Dogs come to the aid of the deaf

YAKIMA, Wash. -- Sit. Stay. Come. Down. Rose Hamilton has a lot to learn.

She's been practicing such commands since last week with the help of a trainer. Today, she'll be on her own with her new pal, Ziggy, a 2-year-old Lhasa apso mix.

Hamilton has been waiting for him for six years.

Ziggy is more than cute companion. He's a hearing dog, trained to alert his owner to household sounds, such as the smoke alarm, telephone and doorbell.

It's estimated that more than 1.5 million deaf or hard of hearing people in the United States and Canada could benefit from a hearing dog.

"I wanted a dog that would be my hearing, and go with me where I go," said 75-year-old Hamilton.

Ziggy arrived last Thursday with Emily Minah, an audio canine instructor with Dogs for the Deaf, an Oregon-based nonprofit organization that rescues and trains canines to assist people. She leaves today without him.

"He's here to join her life," said Minah, 35. "My main objective is to give Rose the information she needs to keep him working."

Ziggy alerts Hamilton to sounds by making physical contact. "It's the touching that is the alert," Minah said.

Hamilton, who experienced hearing loss in her early 40s, uses a hearing aid during the day, removing it at night before she goes to sleep. Without the aids, it's difficult to hear the phone ring or the smoke alarm.

Having Ziggy around to help will be "really life-changing," Minah said.

On Monday morning, for example, Hamilton said, "the alarm clock went off, and (Ziggy) came and told me it went off. He hopped up on me because he heard it. I didn't. I didn't have my aids in."

A few hours later, Minah was working with the pair on commands such as "Sit," and "Down" in Hamilton's living room.

"This is something I have to work on," Hamilton said, rewarding Ziggy with exclamations of "Good boy!" -- as well as a Cheerio -- when he took a seat on the floor. But the hand motions proved difficult to master.

"Rose, your voice did the right thing, but your hand did 'Down,'" Minah said. "'Sit' goes up."

So Hamilton tried again. This time she got it. And Ziggy got a Cheerio.

Besides commands, the trio has been focusing on the routine of Hamilton's daily life: doing volunteer work, taking walks, completing errands, attending worship services, going out to eat and playing pinochle, dominoes and bunco, among others. Ziggy's already been to one game night.

"He attracts a lot of attention because he is so dang cute," said Minah, reminding admirers, "It's always best to ask the handler before they interact with the dog, with any dog."

In public, Ziggy wears a bright orange collar and leash to signify he's a working dog. Hamilton carries a special identification card and book on the law pertaining to service and guide dogs. She has a bright orange vest for him, too, but Ziggy doesn't like to wear it.

Since its inception in 1977, Dogs for the Deaf has rescued and placed more than 3,000 dogs in homes throughout the United States and Canada. Ziggy was rescued from Yreka, Calif. And he's sponsored by the Seattle-based Sammamish Sams chapter of the Washington State Good Sams Club.

Dogs for the Deaf operates on animal sponsorships and donations. It costs about $25,000 to train, place and provide veterinary care for each hearing dog. Approximately 100 dogs are placed each year. Recipients, like Hamilton, pay a $50 application fee and $500 deposit.

Minah, who has worked for the organization for about five years, says Ziggy is the only dog she can recall being placed in Yakima.

After passing an initial evaluation, the dogs -- usually mixed breeds that come from shelters -- are given veterinary treatment, including an exam, vaccinations, micro-chipping and, if needed, a spay or neuter procedure. Then, they receive four to six months of training. Trainers look for dogs that are friendly, confident, energetic and healthy.

After five days of placement training, both Hamilton and Ziggy are "kind of on overload," according to Minah. Both handler and hearing dog have lots of new information to process. But Hamilton, an avid quilter, is already talking about sewing blankets to donate to the nonprofit. Each dog, including Ziggy, comes with his own doggie quilt.

Meantime, Hamilton and Ziggy are still getting to know each other. While Ziggy doesn't seem to interested in the new ball Hamilton bought for him, she has discovered something he does seem to like.

"He likes to snuggle," she said.

* For more information or to make a donation, call Dogs for the Deaf in Central Point, Ore., at 541-826-9220. On the Web: www.dogsforthedeaf.org.