Sponsored Hearing For Dogs For Deaf People Puppy, Yianis Second Update 12 Months On

Yianis has just had his first birthday on 4th April and is growing into a handsome boy! He's now been living with his puppy socialiser since he left his mum and litter mates at eight weeks old and is a fully paid up member of the family helping with the school run and feeding the chickens!

His puppy socialiser says: "Yianis loves food! and stealing things for attention such as remote controls and tissues. He has improved with handling his frustration and walking to heel and is becoming much easier to live with.

As part of his training and socialising, Yianis has visited Exeter and other busy towns, the beach and is a regular on the school runs. A sociable boy, he loves meeting children and adults alike and frequently mixes with other dogs on his free runs. He's recently met people in uniform and enjoys going to the vets.

In puppy class recently, he's been learning to target tape - this is where the trainer sticks a piece of tape onto their leg to encourage Yianis to nudge a specific spot with his nose and in return he will get a treat. This is the start of how Yianis will alert his recipient by nose nudging on their leg when an alarm, for example, sounds. He's also started to work on agility and scent games.

His trainer reports: "Yianis will be working on soundwork and responding to obedience cues in more distracted environments. In class this week he did agility, working around other dogs, targeting tape and clicker training. He still needs to improve on general calmness and developing his confidence in all environments."

Yianis' typical day starts with his breakfast and then a free run in rural fields and woods. He has a walk-in town in the afternoon before collecting the children from school. His last exercise of the day includes another free run and help with feeding the chickens!

Yianis successfully completed his Puppy Two Star in March and has now progressed to 'secondary school’ where he is working on his Three Star. This is the stage where Yianis' training is focused on building on what he has already learnt in 'primary school (Puppy Two Star). He knows what behaviour is expected of him - but he's now given the opportunity to make the correct choices rather than being told what to do.

His training will be focussed on handling him around distractions - working in busy towns, going on public transport, sitting at kerbs, targeting with his nose preparing for his soundwork alert and running to sounds for a toy or food reward.

Yianis has got a lot to concentrate on over the next six months and we look forward to letting you know how he is getting on in his next update when he is around 18 months old.