IHDI's Word of Thanks: Next w/ Kyle Clark Campaign

INTERNATIONAL HEARING DOG, INC.

Founded in 1978, IHDI has partnered over 1,400 teams of persons who are d/Deaf and hard of hearing and custom-trained dogs nationally. This intentionally designed service delivers independence, awareness, and an enhanced quality of life to its d/Deaf clients and provides a pathway for dogs to serve as loyal companions and professional aides.

Although many people seek peace and quiet, for the 50 million Americans, more than 10 percent of the population, who experience hearing loss, it can be lonely, isolating, and even dangerous. The life changing power of a service hearing dog team is astounding. 

Your gift makes all the difference in ensuring hearing dog teams like Katie and Jagger, Wanda and Beauty and Sue and Artie are made and supported…

Katie and Jagger: Re-engaging in Living

Katie is late-deafened with progressive bilateral hearing loss. As such, she navigated the grey zones of being hard of hearing in a hearing world, resulting in diminished social confidence and high anxiety levels. She found herself scolded in grocery aisles for not stepping aside, missing her name called in professional and private settings, and worried for her safety when alone. Disheartened and frightened, when asked why she applied for an IHDI hearing dog, her response was, “To feel safe and confident enough to re-engage in life. To simply enjoy life more fully.”

Enter Jagger, rescued by IHDI – matted and sick - from a grim life on the street. Under IHDI’s tutelage, he transformed into a steadfast hearing dog and a perfect match for Katie. His talent for alerts has helped Katie’s sense of safety, and his reassuring presence positively fosters re-engagement. As Jagger wears a bright orange hearing dog vest, Katie’s invisible disability of deafness becomes visible and aids her in building bridges with her community. Now, when encountering Katie and Jagger, most people make efforts to communicate with patience and respect. And Jagger, with his small stature but impressively big role, helps Katie open more doors and embrace their life journey ahead. Katie and Jagger have developed a powerful bond. “I love him! I cannot imagine my life without him, exclaims Katie. The renewed confidence and engagement Katie has gained as a Hearing Dog Team with Jagger by her side has definitely allowed Katie to re-engage in life.

Wanda & Beauty: Commanding Life

Wanda, a retired patrol police officer, experienced profound hearing loss in 2006 due to Ramsay Hunt Syndrome. With hearing aids no longer an option, Wanda was relying on lip reading and microphone sound amplification. Her hearing loss progression made it more and more challenging, left her feeling unsafe, and restricted her independence. But, thanks to Beauty, her IHDI trained hearing dog service partner, those days are behind her. With Beauty by her side, Wanda is taking back her independence and sense of security.

"With Beauty, I can go anywhere and everywhere. In the past, I wouldn’t go out alone, and if someone couldn’t come with me I’d just stay home. Now I can get up and go. Beauty has given me back my independence. I don’t have to depend on others to let me know what is going on in my environment because Beauty lets me know . . . I feel safe in my home and when I’m out in public." — Wanda

Sue & Artie: A Formidable Force

The timing of Sue and Artie coming together as a hearing dog team was especially significant as Sue had recently lost her husband of 57 years and for the first time was living on her own with no hearing person to help alert. Sue is deaf and got a cochlear implant over 15 years ago. However, even with the cochlear, Sue often cannot hear or localize sounds. Artie, rescued from a shelter, was provided extensive specialized training by IHDI culminating in Artie becoming a top-notch hearing dog. Sue and Artie have had some hard knocks but together they are now each other’s lifeline and can overcome whatever is in front of them. Sue says, “Artie saves the day . . . everyday!”

"Artie has changed my life in so many ways . . . he has increased my independence and sense of safety by assisting me with sound identification and localization . . . he feels like a wonderful gift and an opening to a whole new life." — Sue

IHDI is the only service dog organization focused solely upon training and matching hearing service dogs in the US - continually has a formidable waitlist. Individuals routinely face a three year wait to be teamed with their dog.

Raising, training, matching, and placing a hearing dog to be on the alert 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, so that a d/Deaf client may enjoy a greater quality of life and training that client to become a skilled handler is a lengthy and involved process. As a result, IHDI invests nearly $20,000 into creating a single successful and enduring hearing dog team. With a goal of matching 15 hearing dogs in the next year, the Word of Thanks campaign is a powerful force in helping IHDI raise the funds necessary to reach that goal.