A Working Relationship : New Program Allows Deaf Owners to Select and Train Their Own Dogs

Ever since he was a puppy, Radar has learned to use his ears to warn his owner about the sounds she cannot hear. But unlike other “hearing dogs” trained for years by formal instructors, he and his owner are graduating from a new program where real life is a 24-hour-a-day classroom.

The black-and-white border collie is one of two dogs who will today be the first graduates of a program in which the deaf owner selects and trains the animal. Normally, dogs are trained for two to three years at a school by instructors before a deaf person becomes involved.

“At that point it’s already on its third owner,” said Radar’s owner, Miranda Alcott, a Canyon Country resident in her 30s. “The dog is not sure how long they will have this master and when they will move again.”

Alcott lost her hearing five years ago. She speaks without an interpreter and is proficient at lip-reading. She said she enrolled in the program a year ago because it allowed her to develop a much closer working and personal relationship with Radar. In addition, he is now custom-trained for her needs at home and while traveling.

“For me, he has to be able to be on airplanes, go to hospitals or schools, and not be distracted by everything that’s going on around him,” Alcott said.

Hearing dogs, also known as signal dogs, alert their owners to sounds such as doorbells, sirens and ringing telephones. The animals must be trained when they are young or they will be too easily distracted by the outside world. That is why most dogs go through regimented programs, said Ray Archer, 30, a Canyon Country resident who is the founder and sole teacher of the eight students currently at American Sign Canine, which is based in Santa Clarita.

The school’s first graduation ceremony, expected to draw a crowd of more than 100 friends and family members of the students, will be at Cal State Northridge because both dog owners attend the college.

Kristin Murphy, 26, a North Hills resident who is the other graduate, said she has no regrets about deciding to enroll her German shepherd, Sierra, in the program, even though the training wasn’t always easy.

“With a puppy it’s instantly unconditional love and the bonding starts that same day,” Murphy said.

But not just any puppy is suitable to be a hearing dog, Archer said. He said a dog with “herding” instincts, such as an Australian sheep dog or a collie, is needed so it will instinctively guide its owner.

“Radar would herd me over when he knows someone is coming, and he wasn’t trained for it,” Alcott said. “It’s in his nature to herd people toward something.”

It also seems to be in Radar’s nature to play with tennis balls, chew toys and playfully jump on arriving strangers--something Alcott has to constantly try to prevent so his guide abilities won’t be impaired by distractions.

“I always want to be able to grab him and play with him, and let children pet him, but I can’t allow him to be distracted,” she said. “This is work.”

Students meet with Archer up to three three times a week, either at the owner’s home or with other students at locations such as shopping malls. Training starts with the basics--sit, stay, heel. After that they learn to shake paws, but Archer said it is more than a show trick.

“Eventually that paw becomes an alert where he touches the person in situations such as fire alarms, door bells, phones and anything else that person has in their environment,” he said.

Commands are given both orally and in sign language, so a dog is able to respond even in a noisy public place or if the owner is uncomfortable talking in public.

A common exercise in public, Archer said, is to call the owner’s name and have the dog--if he or she reacts properly--bring its owner over to the teacher. Another is teaching the animal proper behavior in tempting situations.

“In restaurants they can’t jump up on the tables and take food,” he said.

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Archer said the dogs have to pass certified tests, established by international assistance-dog groups, in four areas: obedience, hearing, socialization and behavior. The owners spend about an hour a day doing formal training at home.

He said a student who works constantly with his dog can complete the program in a year, but two years is the average time needed.

Murphy said she was able to complete the program in a year because of Sierra’s intelligence and because everything her dog had learned was consistently reinforced during the rigors of everyday life.

“I worked with her on one thing at a time when she was formally training, but around the house when the phone rang I still expected her to get up and alert me,” she said.

Alcott admitted there were times she wondered why she didn’t buy an already-trained dog, but in the end the extra effort was worth it.

“There were times when I was just ready to pull my hair out, and I thought ‘How could I do this?’ ” she said. “But I’ve grown a lot and I’ve learned a lot and I’ve had the joy of knowing Radar since he was a puppy.”