Janet isn’t new to Can Do Canines, she’s an alumni! In 1997, Janet received her first Hearing Assist Dog from Can Do Canines (then Hearing and Service Dogs of Minnesota). Tiger, a Border Collie mix, was her faithful partner, alerting her to important sounds for 13 years until he passed away in 2010. Years passed, with work, family and friends keeping her busy. In 2019, Janet found herself alone more and felt insecure. Her husband, Pat, often worked nights, and now that her daughter, Angela, was grown and working as well, she felt vulnerable not being able to hear. Janet …
Hearing Assist Dog
Living and Exploring–Day or Night–Without Apprehension
Being able to live freely and function with confidence on a daily basis, at home and in public, even when you don’t feel comfortable or safe, are just a couple of reasons Glenice is grateful for Can Do Canines. Glenice is deaf. She was diagnosed with Congenital Progressive Hearing Loss when she was a teenager, and over the course of 30 years, her hearing dwindled until she became completely deaf. She is able to hear with cochlear implants, but those are activated with processors. When those aren’t on—and they aren’t on consistently throughout the day—she isn’t able to hear anything …
Bringing Out the Best in Each Other
Nancy Lauderman is the type of person who cares for everyone and is always willing to help or share what she can. The chance to focus on caring for herself recently came in an unexpectedly furry form. In her childhood, Nancy experienced physical trauma that caused her equilibrium and hearing to be impaired. She tends to miss certain sounds that are meant to keep her safe. Due to nerve damage, her balance is unstable and she loses it easily. Leaning over or reaching usually result in a continuous motion without the ability to steady herself. Additionally, she lives with fibromyalgia …
Collie Proves to Be Compassionate and Competent Successor
Upon learning that a Smooth Collie was going to be the breed of dog to succeed her beloved Labrador Retriever, Cali, Cheryl admitted, “I wasn’t sure.” Yet, she shares, “This successor dog and I became successor partners.” Cheryl laughs as she says, “I compare it to having a 2-year-old who follows you everywhere. I think she’s a lot like a cat, and she has an opinion about everything. But I love her.” That’s a good thing, because a literal love-at-first-sight response would not be easy for Cheryl. Learning to Accept Help Cheryl was born prematurely with no vision in her …
Assistance Dog Transforms a Quiet World
Jessica was born deaf in her right ear and started losing hearing in her left ear at age 9. A hearing aid helped for many years, but in 2012, she completely lost her remaining hearing. Jessica found success with a cochlear implant (CI), which is still not the miracle solution it can seem to be. She wears a cochlear implant mostly to help communicate with people, but she still misses a lot of important sounds. Without any hearing on her right side and the inability to determine the source or direction of sounds, she’s had severe concerns about staying safe. …
A Little Lab Makes a Big Difference
When she was 3 years old, Geri survived a case of German measles, but she lost part of her hearing in both ears. In the past, Geri used analog hearing aids, but analog aids are no longer produced, and the digital type does not work with her. When the only current option of hearing aids failed her, Geri realized a dog was a necessity in her life. Her first Can Do Canines Hearing Assist dog was Ike, a Corgi that loved notifying her of all the sounds she was missing. However, our furry friends never live as long as we …
Bringing Safety to Silence
Our senses help us to respond and react to things that are happening around us. Our sense of hearing, specifically, helps keep us safe by allowing us to hear sounds, such as smoke detectors, sirens and other alarms. Those annoying shrill beeps and blaring sirens tell us to watch out. Kristen misses those sounds, since she is unable to hear most of them. She has experienced progressive hearing loss since she was 3 years old and has now reached a profound loss level. She relies on her family to let her know when noises were alerting them to danger, a …
Qeen Offers Keen Hearing Assistance for Janet
Being born deaf means making adjustments in most aspects of life, and Janet from St. Michael, has handled things head on with boldness and grace. In 1997, her first Hearing Assist Dog, Tiger, joined her family, and for 13 wonderful years, he alerted her to sounds of the world around her. After Tiger’s passing and a divorce in 2011, Janet’s life became complicated. “Things became difficult without Tiger, “Janet says, “I had to thrive to the best of my abilities with some assistance from my daughter.” It was hard for Janet to rely on people to let her know the …
When Equipment Failed, a Dog Succeeded
Staying active and independent is a goal for most adults, but for some, life’s challenges can disrupt those goals. Like most young adults, Jack has big ambitions and works full time while making plans to return to school to further his education. A life with progressive hearing loss all has made that more difficult. As an infant, Jack was diagnosed with mild hearing loss, but doctors were uncertain of the cause. He had a hard time finding the proper hearing equipment to improve his hearing, causing his hearing to further decline. Now he has profound hearing loss and is unable …
A Lot of Personality
Ridge and Peggy Those who come to Can Do Canines for an assistance dog have varied levels of experience with dogs. Some have never owned one. Others have owned many. But no one has trained four of their own assistance dogs—until Ridge. Since 1998, he’s trained four of his own assistance dogs. Ridge didn’t develop his disabilities until his late twenties when he contracted meningitis and encephalitis. “They gave me a 5 percent chance of living,” Ridge says. “I spent three months in the hospital where I was locked in and I couldn’t move, eat, or talk. All I could …