A DEAFBLIND boy from Chester wakes up every morning with a smile on his face, thanks to a new friend.

Seven-year-old Daniel Hall’s new buddy is a Labrador cross golden retriever called Jenna, also seven.

Jenna has come to live with Daniel, mum Helen and dad Chris as part of the Guide Dogs’ Buddy Dog programme, which aims to match specially selected dogs to blind or partially sighted children.

Helen, a diet consultant and former midwife, first heard about the programme at a talk given by the charity Action for the Blind last year and Jenna joined the family in August this year.

Helen said: “When Daniel wakes up he feels Jenna’s fur and it’s lovely when he comes home from school – Jenna gets a toy for him to play with.”

Daniel, a pupil at Dee Banks School, was born on September 20, 2005 with a tracheoesophageal fistula (TOF), an abnormal connection between the oesophagus and the trachea.

Helen said: “At 24 hours old he underwent an emergency operation at Alder Hey to connect his oesophagus to his stomach so that he could feed properly.”

Although the surgery was a success, scar tissue means Daniel’s oesophagus is narrower making it uncomfortable for him to feed, so Helen has to supplement his diet with tube feeds.

Within a week of his birth, Daniel was tested with what was then a new newborn hearing test, now commonly used in hospitals. The test showed Daniel had hearing difficulties.

Helen, who has a grown-up daughter from a previous marriage, describes how she felt at the time. “It was a kind of drip, drip, drip effect with one thing after another. When I discovered that Daniel was deaf I thought: ‘at least he will be able to have hearing aids to help him.’

But during Daniel’s first year of life, Helen noticed that he was not making eye contact with her.

She said: “At first I thought maybe he was autistic.”

Daniel underwent more tests and at 12 months old doctors discovered he was also visually impaired.

“Doctors can’t really say how much he can see,” said Helen. He is stimulated by light and sometimes when I have something small in my hand, he will snatch it from me. Then again, there can be something large quite near him and he doesn’t see that.”

Helen says that Jenna’s arrival has encouraged Daniel and more people interact with him because of the dog. She said: “When we go for a walk in the park, people come up to me and Daniel and ask about the dog.

“Children come up to Daniel, which is great and I am hoping that as he gets more confident, he may be able to use Jenna as support when he walks. He only started walking at the age of five and he doesn’t have very good balance, so I hope he may be able to hold on to Jenna with the support of a harness.”

Jenna is very protective of her new charge, when they are out on a walk.

Helen laughs: “Daniel loves going high on the swings because of the sensation he feels but as soon as I start pushing him high, Jenna starts barking. It’s like she’s telling me off!”

Helen is impressed with the support given by the people at Guide Dogs who found Jenna for Daniel.

“They said they had to find a dog who was ‘bomb-proof’ as Daniel makes loud noises. He also loves to feel her fur and puts his arms around her and gives her a hug.

“We get regular visits from them and help with training.”

To find out more about the work of Guide Dogs and the Buddy Dogs programme, visit www.guidedogs.org.uk