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Photo by Jennifer Smallwood

Lottie Dot was dumped on a highway in the middle of a snowstorm when she was only eight weeks old. Except for an act of serendipity, she would have frozen to death in the snow.

Patricia Belt’s son was driving cross-country to visit her one February, when he came upon what looked like a lump of snow on the road. He swerved, skidded to a stop, then got out of his car. Looking up at him was a tiny Dalmatian pup. She was frightened, malnourished, and very, very cold.

When Patricia took Lottie to the vet, it was discovered the little pup was deaf in both ears. Using American Sign Language, Patricia trained Lottie – who now knows an amazing 40 commands! Lottie can balance a bone on her nose, flip it and then catch it in her mouth. She jumps through hula hoops and plays peekaboo by covering her eyes with her paws. Lottie is an honorary member of the local fire department, and learned too stop, drop and roll, so that she can demonstrate the life-saving technique to schoolchildren.  And after every trick, Lottie takes a bow!

Lottie visits in hospitals, seniors’ centers, and rehabilitation facilities. (She is so busy, that she even has her own resumé!) She also takes part in the R.E.A.D. (Reading Educational Assistance Dog) program – which encourages literacy by having children read out loud to a dog. Lottie nods with approval when the children show her pictures and even gives them the occasional “high-five.”  “Lottie can’t hear these precious kids read a single word,” her owner, Patricia says. “She hears in a different way; with her heart.”

However, there is something unsettling about Lottie’s story. According to the Dalmatian Club of America, Lottie should have been euthanized when she was only eight weeks old.

About 12 percent of dalmatians are born deaf. This is a congenital defect and one that breeders are determined to eliminate. The Dalmatian Club of America mandates that all deaf puppies should be euthanized, rather than bred, sold, or given away as pets. The rationale for this, according to club literature, is that deaf dalmatians are difficult to train. They “lack the power of reason and the ability to read a situation and act accordingly,” they startle easily and are “potentially dangerous.” As a result, they would “lead a sadly neurotic life.”

“A deaf dog is continually startled, especially when asleep. Too many children have faced the plastic surgeon’s knife after innocently touching a sleeping, deaf dog… a dog which in every other way was the most perfect pet imaginable. DEAF DOGS ARE POTENTIALLY VERY DANGEROUS,” the literature states.

It is suspected that Lottie’s breeder had given her a BAER (brainstem auditory evoked response) test that measures hearing response. When it was discovered she was deaf, he had dumped her on the road. (BAER tests are usually given to Dalmatian pups when they are two months old – the same age Lottie was when she was found.) Perhaps the breeder had decided that he didn’t want to pay the cost of having the pup euthanized, or they didn’t want word to get out that they’d bred a “defective” dog.

In 1993, 42,816 Dalmatians were registered with the club. 12% of this number is 5138 dogs.  Over 5,000 dogs – according to club policy – should be euthanized.

Looking at Lottie, it is difficult to understand this.  “It’s heartbreaking,” Patricia says. “Just think of all the Lottie Dots there could be in this world. Think of all the joy that they could bring.”

Dalmatians are a very old breed, and often thought to be the first dog deliberately bred for certain characteristics. One of those characteristics is their distinctive coat spotted coat. Dogs with patches – large areas of continuous color, often found around the eyes, ears, or at the base of the tail – are disqualified from competition.. About 12% of Dalmatians are born with “patches.” And ironically, the presence of patches has a reverse correlation to the deafness gene. In other words, patched dogs are less likely to be born deaf. So breeding for patches – which is prohibited in the breed standard – might actually lower the number of deaf dogs.

In the past many breeders routinely euthanized patched puppies at birth, rather like they now euthanize deaf puppies. Perhaps in the future deaf puppies will also be spared.

The Deaf Dog Connections, Advocacy, Resources & Education, Inc. is dedicated to promoting the health, welfare, and quality of life for deaf dogs.  For more information, please visit: www.D2Care.org

Do you agree with the Dalmatian Club? Should 12% of their breed be euthanized?