Get to Know Polaris (Part 1)

Lots of people have questions about Polaris when they see him on a wallk or run around town. Everyone is curious about him. Where did he come from? Does he know I'm there? How does he get around? Follow along as we answer some of the most common questions people have when they first meet him.

Question: What's wrong with him?

Answer: Nothing is "wrong" with him, although he may be different from you and me. He can't see or hear.

Question: Does he have eyes?

Answer: Yes, he has eyes. They're just very very small (it's called microthalmia) so they're hidden behind an extra eyelid that dogs have, called a third eyelid.

Question: Can he see or hear anything?

Answer: He can sometimes see shadows or very bright lights in dark rooms, like lightning in the sky at night. Sometimes he gets excited by the laughter of certain friends, or a fire engine rushing past with the sirens going full blast, but we're not sure if he actually hears the noise or feels the rush of air vibrating past him.

Question: How does he know I'm here?

Answer: His nose knows! Polaris' sense of smell is amazing. He can follow his moms around the back yard in the exact path they took -- 20 minutes later!

Question: What happened to him?

Answer: Nothing happened to him to make him go deaf and blind. Polaris was born unable to see or hear. He's what's called a "double merle". That means that his parents both carried "merle" color genes, and when two dogs with those genes have puppies together there is a high likelihood that their puppies may not be able to see or hear, like Polaris.

Question: Does it hurt him?

Answer: No, Polaris isn't in any pain. He just can't see or hear you. Otherwise he lives life just like any other dog. Since he was born without sight or hearing, he doesn't even care that he can't see you or hear you. And we're all happy to love him exactly as he is!

Polaris after running the Statesman Cap10k race in Austin, TX with his mom in April 2024.

Question: Is it hard having a deaf and blind dog? He must not be able to do all the things other dogs can do!

Answer: Certain things happen a little differently with Polaris than they might with other dogs, but for the most part he's just like any other dog. He had to get big enough to be able to feel the next step down our flight of stairs (since he couldn't see it) before he was brave enough to start going down them on his own. Now he charges up and down them like the silly-head he is, no slower than any other dog. When we go on hikes, walks or runs (yes we can go on runs with him), he gets cues such as "step up" via a light upwards tug on the leash, or "step down" via a quick brush of our fingers from his tail towards his neck. When he goes to new places with his moms, they walk him around on the leash first so he can map out his surroundings before letting him off leash (inside or in fenced in yards).

Question: How do you train a deaf and blind dog?

Answer: By touch. Polaris has learned touch cues for more than 20 different commands from his moms. His touch cue for "sit" is 2 taps on his rump, just above his tail. His cue for "good boy" is 2 taps on his heart. His cue for "wait" is 2 soft taps on his nose. "Come/follow" is a light brush of fingers forward under his chin. We don't call him in verbally from outside, we get to go to him and ask him to follow us.

Question: Does he have to stay on a leash all the time?

Answer: No, he has full-reign of our house and backyard and doesn't have to be on leash at all. If we go to a new house/yard, we'll walk him around first on leash so he can familiarize himself with the boundaries and obstacles, then if it's safe we'll let him off leash. He quickly figures out where he can and cannot do zoomies!