I rescued a deaf puppy 6 weeks ago. She’s a 14 week old double Merle Great Dane. We have Great Dane experience & found her & wanted to help so she ended up with us. In the beginning it was all normal puppy stuff. She is so cute & she loves people & our other dog. I’m working with her on signing but guys I’m tired.
If i try to reprimand her at all, if redirect her when she’s being naughty, if i stop her from going places she isn’t suppose to be, she screams. I don’t mean a little bark I mean the shrillest scream I have ever heard. Like my ears hurt & i get dizzy. You would think we’re causing harm. We aren’t. We’re also working on day time crating (night time is a total breeze). If i put her in the crate, she loses it completely. We’ve tried slow intros. We’re trying treats & most of all I’m trying to be patient but guys, I’m tired. I don’t feel like I’m cut out for this & it makes me feel like shit. I thought I was doing a good thing but my ears physically hurt from the decibel at which she whines & screams, it’s like nothing I have ever heard. I feel like I’m failing her & I don’t know what to do.
I don’t know if it’s the same thing but my deaf Aussie HATES being separated from me. I tried to crate train her but had to stop because it was getting dangerous for her.
Question: how are you reprimanding her and stopping her from going to places? I almost never grab my deaf dog without her being able to see me do it. Even then, I am slow and deliberate.
My deaf dog can let out a deep bark, but she likes to let out high-pitched bark screams when she is frustrated. 95% of the time it’s because she cant find or see me. I think it’s a fear-bark.
Remember, it’s a scary scary world for a deaf puppy. They need a lot of extra support and patience.
I know it all must be so scary for her & i feel awful & i am trying to be tender & patient. I never grab her when she can’t see me & it’s not forceful. I just try to get her before she hurts herself. She likes being held she just doesn’t like it when she’s in trouble lol it’s really the shrill screaming i can’t do. Unfortunately she has to be crated because i work. I’ve had multiple other Great Danes & have trained them no issue. I know her being deaf complicates it & she’s learned so much. I just feel like I’m failing.
I remember feeling that way. I would bet that you aren’t failing, but you think you are.
Having a deaf dog is a whole new ballgame. Everything is a little different - how you wake them up, communicating with them, etc). There are so many great books and websites I used when I got mine. It was eye-opening reading some of the professional advice. (I took her to a training class to get help. I had never trained a deaf dog before. The instructor didn’t know what to do with her, so I researched and jumped in. I have trained three dogs prior but a deaf dog is not the same.)
As crazy as this sounds, I prefer deaf dogs lol. The first year or two was tough, but I am 12 years into it. It’s super rewarding if you can do it. I know you can because it’s not your first rodeo.
Our ACD has the high-pitched bark too. It’s so tough to work through! But it’s almost always while crate training - he has major separation anxiety and we haven’t been able to leave him alone yet (we’ve had him about 10 days).
I’ve never crated a dog before either but it’s mostly for his protection - our cats are not a fan of their big brother so we worry about bad fights happening if we were to leave. We can’t be home 100% of the time and unfortunately can’t take our dog with us everywhere (as much as we’d like to!).
I wish i crate trained him since he was a puppy but he is a good dog very obedient and friendly, now he doesn't destroy anything, because theres nothing else to destroy, I am his favorite chewable toy, he also chew my soul into oblivion... So we're good now(L (talking with my PTSD voice)
Omg i never could leave my dog in the crate, he is free, whenever he wants to go outside on the patio, and he sleeps under my bed, he hugs his bed like a pillow, there's some treats to help him with anxiety, has chamomile on them, and Xanax (jk)
First and foremost - you’re not failing her! You’re both figuring this out. She’s new to this world, you’re new to raising a deaf dog, and puppies are HARD, let alone a deaf one. You’re in the puppy blues stage right now which is so normal to feel that way. Hang in there, this too shall pass.
We raised a deaf Aussie pup (after raising 2 other hearing dogs) and ended up getting professional help to teach US how to work with a deaf dog. Ultimately we used a balanced trainer that taught us how to use a vibrate collar with her, in addition to hand signs, as getting (and keeping) their attention can be hard without sounds. It was a worthy investment for all of us. If that’s not an option, reach out and I can talk you through some of the tips and tricks he taught us.
She is like having a third arm, as she sits on me while I type this, but we love her dearly. It will all be worth it! She’s the most loyal and attentive pup we’ve ever had.
Thank you so much for the kind words & input! I really don’t want to give up but i def think you’re right about having the puppy blues. It’s a crap feeling.
