Coventry deaf woman says her cockapoo stops her feeling anxious

“Without her my world would be a lot smaller.”

Before Karin Huntley, who is deaf, got cockapoo Harper to hear for her, she admitted she struggled to leave her home in Coventry and got incredibly anxious.

“Even just trying to catch the train I would nearly have a panic attack as I was so nervous,” the 39-year-old said.

“I don’t like asking a stranger for help, I always feel awkward and insecure but having Harper by my side, I’m able to feed off her confidence.

“Nothing phases her, so seeing her in a situation that might make me anxious helps me to calm myself down again.”

Born with perfect hearing, Ms Huntley began wearing a hearing aid in her early 20s – but a decade later her hearing suddenly deteriorated and she worried how she would live alone.

While applying for a cochlear implant – which provide the sensation of hearing but do not restore hearing – she reached out to Hearing Dogs for Deaf People.

The charity trains dogs to alert deaf people to a variety of sounds – and Harper fitted right into Ms Huntley’s life.

“I couldn’t imagine life without her now… She gives me a feeling safety, if the fire alarm went off, I know without a doubt she would wake me up,” she said.

“Dogs like Harper are raised specifically to do this very important job to help someone like myself.

“A simple thing is the alarm clock. I used to worry about oversleeping, but now Harper will always be there.”

Ms Huntley said her new-found confidence had helped her visit new places.

“We are with each other nearly 24 hours a day, she comes to work with me, she is constantly listening for sounds for me,” she said.

“We’re always there for each other and I know she has got my back.”