The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 64

"They are a dog
first, a breed
second, and they
are deaf third," he
says. "You don't
let their deafness
define them."

ABOVE:

Chris and Christina Lee
with Nitro, a deaf boxer
who inspired them to
start Deaf Dogs Rock.
FACING PAGE:

Christina Lee with Axl
Blu, a deaf puppy who
the Lees adopted in
January.

64

MARCH/APRIL 2019

"It's my job to advocate for the
dog, above all else," says Christina
Lee, who formerly worked in
advertising.
The nonprofit's mission is to keep
deaf dogs out of shelters, where they
could be euthanized, and to equip
owners of deaf dogs with training
tools.
"So often, a deaf dog shows up in
a shelter, and it's at risk. It can't get
the care that it should have," says
Chris Lee, who is a math professor
at Roanoke College.
Their work and training videos

have garnered much media
attention, locally and nationally. This
past winter, they were featured in
American Kennel Club's magazine.
Christina Lee also was invited to
appear on Hallmark's Home and
Family show (she declined because
of the West Coast travel distance).
Last April, The Dodo, a media
company that creates animal videos
and other shareable pet stories,
featured Deaf Dogs Rock's story.
It went viral, with nearly 128,000
views just on YouTube.
When the Lees adopted Nitro,

they searched frantically online for
deaf dog training resources. They
watched videos to learn American
Sign Language and read articles.
But largely, the resources were slim,
they said.
Along with puppy training
courses, they began teaching
Nitro American Sign Language
commands. It wasn't long before a
local television station heard about
them and wanted to do a story about
the boxer puppy who was learning
sign language.
The story was picked up by
national news wires, and soon the
Lees were getting messages from
people across the country asking
them questions about how to train
their own deaf dogs.
Christina Lee knew she had to
do something. Deaf Dogs Rock's
website was born in 2011, and the
nonprofit launched in 2012.
Initially for the Lees, there was
much to learn about owning a deaf
dog, including communication
differences. For example, deaf dogs
may not pick up on certain social
cues from other dogs, such as
growling, because they cannot hear.
The upside is that sounds, such as
fireworks or thunder, do not bother
deaf dogs, as they may hearing dogs,
says Christina Lee. Also, some deaf
dogs may not bark as much as
hearing dogs, she says.
Still remembering that they are a
dog first is key, says Chris Lee.
"They are a dog first, a breed
TheRoanoker.com

KENN BELL (COURTESY OF CHRISTINA LEE)

-CHRIS LEE


http://www.TheRoanoker.com

The Roanoker - March/April 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Roanoker - March/April 2019

The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - Intro
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - Cover1
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - Cover2
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 3
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 4
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 5
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 6
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 7
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 8
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 9
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 10
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 11
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 12
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 13
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 14
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The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 16
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 17
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 19
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The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 20
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The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 33
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The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 42
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 43
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The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 61
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 62
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 63
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 64
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 65
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 66
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 67
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 68
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 69
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 70 [71]
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 71
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 72
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 73
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 74
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 75
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 76
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 77
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The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 79
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 80
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 81
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 82
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay1
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay2
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay3
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay4
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay5
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay6
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay7
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay8
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay9
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay10
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay11
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay12
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay13
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay14
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay15
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay16
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay17
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay18
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay19
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay20
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay21
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay22
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay23
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay24
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay25
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay26
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay27
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay28
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay29
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay30
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay31
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - DDay32
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 83
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 84
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 85
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 86
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 120
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The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 95
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 96
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 97
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - 98
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - Cover3
The Roanoker - March/April 2019 - Cover4
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