Instructions
Go to a basic obedience class with your dog. Make sure that your potential service dog has all the basic obedience commands down. It will help to use both verbal commands and hand signals because once you start training the dog to assist a deaf person, the dog will be responding mostly to hand signals. You can find a basic obedience class in almost every city in Arizona.
Praise your potential service dog for every trick that it learns. Use treats and lots of petting as rewards. Normally, one would use verbal praise, but if your dog works with the deaf get it accustomed to the type of praise it will receive. Do not ever punish your potential service dog because this will cause it to fear humans and it will be less likely to succeed as a service dog.
Socialize your potential service dog by bringing it into all sorts of environments, including ones that include deaf people. Let the dog interact with deaf people and a variety of other people before you start its service training. This way, your dog will get used to all sorts of people and environments and will not scare easily while working with a deaf person.
Attend service dog classes with your dog. Handi-Dogs is a company in Arizona that specializes in designing service dog classes to meet individual needs.
Register your dog with Service Dogs America and similar organizations. This will let people know that your dog is officially a service dog.
Keep working with your dog on a daily basis and practice with it as much as possible. The dog will continue to learn new deaf service dog commands as long as you keep working with it and praising it along the way.
How to Train Dogs for the Deaf in Arizona
Training dogs for the deaf is one way to ensure that your service animal can support a person in need. In Arizona, you can train your dog first in obedience school and then at a service dog training school. If you have a dog that is smart enough to become a service dog, it will learn quickly and eagerly and will be a great asset when finished with the training.