The family of the 14-month-old dog named Champ recently relinquished their ownership of the dog to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay, a non-profit group, after they could no longer care for him.
The following week, on a whim, a man named Davelis Goutoufas visited the shelter to see which canines were available for adoption. That’s when he met the dog and, in no time at all, worked on taking the dog home with him.
Such beautiful, wonderful adoption stories are common, but the story of Champ and Goutoufas has a deeper connection: both dog and human are deaf.
Goutoufas said that when he entered the dog’s cage, he found out that the animal was really nice. He gave the dog pets and when he was about to leave, the dog barked as if telling him to carry him.
Goutoufas have had Labradors as pets since college, so Champ, a Labrador retriever and Catahoula leopard dog hybrid, immediately caught his attention. And when the shelter employees informed Goutoufas that Champ was deaf, he knew it was fate that they were really meant to meet each other.
Training a deaf dog has a unique set of problems, but a little additional patience makes the process easier. Fortunately for Champ, who has since been adopted and later on called Apollo, Goutoufas is uniquely qualified to face these obstacles and overcome them.
Not only does he have personal experience with hearing loss, but he also taught American Sign Language (ASL) as a professor. According to him, Apollo already knows numerous ASL cues and has quickly learned new ones.
Nowadays, he and Apollo are creating the finest possible forever home for them in Florida, where the dog receives treats, affection, and care.
The shelter volunteers and workers cannot deny that Goutoufas and Apollo are definitely the perfect match!
Source: Humane Society of Tampa Bay