Meet Henry, my Sound Support Dog, and my very own four-legged hero who’s changed the way I live and work as a food photographer.

 

 

For those who don’t know me, I’m partially deaf, which brings a few challenges into daily life. I often miss what’s said, don’t always hear cars behind me, and even simple things like timers or alarms can go unnoticed. At night, I wouldn’t hear a fire alarm on my own.

That’s where Henry comes in. He solves all of these problems and, as a bonus, gives the best cuddles imaginable.  He’s also keeping me fit which is an extra bonus.

Henry is now my fantastic CEO – Chief Entertainment and Exercise Officer!

Living with Deafness

Living and working with hearing loss can be challenging and exhausting.  Without my hearing aid I’m lost in noisy situations but in very noisy situations that’s made even worse as the hearing aid picks up and amplifies ALL noise.  Even in quieter situations my hearing aid doesn’t always pick things up, and I can be totally lost if someone has their back to me.

All of this makes listening as a partially deaf person really hard work, the concentration that has to go into it is exhausting.  It impacts on your confidence too.

So finding out about Hearing Dogs for Deaf people and the journey that followed was a real eye opener.  There were months of preparation and anticipation not knowing when or if I’d get the call that they’d found a ‘match’.  They take this match very seriously indeed as they are intent on the the best outcomes for both their dogs and their humans.  You can read more about what they do, the types of dogs they supply and how here

Henry’s Arrival

It was in February this year that I got the long awaited email saying they had a match, that Henry had passed his last test and was ready to come to me.  There was a little photo of him with the email and my heart just melted.  He has the most adorable face and I was smitten at first look.

We had lots to do in preparation including a lot of fencing to ensure the garden was dog proof. Lots of learning materials too.  But finally the big day dawned.

On the 24th March Henry moved in!  He came with his bed, toys, collars, leads, harnesses, food, you name it it was there as well as his records for the vet and more.

We then had two weeks where I took time out and we all settled in.   I’d been so concerned about if he would settle and nervous about how we would work together.   Looking back there was never any need at all.  He’s amazing.

At the end of our first two weeks we all went off to Yorkshire to the Hearing Dogs for Deaf People’s centre there to spend a week with others in the same position as us.  What a fabulous week that was and what a difference it made.  We did lots of work in that week that set us up for everyday life when we came home.

He settled in just fine and by the time his first birthday with us came around it was like he’d always been with us.

Henry’s 3rd Birthday

Henry was almost 3 when he joined me, and so this was his first birthday with us.  So I wanted to be able to remember it.  I decided a birthday cake and a candle was the way to go for a birthday shoot.  I was a bit nervous, thinking I’d have to be fast or the cake and possibly the candle would be gone!

But no.  Henry was a perfect gentleman, obviously thought the cake was mine and wasn’t going to touch it, even when I first offered it to him after getting the shots I wanted.  My cocker spaniels and previous lab would have demolished it the moment they reckoned they could beat me to it.  But not my Henry bless him.  He’s an absolute treat.

Life With Henry Now

Now here we are nearly 7 months in and he’s just amazing, its like he’s always been here.  He’s such a lovely dog, kind, gentle (though he does like a little bit of rough and tumble now and then), perfect recall, fantastic sound work and he’s amazing around food!  Won’t touch anything that might be mine.  Given what I do and the fact that he’s a Labrador … that is nothing short of amazing.

Other dogs food mind you he regards as fair game …..  As my grand dogs found out to their dismay.

He rarely barks and has settled just fine into the studio and studio life.  He has his own bed but much prefers being cuddled up on what he now regards as his sofa!

He tells me when there’s someone at the door, alerts me to timers I would miss otherwise.  He is brilliant at all our sound work and best of all is just such a companion.  Possibly best of all he ensures I get regular breaks which I’d otherwise not take and keeps me exercised!  What more could I ask?

As the year has gone on I’m more and more in awe of Hearing Dogs for Deaf People and the work they do and I wanted to give back.

October and 100 Miles

So here we are in October and I set us up to walk 100 miles for Hearing Dogs to raise funds for them to help other people who really need their support.  As of the 24th October we are 83 miles in and have passed our funding goal – though more is of course very welcome indeed.

We’ve been exceptionally lucky with the weather, which has been a huge relief.

Henry hates water, he’ll jump over puddles, runs away at the thought of getting wet, won’t suffer to go in the sea and will refuse to go out in the rain.  So this could have been a battle ….  Thankfully not.  So far we’ve covered 83 miles and raised £225 of our £200 funding goal.  It’s not a huge amount but every little helps.
Henry has brought me so much joy, safety and companionship and I’m so, so grateful to them for making this happen, hence me doing this challenge.  If you’d like to help more people with their incredible support then please consider donating here:  https://events.hearingdogs.org.uk/fundraisers/suetodd/greatbritishdogwalk

If you want to follow on our progress you can follow my Instagram Account for Henry – Daily Walks With Henry

Come and Work with Us!

Of course if you’d like to come and work with us and meed Henry you’d be more than welcome, just drop us a message and we’ll book you in.