Deaf and Blind Australian Shepherd Thinking His Pool Is Closed Gets an A for Effort

There are two types of people in the summer: those who want to forget that it's summer and sit in the air conditioning and those who want to be outside all the time. Personally, I'm more of the former, but I might consider making an exception if there's a pool around.

One Australian Shepherd seems to share my sentiment: he may be blind and deaf, but he still lives a normal life, and that includes swimming in the summer. However, his condition definitely has its challenges, as we can see in this video from Tuesday, July 16th:

Tamale the Double Merle Australian Shepherd may be having a hard time with the gate, but he's lucky. Mom was there to let him know that the pool was actually open!

Related: Deaf and Blind Dog's Way of Communicating with Buttons Is Just Incredible

Tamale is 5 years old, and he was adopted from a shelter after being dumped there by the breeder after no one wanted to buy him because he's blind and deaf. He's an Australian Shepherd, at least in part - they believe he may be mixed with something else, too.

This is not the first time Tamale has been bested by a gate; there are several videos of this happening on his page. His mom works with dogs everyday as a groomer, so luckily, she has the patience of an angel. After he failed to find the gate opening, his mom was sweet enough to guide him to it, so don't worry, he definitely still got his swim time in!

Australian Shepherds are at Risk

Tamale isn't just an Aussie mix: he's a Double Merle Aussie mix. That means that, whatever his parents may be, they were both carriers of the Merle gene. When one parent is a carrier, the dog has a chance of having a spotted coat and no other effects. However, if both parents are carriers, they have a 25% chance of their pups being deaf/blind.

There are some breeds that have Merle coats most often, including:

1. Australian Shepherds
2. Border Collies
3. Great Danes
4. Corgis
5. Catahoula Leopard Dogs

Australian Shepherds are an energetic, yet easy-going breed that everyone, novice pet parents and experienced caretakers alike, can appreciate. Breeding for a Merle coat is not considered unethical, since there are no impacts to the dog's overall health when they're just a carrier. Even so, Merle dogs should be handled with caution, meaning spayed/neutered as soon as possible to prevent pregnancy. You never know what another dog might be carrying!