About Diamond Dogz of Arizona – Hearing Dog Training

What they offer

Diamond Dogz of Arizona is a Phoenix nonprofit that provides training and certification for hearing service dog teams for people who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing. Its trainers guide owners in using positive reinforcement to teach their dogs the service skills specific to hearing dogs.

What hearing dogs do

The site explains that hearing dogs alert their owners to important sounds at home and in public, such as the door, the phone, dropped items, a name being called, a fire alarm, running water or approaching people and cars. The dog gets its partner's attention with a paw touch or nose nudge and then runs to the source of the sound.

Good to know

This is a specialized service-dog program rather than general pet training. Call to ask whether your dog is a candidate and how the program is structured.