Hector passes Hearing Dog assessment
For the past 18 months springer spaniel Hector has been a regular face and ‘one of the team’ at the Public Protection Partnership (PPP) and West Berkshire Council offices. He’s also a regular ‘volunteer’ at Thatcham Community Larder each Wednesday afternoon.
Karen Hughes, a Management Support Officer for PPP brings him along to work as part of his training to become a hearing dog.
When Karen first applied to be a volunteer puppy trainer, she had to ask permission from her line manager and West Berkshire Council (who run the offices Karen works out of) to bring him into work with her.
Hector joins Karen on her everyday activity, be that work or leisure, which helps to familiarise him with day to day noises, smells and activities. Alongside this, Karen has spent hundreds of hours training Hector to respond to different situations and sounds to prepare him for his final assessment to become a hearing dog.
This week Karen heard that Hector has passed and will soon be matched with a deaf person to support them and improve their quality of life.
Nigel Lynn, Chief Executive of West Berkshire Council says, “When Karen first asked if she could bring the hearing dog puppy into the offices, we of course wanted to support her volunteering and the amazing work of the Hearing Dogs for Deaf People Charity.
“But Hector has also proved to be of great benefit to us in the offices. Everyone is always delighted to see him, he has a very sweet nature that always puts a smile on your face.
“I also have family members who are deaf, so am acutely aware of the importance of the work done by hearing dogs like Hector.”
Karen says, “It’s a bittersweet moment. We’re enormously proud of Hector, and of course delighted he’s passed his final assessment on his journey to becoming a hearing dog.
“But I’m desperately sad too that our time with him is coming to an end. He’s such a special dog and we’ll miss him terribly. We take great comfort in the fact that he’ll go on to make a huge difference in someone’s life and we’re very proud to have played some part in that.”
The Hearing Dogs for Deaf People Charity train dogs to alert deaf people to important and life-saving sounds they would otherwise miss. Such as the smoke alarm, alarm clock and, where babies are in the home, even a baby's cry. Being aware of these, thanks to a hearing dog, makes a real difference to deaf people’s lives, and can even save them.
