In his first seven months of life, little Ivor struggled with confusion. He had spent a large portion of his life in numerous adoption centers and animal shelters. He lived in five different residences in a single year, and at the end of 2017, he was staying at the RSPCA after becoming homeless a sixth time.

The person who gave it back said that it was an unruly dog. However, when rescuers tested his hearing, they realized why his owners were so frustrated: he was completely deaf.

Ivor’s deafness was unknown to each household, so they eventually gave up on him. Fortunately, the personnel at the rescue facility immediately started teaching Ivor sign language. And he caught on quickly.

The volunteers initially taught him how to approach, after which they moved on to teaching him additional instructions.

Shortly after, Ivor was placed for adoption and met Ellie Bromilow, who would soon become his mother. As soon as she met him, she fell in love, and the rest of the family immediately decided to adopt him.

Ivor had previously been taught some fundamental instructions by the RSPCA using sign language, but Ellie was eager to learn everything she could so that she could give Ivor the education he had been missing in the other homes.

Ellie stated to Metro:

He had already been taught orders like “sit” and “come” by the RSPCA center personnel, but now he is much more familiar with commands like “lay down,” “stay,” and “turn about.”

He particularly enjoys using his acute nose to sniff out delicacies that his mother has stashed about the home.

On Ivor’s Facebook page, Ellie posted:

“While some dogs can miss things, my eyes are trained to study everything; even when I’m asleep, I can see everything, hear footsteps and feel the vibrations from doors, and I can smell a piece of ham from about a kilometer away. Ellie even speculates that she may have worked as a sniffer dog in the past!