Dogs and their owners have a special connection that you can’t understand unless you’ve had a dog. Like any relationship, there is the potential for joy and happiness, even with all the doggy cleanups and messes! For a loving owner, almost nothing will stop them from doing what it takes to see them happy and healthy. One man goes to the cutest lengths to ensure his pup is as happy as can be.
Aiden Mann has one of the cutest relationships with his pet you have ever seen!
Relationships require sacrifice, even those with dogs! It takes time, effort, and intentionality to build trust and a working relationship with any human OR dog. Aiden and his dog have a special relationship that requires a unique sacrifice on his part.
Mann has a rare and special dog.
What makes Aiden and his relationship with his dog so special is the nature of his pet. Aiden’s dog is a double Merle. A double Merle is a genetic deformity that can occur in breeds and cause deformities. Aiden’s dog, Plum, is completely deaf and blind.
Aiden and his pup, Plum, have unique circumstances. Plum is what’s known as a doubly Merle. Simply put, a double Merle is a genetic trait that can occur when two dogs with the Merle gene breed. Occasionally, you get a double Merle.
Double-Merle occurs from a specific set of circumstances.
This genetic disease results from two dogs with the Merle coat gene. Merle coats are the piebald “Aussie shepherd” looking coats that are quite beautiful. When a dog has two parents with this coat breed, there is a 25% chance that their offspring will have the double Merle gene. This often causes issues within the inner ear and the eyes.
This genetic combination can also turn a dog’s coat white!
Lethalwhites.com says:
“These dogs are also sometimes (inaccurately) referred to as lethal whites (this is considered by many to be a derogatory term). Merle is a dominantG gene (technically, it’s “incompletely dominantG“). A dog with one copy of the gene will have partial lightening (a normal merled coat). With two copies, the effect is doubled, resulting in some to most of the coat turning white.”
Since Plum is completely blind and deaf, Aiden has some special routines he developed to help with his friend.
With her special needs, Plum interacts with the environment differently. Vibrations and air currents have a large part to play in their routines. Also, it’s one of the CUTEST things we have ever seen!
Waking her up is a cute and fun ritual that Aiden performs daily.
Since she can’t sense the environment around her with hearing or sight, Aiden can’t call her name or whisper to wake her up. It would also be too much to put his hand on her because it would be a shock to feel someone touching you and have no idea who it is!
Each morning (or any time he wakes her up), Aiden gets down on his belly and gently blows on her nose.
As he gently blows on her nose, she jumps up, confused and startled as to what is going on! It is beautiful the care that Aiden takes with her.
Plum moves around until she feels the comfort of Aiden’s arms around her.
Like most of us are, Plum can get confused and startled right when she wakes up. That is, until she feels her friend’s arms wrap around her. Once she realizes who it is, we see the equivalent of a doggy smile come out.
You can see the strength of their relationship in this simple routine.
The care that Aiden takes with his pet is extraordinary and beautiful. There is a gentleness that is obvious in the way he approaches her.
Despite having special needs, Aiden loves Plum. There is a heartwarming lesson in the sacrifice and time he give s for his pup, isn’t there?
Aiden used the hashtag #doublemerle, and there seems to be a community of people living with double Merle pups! Check out Aiden’s video at the bottom!
Here is another example of a cute little family! They taught this Aussie how to wake up his deaf and blind brother gently!
@aussiebears_coop_len##Aussies ##doublemerle ##deaf ##specialneeds ##australianshepherd♬ This City – Sam Fischer
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@aiden_m365Yes I know I have a hole in my shirt lol ##plum ##deaf ##blind ##doublemerle ##fyp ##fypage ##cute ##dog♬ Surrender – Natalie Taylor
