Sky’s the limit for deaf dog handler

EAST Londoner Kim Groep is making history by completing her training to be the first deaf dog handler at the South African Revenue of Service (SARS) in South Africa.

Having worked at SARS as a data capturer, Groep said her dream had been to work with customs which led to her applying to become a customs inspector.

With a deep love of dogs, when a dog handler position opened up within customs, she jumped at the chance.

Now in the middle of her three-month training at the SARS training base in Port Elizabeth, Groep said she and her dog Sky are well on their way to becoming equipped to detect endangered species being smuggled through places such as airports and harbours and vehicles.

Endangered species contraband includes ivory, lion bones, rhino horns, wet and dry abalone and crayfish.

Born deaf after her mother battled with German measles during pregnancy, Groep said her parents had made it a priority to ensure she had a place in the hearing world. After moving from one school to another, she completed her education at Dominican Grimley School for the Deaf.

“It was tough growing up being deaf, especially for my parents, because I had to go to speech therapy classes a lot,” Groep said.

“At home my mom used to read books to teach me to talk and make the sounds correctly. Michelle Nel, who is now the manager of Carel du Toit, showed my parents how to teach me.

“My mom had a lot of patience teaching me day and night, and it wasn’t easy because I wanted to rather play outside! My poor mother had to run after me and force me to talk.”

Groep said the speech lessons paid off as she was soon able to communicate with her hearing friends, speaking just like them, without the use of sign language.

Now armed with a hearing-aid, she is able able to pick up sounds including music, which has become a true love, she said.

“My hearing-aids really help me to talk and hear all the beautiful sounds. The best thing is music, which I love hearing and dancing to.”

Mother to a two-year-old girl, Groep said her daughter was aware of her disability but it didn’t affect their relationship. “I also have no problem communicating with my colleagues because I’ve been working with hearing people for a long time,” she said.

“The one issue at the beginning was bonding with our dogs.

“It was difficult to communicate with my dog because Sky had to get used to my voice when I gave him commands.

“After the second week of training, it went very well as Sky listened and our relationship grew stronger.”

Groep encouraged all those who were handicapped, especially deaf people, to never let anything stand in the way of their dreams.

“If you believe in yourself you can achieve your goals. Don’t let anything get in your way to stop you. Just don’t give up,” she said. — zisandan@dispatch.co.za