Every Aussie and Aussie-mix I’ve ever met has been extremely intelligent (and quite beautiful). So your story doesn’t surprise me in the least.
My dog was never taught hand signals. We were using them with another dog and she just picked them up. The dog we were trying to teach never caught on very well but our dog took to them right away.
Intelligence is not the same as obedience. I suspect larger breeds are more trainable otherwise they would not be manageable and be popular as pets. Small dogs don’t need to be as obedient to be loved- easier for them to question authority because they have so many other lovable qualities (and may be like their owners in that regard). I would tell people our Shih Tzu had a social IQ of 1000 and an obedience IQ of 50- on a good day. Couldn’t train the dog to come with treats- if he didn’t want one he saw no reason to bother. No automatic food/obey link in his brain.
I wonder if many dogs, who don’t seem to hear as well as they age, simply have ears that are clogged up with wax and stuff that could easily be cleaned out?
@lizard we took our pooches for regular check ups…and neither who could no longer hear had clogged ears. They simply were very elderly dogs who had lost their hearing.
I have a friend who has a deaf dog. She’s an awesome dog and very good with hand signals. My friend has had many digs but I don’t think she had previous experience with deaf dogs–just fell in love with this one. I wouldn’t think its a deal breaker for an experienced owner–especially if you have used hand signals with dogs before.
Good luck finding your next pup.
Our late dog went deaf and I didn’t realize it at first. I thought she was just being indifferent as part of aging. She pretty much completely stopped barking once she as deaf as her barking was always in response to noises outside. We didn’t do anything with hand signals and it really wasn’t much of an issue at all. She was always walked on a leash and never let loose anyway. I could see it being more problematic with a new addition to the household.
@wis75 – I just think that owners put more effort into obedience training the larger dogs. My aussie-mix definitely was a smart and easily trainable dog – I was amazed at how quickly she learned. But the little, 8 lb terrier mix I adopted from the pound is smarter- I never expected that, but he is super quick to learn anything , can easily follow verbal directions like, “look over to your left” - or “look behind the chair” , and can problem-solve 2 or 3 steps ahead and easily outsmart the other dog. I think he’ probably a jack russell mix – he’s smaller than a russell, but he’s definitely got jack russell brain power and attitude.
I’m happy to hear that the small dogs on here are getting trained. One of my HUGE pet peeves with pet parents is when they don’t train their little dogs and then think it’s cute when they are bad. Of course, there are big dogs that are poorly trained too but I haven’t really run into people who encourage their big dogs to misbehave because they think it’s cute.
Yesterday, Mr. R took our dog out for a walk and a little dog came running out of a yard and started attacking her. He picked up our pit and pushed away the other dog. The owner came out and thought it was funny that her dog was attacking mine. She was laughing when she called the dog (who wouldn’t come) and just gave an off-hand apology. I wanted to go find her house and give her an earful. My dog could kill hers with one bite and she thinks it’s funny?! (I am clearly still a little angry- and I wasn’t even there!)
Well, my dogs are not allowed off leash outside anywhere other than the enclosed, fenced back yard – where they can’t be seen from the street. Every once in awhile there’s an escape and the accompanying romp – but of course I am on that immediately. I’m pretty much annoyed at all dog owners who allow their dogs outside unleashed in the residential neighborhood – for example there is a guy with a very friendly lab pup who is working hard to train his dog, but that didn’t stop the pup from bounding across the street last week to greet us as I came by walking my too. That’s an example of an owner who thinks he’s taught his dog all the commands – but it only takes one lapse for a dog to become road klll.
However, the priorities for training a small dog are different than a large one. For example, it important for me to teach my little guys to jump up onto the couch on a signal, so that I don’t have to bend down to the ground when I am putting on their leashes or need to handle the dog for some reason. (Of course I am 60+, if I was a couple of decades younger I probably wouldn’t mind all that bending). I taught my little guys “wait” when they are on leash and I want them to stop walking, but not to sit at those times – because sometimes I need to be able to scoop a dog up in a hurry in situations like Mr. R. ran into – and with a little guy, that’s easier from a standing position than a sit.
I’m home today nursing a cold and the dogs are going nuts with the fireworks…
“However, the priorities for training a small dog are different than a large one.”
It reminded me of a Herman cartoon: a large guy with a teeny-tiny dog on a leash talking to another dude, “He is not potty trained, but who cares?!” 
Well, I think the potty training is pretty important with ANY dog. 
We had a deaf pit bull, 70ish lbs IIRC, maybe 8-10 years old. We think he lost his hearing in the last few years of his life. In any case, we used hand signals which he picked up quickly. He did not bark, except when he was lonely and wanted attention.
I think size is something to think about. We had a Samoyed and a Pekingese when I was a teenager. While the Samoyed was a wonderful dog she didn’t fit in the car very well and when she got older the only one in the house that could pick her up was my dad. Our beagle fits in our car and goes places with me and I can pick him up if he gets hurt.
After the incident with the little dog going after my pit, we’re bringing size much more into the situation. Mr. R was able to pick up our dog to keep both dogs safe but that wouldn’t be possible with a bigger dog.
I accidentally ran into an adoption event today when I went to get dog food. There was a baby dog there (like 6 months I’d say) that was a Boxer/Hound mix. She was the sweetest thing and came up to me and demanded belly rubs. We aren’t ready for a dog for a few weeks but leaving was so hard even though I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that we aren’t ready.
Sigh.
You know the dog is deaf if you say “Sit!” and he makes a mess on the floor. (basis of old joke).
On my way out the door so didn’t get to read the whole thread, but if you are still considering a deaf dog you can talk to me about it. Deafness can be an issue in my breed so it’s something I know a fair bit about.
I think I’d focus more on what kind of dog is good with toddlers since that is in your future plans. The other thing to think about is what dog is going to be good with your child’s friends. I have to say I was never comfortable leaving my child to play at my girlfriend’s house when she had German Shepherds. Same with my son’s friend’s Doberman. There’s a reason why labs are so popular with families since they are easy going reasonably smart dogs that tend not to bite.
For me after I had kids the dogs became way less important in my life so that might be true with you too.
Just got back from visiting S and family, which includes a Boston Terrier they got as a pup, totally deaf. Hand signals, and never off leash unless in an enclosed area. Totally wonderful pet, and granddaughter, now 2.5 y is great with him, too.
Good Luck, romani
I have a deaf Sheltie whom a rescued from a puppy mill as a very young puppy. He was the result of a double merle breeding and thus deaf from birth and he has now lost most of his sight (he only sees faint shadows on one eye and won’t even have that in time). He wasn’t hard to train- I am an experienced handler and also fluent with ASL so we taught him basic sign-language commands and simple phrases, which served him well when he could see us.It’s a lot more difficult with him now that he is six years old and with very limited sight.
Even though he’s profoundly deaf, our dog will bark to get attention (sometimes it’s very difficult to get him to stop!) and he loves to be vacuumed!
I wouldn’t recommend a deaf dog for a first-time dog owner or for a family with very small children/rough kids simply because they startle a little more easily (if one come “already trained”, they are great with kids, I’m only referring to tiny puppies and curious toddlers).They do take a lot of patience and love but they will return it a hundredfold. Check out the Facebook page of the Double J Dog Ranch- they take in deaf pups (many also have sight problems) from all over, give them needed medical care and training and then place them in forever homes.