Carole Payne is not talking about her husband Tom when she says “He and I are soulmates and he has changed my life forever”.

Carole, from Fleet, is in fact describing her dog Poacher.

She is profoundly deaf and Poacher is her constant companion, with the job of alerting her to sounds of which she would otherwise be unaware.

He is one of the 880 hearing dogs which are helping deaf people throughout the country, providing them with loyal companionship as well as day to day assistance.

Poacher came to Carole from the national charity Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, which was launched at the Crufts dog show in 1982.

The charity’s aim was to improve the lives of deaf people through the use of specially trained dogs. It has since provided more than 1,400 hearing dogs.

Carole Payne can certainly vouch for the fact that hearing dogs are both loving and useful. Poacher is an eight-year-old cocker spaniel/Nova Scotia cross who has been with her for what she calls “seven fulfilling years”.

Carole met him when he was eight months old and describes him as a lively, active and alert dog who loves people.

“The first thing I noticed was that he had such wonderful, strong, reassuring eyes, and we knew instantly we wanted to be together,” she said.

“We got on so well and Poacher quickly ensured that I was relaxed and did not get tension headaches, pass out or have panic attacks, as I usually did in new or strange surroundings. He keenly and quickly showed me we could successfully work together as a team.”

Poacher was not Carole’s first experience of dog ownership and she soon realised that a hearing dog was a very different type of companion from a pet.

This was not only because he was constantly alert to sounds at any time of the day or night, but also because he opened up a new world of social interaction thanks to his distinctive burgundy Hearing Dogs jacket.

Carole continued: “I have been profoundly deaf since I was three years old and I have found it difficult to function in the hearing world. Being thought of as rude or ignorant because I did not hear was so frustrating, so I was reluctant to go out or be involved with anything at all.

“Now with Poacher by my side in his jacket, my deafness is no longer invisible. People are more helpful and turn to face me so I can lip read what they are saying.

“This helps reduce my anxiety so I feel more confident and relaxed. Everyone tells me I am much more assured, outgoing and independent. He has helped me find my strengths and now I even give talks on deafness to various organisations, which is something I never thought I would ever be able to do.

“When I go out, people love to stop and talk to me about Poacher and children enjoy stroking him, so walks can be quite social events. He has completely changed my life and I was delighted when he was a runner-up in the Life Changing category of the Hearing Dogs National Awards.”

Before she retired, Carole also benefited from his company at work, where he quickly became the most popular member of the office.

“He instantly started to break down the barriers and tensions my deafness caused,” said Carole. “I found people were more comfortable in approaching me and equally I felt happier in approaching them, even those who were afraid of dogs.

“With Poacher by my side, my day was far easier to cope with than at any time before during my working life. I was no longer physically sick on returning home and I found there actually was life after work.

“And I can take him anywhere. Poacher always knows how to behave wherever we are. When we go to a restaurant, he will be very quiet and discreet until it’s time to leave, when he will give one solitary bark.”

Today, Poacher is very much one of the family. When Carole’s elderly mother was living with her, he was even on hand to help with the caring.

“Poacher gave both my mother and me the confidence that he would reliably tell me if my mother fell or called for me, whatever the time of the night or day,” said Carole.

“He gets on so well with everyone and gets so excited when other members of the family come to visit. He especially loves to play hide and seek with my grand-daughter.”

Not surprisingly, the two have become inseparable, and it was when Poacher was bitten by an adder and had to have complete rest while recovering that Carole really appreciated his role in her life.

“It was hellish when we were separated,” she said. “I was completely lost without him and it upset him that he could not be with me.”

Carole explained that hearing dogs are so much more than simply being an alert system for their handler. “He is such a wonderful companion and he is always listening and spot on.

“I often talk out loud and when I say ‘I must brush Po’, he is on the grooming table before I even have time to get the brush out. When he needs a drink before we go out, he waits for me to have a drink of water too so we can drink our water together.”

Carole believes that having a hearing dog can be a life-enhancing experience. Many deaf people become depressed as they gradually withdraw from an active and sociable life, but a hearing dog can bring them back into society.

Unlike Guide Dogs for the Blind, which uses specific breeds suited to the particular task asked of them, hearing dogs can be of almost any breed, including mongrels.

Around 70% of the dogs come from rescue centres, with the rest either being donated or coming from the charity’s breeding programme.

All that is required initially is that dogs have a friendly disposition, a calm temperament and a confident character.

Lucy Rimmer, the Hearing Dogs training co-ordinator, explained: “The types of dogs which make good hearing dogs vary. They can be as small as a Yorkie or as large as a labrador and many are cross-breeds.

“It doesn’t matter what kind of dog they are, as long as they are sociable, eager to please, willing to learn and responsive to sound.”

When a dog joins Hearing Dogs, it will initially live with a volunteer family to become socialised. It is visited during this time to check how it is getting on and then, at around a year old, it is taken to the centre to be assessed and exposed to sounds in different situations to note its reaction.

If deemed suitable, it will then start training proper and will meet its potential handler. Dogs which fail to make the grade are found an owner using the charity’s rehoming scheme.

“We will send the recipient the dog’s details and then arrange for the pair to meet,” said Lucy.

“We usually pretty much know what kind of dog a person is looking for, so we try to find a match. For example, an older lady might want a small breed which doesn’t need a lot of exercise, whereas a family might want something more lively.”

The charity’s headquarters near Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, has four ‘houses’ made to look like real homes. It is here that the dogs learn to respond correctly to everyday sounds such as telephone ringtones, smoke alarms, door bells and other domestic noises.

The dog also becomes accustomed to being handled in all kinds of situations and is taken out to places such as supermarkets and pubs, to become familiar with the sights, sounds and hustle and bustle.

Lucy continued: “The training will be geared to the life of the recipient. If they have a particular place they go to, the dog will be taken to somewhere similar, or if they go to work, the dog will be taught to respond to sounds in the workplace such as a fire alarm.

“It’s a structured process and usually takes about four months to complete. The dogs are taught to stop whatever they’re doing and respond to various sounds.

“They use their paws to attract the handler’s attention. If it’s a small dog, it learns to stand up and scrabble at the handler’s legs, and if it’s larger, it sits and places a paw on the leg of the handler.

“The handler then asks the dog what the sound is, using a hand signal if they have no speech, and the dog will then take them to the sound.

“In this case of danger sounds, the dog will interrupt in the same way, but it will then lie flat on the floor. A hearing dog can literally save someone’s life and we have had stories of dogs doing just that.”

Towards the end of the dog’s training, its handler goes to the centre for a week to learn how to work with their new dog.
“Once the dog and the recipient are at home together, they receive a further three months’ training from a local placement officer,” said Lucy.

“But training is ongoing after that because dogs might need to be reminded every so often of certain sounds, like burglar or carbon monoxide alarms.

“It is always a pleasing moment when a successfully trained dog goes off to live with its new handler.

“Some in particular hit a nerve with the trainers, especially when they’ve had a bad start in life and they go on to become such loving, useful animals.”