Charity makes urgent call for hearing dog trainers

A national hearing loss charity said it was urgently looking for 30 puppy training volunteers in south Oxfordshire amid growing demand for hearing dogs.

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People said it needed more volunteer dog trainers, particularly in towns including Wallingford, Benson, Abingdon, Chalgrove and Thame.

The charity quoted the Royal National Institute for Deaf People, which states that about one in three people in the UK are now deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus.

Sonya Paige, from Abingdon, became deaf when she was 30 and said she "would be lost" without her hearing dog Barkley.

Hearing dogs can alert deaf people to important sounds

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People trains dogs to alert deaf people to important sounds and relies on a nationwide network of volunteers to help train puppies that "will go on to transform a deaf person's life".

It said the fear of missing sounds such as smoke and fire alarms and baby monitors could "leave deaf people feeling vulnerable and unsafe".

Ms Paige was partnered with Barkley in 2020.

"Before I got Barkley, I found social events the most challenging", she said.

"Now, when I feel the loneliness of being with other people, Barkley knows and will lean against me or put his head on my knee.

"He gives me peace of mind, love and confidence and without him I would be lost."

Sonya Paige, who lost all her hearing when she was 30, was partnered with Barkley in 2020

The charity said volunteer puppy trainers care for a puppy in their home for six to 18 months at a time, fully supported and with all costs covered by the charity.

Sharron Jenkinson and her husband George, from Steventon, have cared for and trained seven puppies since 2015 and said it helped make their retirement "fulfilling".

Volunteering manager Lisa Meller said no prior experience was needed, "just a love of dogs" and "enough time every day to dedicate to the pup".