice video! I like how patient you are. What a smart pup you have!
Fabulous video!! You break it down into nice easy steps anyone can follow. 5* and favorite. Great video. :-)
These same steps could be used to train the dog to alert you (if you're hearing impaired) when someone is at the door, right? Just replace the buzzer with a knock, the distance work would focus on the handler being in other parts of the house, and you'd need an assistant for that part. Thank you. Your videos -- and training -- are fabulous.
Im deaf and training my own dog (1y/o Australian cattle dog) she has the alert down almost 90% of the time... some times she has a pause before she does the alert behavior to the word "touch" we have been working on it 2 days now... she picked it up in about 5 minutes but how do I know when its time to put the sound to the alert command? And would pawing the air about an inch from the spot count? Also sometimes she uses 2 paws.
I love it!
Training a service dog starts as soon as the pup goes to his new home. Training sound alerts usually starts after the dog knows basic behaviors. Next is getting the behaviors on cue in public. You could also train the various parts of the behavior (alert, working at a distance (go mat, paw target etc), and make sure the are done eagerly. By about 6 mos the dog could seriously start learning this, assuming the dog is big enough to perform the chosen alert behavior. They need time to be a puppy!
super tutorial! really really great!
You can use it anyway you want! LOL! Check out the nose nudge on the wheelchair skills video.
Also is it crucial that only one location is used for the alert indication.... or can the dog use whatever part of the body. She tends to use both of my knees which ever is closer or sometimes my arm if im laying down.
How would you teach a dog to alert a certain person (not yourself, but say an elderly aunt who doesn't understand training processes)?
I've been watching some videos on the PAT and in one part the dog must ignore food on the ground, does the fact that u throw the food to her have any effect on how her food manners are in public places such as grocery stores or restaurants?
This is great! How did you teach him to touch your knee? Our dog knows "touch", but I am trying to figure out how to get him to touch another area than the hand to move forward with this task. Thank you for posting your videos.
@ToMakeSilverSing If you set the time to be the current time, it will go when you hit it. Most of the old ones do this. I got mine from a second hand store.
@laurielatorre Have you seen the two way alert? That may help. Also, the videos are CC in case that helps. You can use the exact same prcess to teach each sound. You may have to modify it slightly. For example, if you want your dog to alert you to a door knock, train at the door. If you want an laett for a person calling your name, you'll have to gneralize the behavior to many locations and many different people calling your name once the basic behavior is trained.
This is good training with excellent presentation and documentation, but I have a serious question.
With all the advances in technology (eg. flashing lights & vibrate modes, etc) is the dog the best/most reliable assistance for a person with a moderate to severe hearing loss? In other words is there something the dog can hear and alert to that could not be done through technology?
TRAFFIC!
Perhaps I could try this to get my pup to tell me when there is a customer in my store. Currently she gets anxious when new people enter, so if I give her a job instead, that may help her. . . and the customer. . . and me. Now I must figure out the sequence.
how do you train a medic alert dog such as blood sugar or seizures, I once had a dog that naturally notified me, but after 16 years she has passed away.
This is a great video! Thank you so much for posting this!!! This video was made with an alarm clock as a sound source which can be easily controlled. How I can train other sound sources that can't be readily turned on and off - like a smoke alarm?
You could have someone help you by pressing the test button on the smoke alarm and ring your doorbell. If you don't have someone to help, buy a battery operated smoke alarm and a battery operated door bell so that you can set them off yourself.
callalily2004 Try a RUclips video of the sound that you can use to train
@MsFluffle It takes at least several training session to teach each part of the ebhavior, then you combine them and add distance. If you train it 5 days a week, the dog should have a very solid understanding of the basic behavior in a month.
Im am a 12 year old deaf child, and i use a device called the cochlear implant (CI). And i have two dogs, one rott lab mix and she is almost 7 years old and she is my baby. Anyways my other one is my dads and he is a bird dog, which is a yellow lab and he is 1 and half years old. And my dad and I wanted to train him to be my service dog... how did u train your dog to touch right there, like with a piece of treat on ur pants or what?
@MsFluffle Depends on the dog and the environment. Some catch on right away but take a long time to generalize, others take abit to get it but generalize more quickly.
wonderful!
Great video! Very helpful! Keep up the great videos
@mavericksblaze Service dogs are taught this transfer all the time. Start by training the behavior on yourself, then have the client practice with the dog starting right back at the beginning with the nose touch on them. Train the rest of the behavior with tem as you idid with you. The dog is only rewarded for alerting to them. No reward for alerting you. As soon as possible, fade yourself out of the training area. Good luck!
@poploverist Animal Control Special. Best guess is GSD/BC x miniature pinscher.
good job
Once the nose nudge has been well-trained (dog can generalize it in many places), pair it with the location where you want the dog to nudge you. I.e. your face (or some other accessible place where the dog won't get scared). Practice that on cue. Next, pair the cued nose nudge with the kicking and thrashing. In other words, lie down and pretend to have a nightmare and cue the behavior. With much practice, the kicking and thrashing will become the cue to nose nudge your face. Good luck!
