Walter is a 7-month-old Chihuahua mix who was born deaf. Despite being deaf, Walter loved to play and run around. He would also show his smiling face to everyone.
Walter was staying at Pasadena Humane Society in California when he was met by Julia, a 10-year-old girl, and her mother, Chrissy, at the shelter. He was five months old during that time. He was at a foster care when the shelter staff first noticed that he couldn’t hear. Meanwhile, Chrissy was looking for a dog companion for her daughter.
When Chrissy heard about Walter’s story, she wanted to see him immediately together with Julia. As soon as Chrissy held Walter, he immediately reached for her neck. She instantly knew that she was the perfect dog for Julia. She also remembered that Julia did the same thing she was a baby.
Like Walter, Julia is also born deaf.
Chrissy knew that Walter would be a great companion to Julia since they shared the same disability.
Julia taught Walter to respond to hand signals and gestures. It was amazing to watch how Walter reacts to Julia’s hand commands. He even knew his name by sign language!
Julia was also a good teacher and friend to Walter. She would patiently teach Walter different hand signals and how he should respond.
Julia and Walter’s story were shared on Facebook. It garnered more than four million views. Their story was used by the Pasadena Humane Society as their entry to Hill’s Pet Nutrition’s 2016 Pet Showcase Awards. They didn’t win, though, but sharing the incredible story of these two was enough for them to spread the important message that it was okay to adopt dogs with special needs.
At present, Julia and Walter are still spreading love to other people. They are inseparable and are best of friends.
Photos courtesy of Pasadena Humane via Facebook
