Read The Vest First Before Asking

In the past year I have taken my hearing dog into airports, malls, restaurants and to many more places.    Rarely I was ever questioned on what he was doing inside a public place.   Most people are aware that he is a service animal by looking at that orange vest that he wears.

Because I was born deaf, this hearing dog helps to notify me of sounds I can't hear around my home.   He was trained to do that from trainers at I.H.D.I. in Colorado.   He goes to work with me everyday. So people are getting used to seeing him wherever I go.

Last weekend I decided to go shopping at J.C.Penny's at the Eastern Hills Mall.   An old sales lady followed me like a security guard around the store.   When I turned around she was right behind me and scared me.   Before I knew it she was asking me if he was a service animal.   Then she looked at his vest and I said yes and she went away.

If she had a problem with this dog being in the store she should of just read his vest and moved on.   Nobody else has questioned me about this dog being in a store in a year.  That is simply because they could read his vest.   She did have a right to ask that question, but it was unnecessary since he had his Hearing Dog vest on.  And it was rude.  Unless she couldn't read.
 

Hearing Dog Wakes Me Up In The Morning

Before I got Douglas from the International Hearing Dog Institute I would rely on certain alarms for deaf people to wake me up.   I am profound deaf with a 90 percent hearing loss.  So there's no way I am going to hear a regular alarm clock going off.

Usually I would use the flashing light together with the bed shaker vibrator.   Using both did wake me up but there was one problem.   The bed vibrator would stop working after 2 years.   Then I would go and buy another one, and that would break too after a period of time.

I was tired of having to buy one alarm clock after another just to find out they didn't work for long.  And these special alarm clocks were expensive.   Now I have my hearing dog that is trained to wake me up when a regular alarm clock goes off.  He was trained to respond when it either beeps or plays music.

He is the most reliable one I can depend on to get me up each morning.

Security Guard Sleeps Away In Mall

Two weeks ago I decided to go shopping with my hearing dog.   I have him because I am deaf and he assists me to sounds I can't hear.  We went in through Rocky's Big City Games & Sports Bar at the Eastern Hills Mall.   First thing I noticed was there was a Security Guard sleeping in a chair.   There was people there but nobody was doing anything about it.

We went into a few stores with no issues.   Then all of a sudden one of the ladies denied my service dog in one of them.  I decided to find a Security Guard to ask if the lady had any rights doing that.   By law service animals are allowed in public places.  But I thought it would be best to let someone else handle it there.

So I went back into Rocky's to get help.  Except the same Security Guard was fast assleep in the chair.  She has been sleeping over an hour.   So I went to find the Security Guard's office at the end of the Food Court Area.    There was nobody at that desk.   There was a number in there for us to call in case we need to get ahold of one.  But being hearing impaired I'm unable to hear on a regular phone.   And there was no number for texting one.


So after that I went to the center of the mall and I saw a woman in a uniform with a walkie talkie. So I thought that's it, let me ask her a question.  So I tried walking up to her with my dog and she ran the other way in a hurry.   Feeling disappointed from failure from finding someone to help I stopped at the Customer Service Counter.  There I made a complaint about the Security Guard that has slept over an hour at Rocky's.   Then I also told them there was noone in the main office.


So the lady there tried making some calls.  Even she was unable to get in contact of any security guard for me.   I waited for 25 minutes there as she kept trying to call one over.  With no luck, I told her thank you but to just let it go.  She said she would report it to the manager.  It wasn't worth wasting my time on this so I left.

I sure hope I never have to go through something like this again.

Doctor's Office Is Lacking Deaf Services

For years I have been going to the same exact doctor's office for check ups. This is over at the Highgate Medical Group office.  Why I stay there is because they have done a good job.  It's in a convenient location and the wait is never long.  Not having to drive far when I need to go is a big plus for me.

Besides all that they gave me no issues with my bringing my hearing dog to my appointments.  I have him because I am deaf.  And he helps to notify me of sounds I can't hear.  So that means a lot to me as well.  But there is one big problem at this place.

And that is they don't have any email service for their deaf customers.  Neither can they text me of my future appointments.   All they can do is call me on a phone to communicate with me.  But that does me no good because of my hearing loss.   And sometimes they leave messages on my voice mail.

And that isn't good either because I can't always understand those messages.  But due to having CaptionCall it takes care of  some of these issues.   I would suggest that my doctor's office set up a service to use for contacting their deaf customers like me.

That is set up an email service.  And allow them to text their deaf customers.  And do whatever else to communicate properly with those who can't hear.  This is only fair for the deaf.

Hearing Dog Goes To Church

My hearing dog has been attending church with me quite often.

Douglas Goes With Me On Vacation

Good afternoon everyone. My summer has been going great. Just recently I took my hearing dog Douglas to Ohio with me. We went out to eat at some restaurants and he came with us. While he was there, he was quiet and behaved pretty good. He never barked in the restaurants. Now he responds automatically to the doorbell, phone, alarm clock and smoke alarm. When I’m not wearing my hearing aids I can’t hear a thing. So it is very helpful that he is here to notify me of those sounds.

Still Training Douglas

As you know I haven't been here for a while. Things are going well, and I have been very busy. Of course I continued to write more about life with my hearing dog. He's a great dog to have. Douglas is very sweet and lovable. Right now I'm still in the second month of training him. So far he is doing well at notifying me of some sounds I can't hear at home.

My Hearing Dog Just Arrived

I was accepted to get a hearing dog from the International Hearing Dog Inc.a while ago. Finally the trainer, Robert Cooley from there flew Douglas down from Colorado. He is in town for a few days to teach me how to train the dog. Today we worked on training Douglas to alert me to the sounds of the doorbell ringing, knocking and a smoke detector beeping. This dog is very sweet and lovable. I am very excited to finally have a hearing dog in my life. It hasn't been easier being deaf. He will help to make my life better.

You can read all about this at:

Douglas Is Here With Me Now
Second Day Of Training Douglas

Going To Meet Douglas

I had signed up for a hearing dog through the International Hearing Dog Inc. Since I can't hear things with my hearing aids off, it would help to notify me of things that make noises. It's a big help when I am home alone. If the smoke alarm goes off, phone rings, doorbell rings, and so on, the dog will notify me of those sounds. After I filled out the applications, I was approved to get a dog. The agency put me on a waiting list.

Last week, I received a picture of a dog they thought would be good for me. He looked absolutely adorable. And of course, I told them that's the dog I want. The hearing dog agency sent me a list of things I have to get before the dog arrives. So now I looking forward to meeting Douglas. I can't wait. It will be a big change to have a hearing dog in my life.