Un vídeo muy bueno, gracias.
Yes! You got it!
What ever works for you that the dog understands. In the beginning I would teach one knee then teach the other so she knows you want her to be flexible. If they are not available, then your arm after. It depends where you think is more accessible to her generally? Where does she do most of her alerts-with you standing or laying down?
I am training something similar. I was wondering if you would be able to help me think through how to handle the extinction process. I am training Calamity to bring me my phone when it rings. She has learned to bring the phone on cue ("get it") nearby and we have started to pair the ringing phone with the cue. Now she will get the phone when it rings BUT also when it's not cued. She will keep shoving it at me even if I don't take it. She's used to offering behaviors in a training session.
Thank you..... I would love to be in touch with you to ask quesyions when im stuck. Trainers here ask for $150us an hour and I can not afford this on disability (im 100% deaf but I can talk) on the 2 paws, its mainly when she misses the mark with one paw....I restate the alert word and she will either paw again or use 2 paws, also to answer ur other question I am asking for a paw....since a nose wont wake me up or get my attention as well as a paw... (push and claw lol)
How old must the dog be to begin training?
Or you can get a kitchen buzzer for the alarm clock training but make sure its going to be the same sound that you plan to have your dog alert you with. If it too many different sounds, it can lead to confusion.
@truemirror It's trained the same way. if you check out my assistance dog blog (listed on this channel) and do a search of the archives for diabetic alert, you will find your answer. If you want some help and have a webcam, we can set something up. Donna
@truemirror Glad to help! Donna
The rule of thumb is when the dog gets to an 80% accuracy or better, it's time to ask for more. Decide what your criteria is and stick to it. If the nose touching is part of it, then not touching the nose means that repetition was incorrect. So if the dog does that 3 times out of 10, the dog is not ready to move to the next step yet.
I'm attempting to train my dog as a hearing dog, I would like her to wake me to my alarm, alert for the doorbell(or a knock), stop me for cars, and alert for people talking to me, ect. Would this concept work for the doorbell/cars/talking and my alarm? I'd love to get her mostly trained up before I completely loose my hearing and have to completely rely on her. Also, is it ok/safe to dual train service animals for other things? She does not respond to clickers, but she does respond to food. I've been using a remote collar (tone only) for correction (when I first got her at 13 weeks she was in need of rehab for behavioural and aggressiveness issues) and she responds better to this than anything I have tried previously.
Yes and yes! The same process can be used for all sounds.You just have to identify the behavior you want and pair it with the sound. Many SD are trained for multiple disabilities. If she is not responding to a clicker, it is not being trained correctly. The most common reasons service dogs fail in programs is fear and aggression. Sadly, fear and aggression can be worsened with the use or correction. Timing, and intensity of correction is key in using punishment. Why not use positive reinforcement instead and build a strong bond with your dog?
She does get positive reinforcement as well, treats when she does things correctly. She's flat out ignored the clicker from day one, even when paired with treats(I gave her basic obedience classes through PetSmart where they only use positive reinforcement). I only use the correction tone with serious problems, and hope to one day not use at all. She's not gotten worse, thankfully, with the use of this method. I'm actually wanting to train her for service and protection, but I do not know if trained aggressive protection would disqualify her SD status.
Earl Ciel Kittenhive You'll have to check your region's laws but in most cases SD's are not allowed to do protection work.
If you want to make sure she doesn't (i.e. have a chow hound, simply hand deliver the rewards so it never touches the floor or use a manners minder type gizmo.
Donna, how would you get a very tiny dog to do the alert? I want to train her so she can accompany me out in public to alert me when people are trying to talk to me. I am completely deaf in one ear but have near normal hearing in the other. If I am approached on my deaf side I frequently miss that someone is trying to talk to me.
You could have your dog jump up on your leg.
Why do You throw the treat?
My dog doesn’t understand what I want him to do when I say touch or nudge and I don’t know how to teach him
@supernaturalbc2008 Oh Ok, I will go check it out, I don't have webcam hooked up yet, but ty sooo much for the offer (I may request later), what I didn't do was to thank you for generously sharing how to train our dogs properly, you are an amazing and very giving person, words do not express the gratefulness for people like you. Also, I am teaching my dog this on the video, and she loves that she can nudge me & get a treat, she is much happier, and so am I that we are starting to communicate.
Start with the one that she will use more commonly, build skill with that before training the other area. That way if she can't get to the ideal one, then she will be persistent to get another one.
What are you using as a indication behavior? If it is a paw touch, if the paw touch doesn't hit the mark, then that is not correct. If she uses two paws and one is your criteria,only you can decide if you will accept that!
@misschelsieblue I am glad they are useful! If you are interested in other 'how to clicker' videos, check out our other channel: supernnaturalbc2009. They are more for tricks, dog sports and general behavior.
@supernaturalbc2008 Thank you!
a non shedding dog on a sailboat would be handy to alert if a freighter or other vessel was about to run you over
Fine. It's easier to get me on facebook.