Three puppies found abandoned in Halmerend, Newcastle under Lyme have been selected by national charity, Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, to train to alert deaf people to everyday household sounds.

China, India and Bali, despite their oriental names, started life in a far from exotic location. They were discovered barely alive, at just three days old, squashed inside a cardboard box with their three siblings. Dog walker, Bill Davies, was walking his own dog in the woods when he stumbled over the box and found the six mongrels. Unfortunately three of them had already died, and the other three were very dehydrated, so he took them home to warm them up before calling the RSPCA.

Chief Inspector Dave Hollinshead collected them and took them back to be checked by a vet, where it was discovered that one of them had a three-inch gash in her side, which needed stitches. He said, “There is no doubt that they would have died if Mr Davies had not found them.”

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People’s Regional Dog Assessor, Andrea Gough, contacted the RSPCA after seeing an article about the puppies in the paper, and went to assess the dogs’ potential for training. She says of the three girls, “They were very nice, friendly puppies and had obviously been well socialised by their foster carer. We have high hopes for their future.”

Training

After a period of socialisation, these three lucky puppies will begin their four month soundwork training, after which they will be placed with their deaf recipients. After everything they have been through, being callously left to die in a box, these puppies have no reason to trust humans. It is, therefore, heart-warming to know that in a few months’ time three severely or profoundly deaf people will come to depend on them for security, companionship and independence.

China, India and Bali have shown they really are full of Eastern promise.