At what age will we know if a Dalmatian puppy is gonna be deaf?

Question

We are collecting a Dal pup - ***** - from the breeders next week. She is having her hearing tested on Friday. The breeder says that she can definitely hear, as she responds to commands and other noises. We realise that this does not rule out unilateral deafness. When does the 'hereditary' deafness in the breed appear?

It appears that I've used a defamatory word!! Sorry - please substitute the asterisks for - FEMALE!

Answer 1

the deafness gene is paired with the blue-eyed gene... only the blue eyed dals have hereditary deafness.

colored contacts won't help.

Answer 2

I understood the test was done by a vet at 6 weeks, you may want to try a specialist website to get this info.
Deaf dogs react to movement and other clues so you are right not to trust the breeders belief that the pup can hear; there is only one test for this and it has to be administered by the vet.
Fingers crossed you get a good result.

http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk/health/baer-hearing-test.htm

Answer 3

When they do the BAER test, that will tell whether she is deaf or not.
Also, Dalmatian pups with blue eyes are said to be deaf but I'm not sure about that.

Answer 4

UH, after the BAER test, you will know. IF they are deaf, they are BORN that way.

For using the "bad" word..use spaces..bit ch!!!

A Dalmation does not have to have blue eyes to be deaf!!! IF it was that easy, there would not be BAER testing!!!!!!! Not all blue eyed Dals are deaf either!!!!!

Answer 5

My friends dalmatian lived to be 16 or 17 and he never went deaf. I wouldn't worry about it

Answer 6

I don't know much about Dalmations, but below is a link from the Dalmation Club of America that might help.

Answer 7

the dog could just be ignoring you