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I have a 15 year old cocker spaniel named Lucky. Like many cocker's, he has lost his hearing in his old age. This might seem like a communication challenge to some dog owners, but frankly, I rarely even notice that he's deaf. The most frequent conversation topics that I have with my dog are "I'm hungry, please feed me", "I want to go outside", "What are you eating?", "Please rub my ears", "Someone is outside", "Something is bothering me" and "I love you". The only trouble I have with Lucky's deafness is getting his attention if he is not looking at me.

Being a pet owner, you learn to understand how to differentiate the sounds and actions to decipher the code. I think of Lucky as being much the same as a 2 year old child just learning how to speak. It might be hard for an outsider to understand what the child is trying to say, but the mom gets it right away. She can understand the child's mumbled phrases the same way I can tell if Lucky's grunt is a happy grunt or an anxious grunt.

I communicate mostly with hand signals to Lucky, and I can tell by looking at his face if he understands what I'm trying to say. He tells me he's hungry with a quick wagging tail and a hop to his food dish, I know something is bothering him when he anxiously walks around the living room, and I know when he wants to go out when he has a quick growl and wagging tail. But best of all is when he tells me he loves me, the same way a human might - it's his big bright eyes and pleasant smirk as he cuddles with me.

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