A friend of mine took on a deaf rescue boxer. What's critical to remember with these dogs is that the same protocols for training exist. She was having problems with this dog and hired a specialized trainer. The trainer told her that this dog needed to work for everything. I laughed because my dogs have to work for everything. I don't put food down, I ask them to sit and stay and wait for the command once the foods down. A blind dog can hear the commands, in my friend's case the dog could see the commands. She chose to ignore them because she got what she wanted whether she did it or not. Now she's great because she was treated just like the other dogs and had to work for everything. Just a little "food" for thought!
I've taken on two senior rescues. One was a greyhound the other was a Doberman. Neither lived long once I got them, the greyhound lived a little less than a year and the Doberman a little less than two years, but both dogs had an opportunity to spend their sunset years in a comfortable environment where they were well loved, had a warm fireplace to sleep next too and were properly spoiled. They break your heart in the end, but the good you do for them is worth the heartbreak.
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