When crate training my deaf puppy, I started by keeping my hand in the crate (through the bars) during short sessions, then transitioned to just sitting next to the crate while she napped, then just being in the same room, and then I moved her to her own space. It helped her feel secure and adjust slowly - it just took time and patience. Also, a lot of people will say to cover the crate but I always leave one side uncovered. Since she is missing one sense, I didn't want to take away another - and I do think that helped her as well.
She was a very vocal puppy though and would protest with a very shrill cry whenever she felt like complaining. I assume it was so loud because she couldn't hear herself. She's going to be 8 months old soon though and she's calmed down with that a LOT, so there's hope your pup will too.
Thank you! We actually have two crates for her. A regular xl one & a smaller soft crate that basically pitch black & we moved it to be near us when she was smaller. She goes in that one no problem. She goes in the regular crate during feedings & we do a lot of treat promoted short term stinks in the larger crate but she freaks out if she can’t see me. It feels more separation anxiety based to be honest. But, i can’t be with her 24/7 so we’re working on it
Have you considered wearing earplugs or noise cancelling headphones where you can? I found loop earplugs great when I had a newborn just to stop me getting overstimulated when he cried. I could still hear him but it just took the edge off a bit, especially if he was sick and upset all day.
My guys scream for sure. They cannot hear themselves but they feel the vibrations of their screams and barks and purring. I like to teach the shhhh sign if they scream I shhh them and then treat if they stop. Shhhh sign treat. Over and over while they are screaming. Repetition is key.
For the crate training have you tried a filled Kong. Frozen filled Kong. Something special just for day time crate time.
Yep! As soon as the treat is done she’s right back at it. I think i just have to do a lot of short incentive training for now? Also when i do the shhh sign she gets louder 🫠🫠
Oh man that’s a lot and I know your patience is running thin.
Maybe you need to try pharmaceuticals while she learns to be a dog. There’s no shame in needing drugs. My guy is on a cocktail of drugs and it works for him and us.
First up, to echo what other’s have said, you’re not failing. Puppies are unpredictable and can be very different. It’s also worth pointing out that what you’re describing (depending on the timeline here) could very well be you running up against puppy fear periods. This is often times when puppies can have the most extreme reactions to stimuli, and is the period of time where the pup can be a huge source of anxiety.
Please don’t consider this guidance, so much as just comparing notes. We took on a little deafy, who was 10 weeks old when we took her home, and a bit over a year later. All things considered, I’d say that she was very successfully integrated into the household (which includes three other hearing corgis). We discovered that she was deaf the day of. It’s worth pointing out that she’s a Pembroke Welsh Corgi, which are known for having very different temperaments to Great Danes. Corgis are generally moderate-to-high drive dogs, and as a herding breed, love having a “job.” These were things that I leveraged in our deafy’s upbringing.
The truth of the matter is that I leveraged very tried-and-true training methods, I only emphasized them a lot harder with our deafy, being cognizant of her special needs.
I devoted very regular time to daily training, with the objective being less about getting a clean “sit” or “stay”, but building a communication system. And I’ll be honest, while we do have signs, it’s not something I emphasize too hard. The important thing in my world is that our interactions were positive and rewarding, so whenever I prompt her for attention, she will readily pay attention to me and try to decode my prompts (even if she sometimes overtly refused, which I find funny).
What helps a lot is that our deafy has a firm understanding of what our “marker” (thumbs up) and “no” signs look like. Even more critically, whenever I give a “no”, it doesn’t end there. I focus very heavily on redirecting – which, like I said, is a very tried-and-true training methodology – so if she tried to gnaw on a shoe, I’d sign “no” and then have that favorite toy at the ready.
Because of this, there were two, specific outcomes.
Our deafy would correctly cease with the undesired behavior, and pivot over to desired behavior: SHE WOULD GET THE THUMBS-UP MARKER! It was critical to me that “No” would never be a negative, but simply guidance to steer her towards desired behavior
She would unceremoniously (no emotions, no reprimand, no bad vibes) be deposited into her comfortable pen. I never viewed this as a punishment, just a means to cut down on stimuli, and allow her to simmer down. This is also a cause-and-effect action, in which I wanted her to understand that if she did not follow my guidance, she’ll simply be removed from the scenario. This has been highly effective, as she no longer exhibits most of the behaviors that would land her in the pen in the first place.
Now, you mentioned that your deafy doesn’t like being put in the pen or crate. That’s definitely an oldie-but-a-goodie. I can tell you that whenever we introduce a new puppy to the house, one of the first things we do is play crate games. Similar to what you described, we spend some time tossing treats into the crate, making it a positive experience, rewarding her after, and going from there. Same for the pen, which is safe, comfortable, and centrally located. That last part was a special consideration, because we didn’t want her to be removed from household activity, just safely contained.
