Ear Protection for Dogs

Does anyone know where to purchase ear protection for dogs being taken in
single-engine airplanes? It supposedly exists, but I haven't been able to
locate it. Would appreciate any/all help.

--Shirley

"Shirley" wrote in message
...
Does anyone know where to purchase ear protection for dogs being taken in
single-engine airplanes?

Never heard of such a thing. I can't imagine my dog would put up with
something like that. I don't know how such protection would differ from
something similar for twin-engine airplanes.

That said, I'm not sure ear protection for dogs is really all that
necessary. Dogs don't live nearly as long as humans, and probably don't fly
as much as one either, so their total exposure isn't nearly great enough to
create a significant hearing loss.

I suppose there might be some extreme exceptions, such as the 20-year old
dog who flies three times a day, but otherwise, hearing protection seems
superfluous to me. My dog doesn't seem to mind the noise, and he still
comes when I call him.

Pete

"Peter Duniho" wrote:

Never heard of such a thing. I can't
imagine my dog would put up with
something like that.

Well, it *does* exist because I've had more than one person tell me about it.
And yes, it *can* affect their ears/hearing, dogs have very sensitive ears and
some airplanes are *pretty* darn loud ... ever take your headset off? Imagine
riding the entire way like that! True, some dogs don't seem to mind or be
affected, and most people probably don't bother with it ... but clearly some
dogs can't stand it, I've seen that firsthand.

If prolonged motorcycle riding or loud live music can affect a human's hearing
over time, riding in a small airplane w/no ear protection probably could too
.... and even if it doesn't damage their hearing, I really doubt it would be
very comfortable! But thanks for the opinion.

--Shirley

I see nothing "for sale", just lots of anecdotal remedies that various
pilots/hunters have tried. You've probably already found references to
training them from puppies to wear foam earplugs, and that's about the best
suggestion I've found. Certainly better than stuffing cotton in their ears
and then wrapping their head with an ace bandage.

Only other thing I could think of would be to construct some sort of
sound-deadening enclosure for your pet, but that's getting out of hand.

There probably hasn't been enough research into hearing loss in pets to make
a call one way or another about how harmful exposure to a/c noise may or may
not be, but obviously if your pet can't stand the noise it isn't a good
thing. (Although it may be the "type" of noise, and not necessarily the
loudness).

You know, given the number of questions this topic generates, some
entrepreneur ought to be all over this.....

Good luck.



"Shirley" wrote in message
...
Does anyone know where to purchase ear protection for dogs being taken in
single-engine airplanes? It supposedly exists, but I haven't been able to
locate it. Would appreciate any/all help.

--Shirley

"Shirley" wrote in message
...
Well, it *does* exist because I've had more than one person tell me about
it.

Maybe you should get those people to tell you where to find them then. I
didn't say they don't exist. I just said I'd never heard of them.

And yes, it *can* affect their ears/hearing, dogs have very sensitive ears
and
some airplanes are *pretty* darn loud ... ever take your headset off?

1) I never said the noise doesn't affect their hearing
2) "Sensitive" does not imply "fragile"
3) Yes, I know some airplanes are loud

Imagine riding the entire way like that!

No need to imagine.

True, some dogs don't seem to mind or be
affected, and most people probably don't bother with it ... but clearly
some
dogs can't stand it, I've seen that firsthand.

"Can't stand" is not the same as "suffers hearing loss". However, how do
you know that it's the noise that the dogs can't stand? There are any
number of unusual, unfamiliar, and potentially frightening sensory inputs to
a dog in an airplane.

For a nervous dog, it's entirely possible that hearing protection would help
them settle down. However, it's just as possible that it would have no
effect at all.

If prolonged motorcycle riding or loud live music can affect a human's
hearing
over time, riding in a small airplane w/no ear protection probably could
too

Again, I never said no damage is done. I said that the damage done is not
significant enough to be of concern.

... and even if it doesn't damage their hearing, I really doubt it would
be
very comfortable!

You have to weigh the discomfort of the noise against the discomfort of the
hearing protection. Every dog is different, of course. But my own dog was
introduced carefully to airplanes from an early age and the noise does not
cause him concern. However, I know for a fact that anything strapped to his
head would really bug him. He'd spend the entire flight trying to rub it
off.

Your mileage may vary.

But thanks for the opinion.

You're welcome. By the way, my opinion is shared by the three veterinarians
with whom I consulted about hearing protection for dogs in airplanes.

Pete

"Chris Hoffmann" wrote in message
...

I see nothing "for sale", just lots of anecdotal remedies that various
pilots/hunters have tried. You've probably already found references to
training them from puppies to wear foam earplugs, and that's about the
best
suggestion I've found.

You know, given the number of questions this topic generates, some
entrepreneur ought to be all over this.....

Good luck.

You hit the nail on the head. Training is the key, and unless started from
a pup, there are few dogs that will put up with something in/ on their ears.
--
Jim in NC

"Peter Duniho" wrote in
:

snip
But thanks for the opinion.

You're welcome. By the way, my opinion is shared by the three
veterinarians with whom I consulted about hearing protection for dogs
in airplanes.


"3 out of 5 veterinarians don't recommend hearing protection for dogs in
airplanes..."

Shirley wrote:
Does anyone know where to purchase ear protection for dogs being
taken in single-engine airplanes? It supposedly exists, but I haven't
been able to locate it. Would appreciate any/all help.


Dogs bark at what - 400 decibels? And the sound source is quite close to
their ears.

By the dog a nice pair of bose noise cancelling headphones, but don't plug
in the microphone. Their pireps always describe the ride as "rough".

Check this out as one person's protection. This was at a flyin and I
captured the picture.

http://www.eaa323.org/e060802/I58.jpg

Ross

Shirley wrote:

Does anyone know where to purchase ear protection for dogs being taken in
single-engine airplanes? It supposedly exists, but I haven't been able to
locate it. Would appreciate any/all help.

--Shirley

sound-deadening enclosure for your pet

hm...interesting. but if it reduces the sound to a reasonable
level, how would air flow be affected?