Henry, can you hear me?

Henry was born deaf--- no matter what you did to wake this sleepin' puppy, he was out like a light. You could scream or yell. You could whistle. You could clang pans or open all of the doors and windows when trains came by... Bells, cell phones, high pitches, low pitches, dog whistles, clapping... still, the puppy slept quietly.

Then this happened...

Truth be told, I did cry. A lot. But let's back this story up a ways... Previously, I've mentioned that Henry spent some time with his Auntie Sarah just before spring break. On his trip home, he noticed Cameron, the macaw.

Meet Cameron--- she's dressed like a bumble bee.

Henry was pretty obsessed--- he stared and watched and barked. But the thing is, Sarah became convinced that Henry could hear Cameron squawk. Cameron spends a lot of her day squawking, so I thought it was just happenstance, considering he'd also go running into the room when he realized he hadn't checked on that crazy bird in awhile.

Sleepy puppy the morning after a long night

 of experiments

Fast forward to April 7. Chris and I were sitting on the couch, Henry was sleeping. As a train approached, blowing its whistle, Henry woke from his slumber and ran to the sliding door, barking like a madman! Shocked, not completely convinced, the experiments ensued...

Henry fell asleep, and we'd drop a bottle on the coffee table to make a loud noise; after he popped his head up, we'd let him fall asleep again. I'd whistle without any response. We'd laugh loudly and get a startled puppy. This continued for a couple of hours before I was relatively convinced.

I should clarify for everybody asking: It's like he has earplugs in. And this might be all he gets so I try not to get too excited. (Actually, I rather love that he's deaf a lot of the time.) He can hear the trains, bottles/dishes set on tables/clanked together (loudly), when I whistle, when Kira barks, when the macaw screams, etc... It's not enough hearing to deliver commands, but it's something. And it was pretty exciting to discover.

 

Snuggling with mama after barkin' at trains all night

Sleepy Henry--- remember that toy? It's from the day he came home! This is the first picture I took after gaining his attention with noise.

Fell asleep while playing. I tried yelling to wake him; it didn't work. Still doesn't most of the time.

Mr. Man ignoring me and staring at Kira while she howls