Hearing Assistance Dogs - Lions Assistance Dogs.

Lions Assistance Dogs is a not-for-profit organisation that raises, trains and provides Assistance Dogs to people in need throughout Australia, creating life-changing impacts for the people and families they join.

The incredible Assistance Dogs they train provide support in Hearing Assistance, Medical Assistance and Psychiatric Assistance, helping their owners navigate everyday life with greater independence, confidence and support.

To truly understand the difference an Assistance Dog can make, sometimes the best way is to hear it directly from someone who knows first-hand.
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So, we’ll hand it over to Megan and George…

At just three months of age, it was discovered that Megan’s older brother was Deaf. By six months of age, Megan’s hearing was tested; she too, was Deaf. Their parents, wanting the best access to specialist services and schooling, relocated to inner Melbourne where Megan started at a School for the Deaf at 3.5 years of age.

Megan’s schooling experience began with fond memories in primary school, but by the time she was in grade 10 in a mainstream school, she was being excluded from social activities. “Friends were not asking me to the movies, and during conversations, when I asked what people were talking about, I would be told ‘it does not matter’ and it was ‘not important’. I felt like I was seen to be an ‘annoyance’

At this point, Megan made a decision to move back to a College for the Deaf; “I grew up oral, but at the time it was a signing school. It did not take me long to learn Auslan (I knew the basics) and I felt that I was able to fit in quickly. I felt that I was included and was no longer missing out”.

Before getting her first Hearing Assistance Dog, Jonesy, Megan had heard of Hearing Dogs; a staff member at the College for the Deaf had a Hearing Dog called Bubbles.

Just prior to turning 30, Megan was living on her own and over time had become fearful about fires, especially at night without having any assistive technology. “I had frequent nightmares about my place catching fire and bushfires. Whilst we have smoke alarms available for people who are Deaf, I did not trust them”. Megan also has Usher Syndrome, and as such is legally blind. “I thought a Hearing Dog would be of benefit for me, alerting me to sounds that I may not hear or see (e.g. flashing alerts or someone trying to get my attention).”

Not long after, Megan met Jonesy. Jonesy was Megan’ first Hearing Dog, a Kelpie x Fox Terrier rescue from a local South Australian shelter that was picked up as a stray. The trainers at Australian Lions Hearing Dogs selected him, as with many other dogs before, due to his overall aptitude.

Megan had 13 wonderful years with Jonesy as her Hearing Dog. Jonesy walked by Megan’s side as she travelled, worked, and lived independently throughout their partnership. Sadly, Jonesy passed soon after and Megan was left with a hole in her life, both emotionally and practically. After living so long with the support of a Hearing Dog, and with the commencement of Covid, Megan struggled with the isolation of living alone and feeling unsafe.

Along came George. George is a small, energetic and loving Hearing Dog that was carefully selected for Megan’s lifestyle. After experience two significant delays in George’s interstate delivery to Melbourne due to border closures, the decision was made to fly Megan over to South Australia and conduct our very first delivery where the recipient travels to us instead of us travelling to them.
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“I flew to Adelaide three hours later. The next day, Victoria went into lockdown, and I met George! I am so grateful to ALHD and Nick, George’s Trainer who gave up his weekend to make George’s delivery a success. If I had not flown to Adelaide that day, I don’t think I would have met George for another 6 months after that when the borders finally opened up again.”
“Having a Hearing Assistance Dog has made such a huge difference to my life. I don’t feel that I have to constantly be on the lookout just because my ears and my eyes do not work as well as they should. Having George allows me to be able to relax at home as I know that he will alert me to a sound no matter where I am in the house – whether it is someone at the door, an alarm on my phone, the timer in the kitchen, or most importantly, the smoke alarm. I am able to have restful sleeps at night.”

To find out more about the Assistance Dogs that Lions Assistance Dogs provide or how you can get involved with their organisation, visit their website here.

Donations can be directly via the Lions Assistance Dogs website to help support pups during their training program. All Lions Assistance Dogs are provided to their owner free of charge so your donation goes a long way in helping a pup become a life changing family member for someone in need.