Has My Irish Setter Gone Deaf ?? Please Help

[Kevin]

Hi All

I would like to know if any of you have experienced the problems that I am facing, and how you managed to solve it.

We have a Adorable little Irish Setter Puppy. As soon as she arrived, we introduced her into a routine and it worked absolutely wonderfully. She is crate trained, during the night and day and gets plenty of exercise.

She was doing so well !!!

At 11 Weeks:

When I say "Sit Matilda"                   She Sits

When I say "Toilet Matilda"               She goes to Toilet

When I say "Go to bed Matilda"         She got inside her crate and allowed me to close the door

Life was so good

Now at 12 Weeks

When I say "Sit Matilda"            She Jumps around and runs to the crate to fetch her fluffy Duck

When I Say "Toilet Matilda"       She attacks my feet, Runs to the couch and bites the nearest Pillow

When I say "Go to bed Matilda"  She runs around in a circle, Bends down and barks.

I'm starting to think she might have gone deaf !!

Please do get in touch,as I'm not sure what has happened to my sweet little Matilda, and if she will ever Listen again 

[Kevin]

Thanks for the advice Gay. We will definitely be consistent, and hope she starts listening soon.

[Eva]

Nothing happened! You have a living being in your family now with a will of its own, a playful cheerful baby , the pup doesn't have to change but you have to be muuuuuch more patient otherwise I suggest to buy a robotor or machine or slave!!

[Sue Paterson]

Irish setters are well known for 'selective listening' or 'selective deafness'. Matilda is clearly quick to learn...that's just something else she's learned quickly!!!

Seriously though, lots of praise and rewards when she attends and obeys will put her back on the straight and narrow for a while:)

[Kevin]

Lol. I love your comment Sue. "Straight and Narrow for a while.

[Marie Szychowski]

Hi Kevin,

Oscar has "selective deafness" - he has it in both ears, he listens, at times chooses not to co-operate. Keep repeating yourself, it does get through (even though you think it isn't), they take a long time to mature:)

[silvia]

yup, i think Oberon is affected as well.. I know he's not deaf since the "selective deafness" attack is often accompanied by a lip that get stacked, say a bit raised, only on one side of the mouth.. (i guess quite a few  IS owners know "that lip" ;)

it is a clear sign that that little motoneuron is moving in his brain, and he knows he's planning to  do exactly the opposite of what he is being told ;)

good luck Kevin and welcome !!!

[Kevin]

Thanks marie and Silvia.
My next attempt was going to try a different language as I thought she might not understand english.
I also know exactly what you mean about the lip Silvia. I honestly thought that she had a bit of a dry mouth and the lip got caught on her teeth. I certainly didn't know other irish setters did it too. A real cheeky monkey breed. Lol

[Marie Szychowski]

Hmm, I looked up savant syndrome on wiki -"almost all savants have prodigious memory..as 'very deep, but exceedingly narrow.' It is narrow in the sense that ..exhibit exceptional memory but have difficulty putting it to use."

They are intelligent but will try to have things their own way:))   

[Fran Griffin]

She needs training to understand the words you say. No puppy of her age can memorise and understand all those words without hours of repetitive and reward based training.  At 12 weeks (I work as a trainer) mine will still be leaning and proofing Sit, down. stay in short bursts, come, go to bed, go toilet and that's with my teaching them. I would never expect them to be proficient by 12 weeks at understanding, their concentration spans are like gnats at that age still lol

[Sue Paterson]

Ha ha! I have a 2 year old gnat Fran! :) and I love him!

[Rachel Ryan]

Hi Kevin

 I am so happy to hear your Puppy has arrived. Sorry I haven't been online, I been in S.A with my sisters and kids for the school holidays . Irish setters are a lot of work, I didn't realize how much until I got Perry.

I have had other dogs before, a Japanese Akita , who are known to be very strong willed, but Perry gives him a run for his money. We did puppy preschool - 8 weeks, paid $300 for a professional dog trainer to come out ( not much help) . All I can say is to hang in there and keep trying, from my experience they like to push the boundaries and are very strong willed, but also fun. Perry is now 10 and half months old and still a big puppy but I have never known a dog to be so loving and try to get almost on top of you for hugs and cuddles. They do love lots of walking and play, sometimes it can get a bit to much. I have read that they do settle down once they mature, about 2 years of age but I am sure they will always keep that cheeky side too. The amount of socks that have gone missing in this house since we had Perry is in the 100's - but hey they keep you fit and happy.

[Kevin]

Thanks Rachel. We will certainly keep trying, as we love her to bits. She is oh so sweet and caring, when she is not carrying my shoes, socks, shirts or anything else she can find around. She has such a  funny personality. Yesterday I got out of the shower to find her sitting up straight on our couch. I got such a shock to see her sitting there with this noble face just looking at the ceiling. God knows what plan she has for the ceiling, once she figures out a way of getting there.