Deaf Woman and Her Deaf Dog Share Inspiring Rescue Story
Meet Karlie and Rhett, an incredible duo who were both born without hearing. Growing up, Karlie has always wanted to adopt a deaf dog, so when she heard from a coworker about a dog at a shelter in south Texas she went and rescued him.
She taught Rhett hand signs and he caught on very fast. He now understands 30 signs. She’s taught him unusual games too, such as how to go on Easter egg hunts. She signs “egg” and then hides it, so when she signs egg, he finds it. It’s now his favorite game. Karlie says it’s not really hard to train deaf dogs, you don’t even need to know sign language, you just have to be consistent in the signal you use.
Adopting Rhett has given Karlie a lot of self esteem and courage. She now champions deaf dogs whenever she can, encouraging others to give them a chance. Karlie has written a book about Rhett: I Deaf-finitely Can, Rhett the Heeler to show the world that deaf dogs are able. She says there are a lot of deaf dogs at shelters who deserve a chance.