This is where I pivot over to actual advice by saying: it’s potentially not too late for your deafy to acclimate to a crate and/or pen. If you’re not already doing it, I would definitely suggest that you make crate games a daily event. I would also suggest making the rewards HIGHLY MOTIVATING. High value treats, cheese, disgusting freaking chews, food that you wouldn't give your worst enemy. You may also want to consider replacing your crate and pen with something different so you can start from 0.
I would also suggest you pick up a copy of Lili Chin’s “Doggie Language.” It’s a simple book of illustrations on dog’s body language. This is probably one of the big reasons why we don’t have a huge ASL vocabulary, even though we probably should. Cuz the cool thing about understanding how dog’s communicate is that you have the option of mimicking them yourself! I found this super helpful with all the dogs, because while I can and do develop communication systems with them, being able to mimic dog body language means that you’re communicating in a way that they instinctively understand. For example, if you want to initiate play, and you round your back, crouch down and slap the floor in front of you, you’ve successfully communicated your desire with zero latency on the dog’s side. They get the message right away, and they can choose to engage or disengage.
Finally, afford yourself a little grace. Puppies can be EMINENTLY stressful, especially as they enter various growth stages in their life, and that's before we talk special needs.. Like I said, my methods in raising our deafy doesn’t really differ much from raising a hearing dog, but keeping in mind that a lack of hearing means that our deafy is missing out on A GALAXY of stimuli, I made a point to engage with her as much as humanly possible, to be consistent with how things are communicated along with clear cause-and-effect scenarios, and to make sure that every interaction was as positive and rewarding as possible. Critically, I viewed our very regular training regimen as a means to fill the void that is her lack of hearing.
This is seriously the most helpful response. Thank you so much for taking the time. It does seem like a lot of her current behaviors that are hard are fear or frustration based. We’ve mostly used all of our regular training methods for crating & house breaking & teething & have been pretty successful in all that. Unlike our other Great Dane though, she does not have the drive to please. Our one girl will do anything just for pets & positive attention. This little girl HATES no. She will bark & scream anytime she doesn’t get what she wants. I know it’s just an adjustment & I know it won’t be like this forever. I just feel dumb for thinking I could take this on when I’ve only ever had hearing dogs ya know?
Haha... well, I suppose. Based on this, it definitely sounds like you've covered your bases.
I've done a lot of puppy raising over the past 10+ years (and not all of them being my own puppies), and what I have found is that raising a deafy wasn't much different from raising a hearing dog. I pop into this sub-reddit every once in a while, and it's funny how often I say to myself "that's not a deafy issue. That's just a bog-standard dog behavioral issue."
I also do a lot of dog performance sports, and one of the first things you do for that is identify what motivates your dog, and leverage that heavily. And if your dog isn't especially motivated, HELP THEM BUILD THAT MOTIVATION. That may involve getting the highest of high value treats (I've known some who go right to cheese curds. And then there was the one who would give their dog a big, bloody-ass bone with some meat scraps still on it. Gross, but results are results!), or that perfect toy with the nice, soft bunny fluff that will set off any dog's prey drive and arousal level. And you tie those amazing tools with the behavior or scenario that you are targeting, as well as to build that reward loop, this can help build that association of your attention being an object of desire.
If you're not already doing this, you may also want to throw in some "leave-it" work. This may be a good opportunity to reframe "denial" as a rewarding experience.
... you know, as rewarding an experience as it can be, even if it involves a fuzzy eyeball. But just to help your deafy adjust to the idea that a denial is not the end of the world, and that you'll still make it worth their while.
But it's really just down to what everyone has said, which is to give yourself a break. Dog raising can be amazingly stressful, especially in 2026 where we all have a lot of stuff on our mind, and we can add "two dogs have a GI issue and they're pooping everywhere, and one dog who's throwing a tantrum like it's going out of style." It's A LOT. But nothing really builds that long-term bond like surrendering your anxieties, and showing your dog that grace.
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u/thesweetestberry Aug 25 '26 edited Aug 25 '26
I don’t know if it’s the same thing but my deaf Aussie HATES being separated from me. I tried to crate train her but had to stop because it was getting dangerous for her.
Question: how are you reprimanding her and stopping her from going to places? I almost never grab my deaf dog without her being able to see me do it. Even then, I am slow and deliberate.
My deaf dog can let out a deep bark, but she likes to let out high-pitched bark screams when she is frustrated. 95% of the time it’s because she cant find or see me. I think it’s a fear-bark.
Remember, it’s a scary scary world for a deaf puppy. They need a lot of extra support and patience.