Thursday, January 7, 2016

5 Ways to Recognize Vision Loss in Dogs

I have been lucky enough to be Oz’s pet parent for 10.5 of his 11 years, give or take a few months.  I have had the privilege of training him, getting him through his terrible two’s (which in Terriers lasts until they are 5 or 6 years old – who knew?!) and helping him become the adventurous companion he is today. 

Oz the Terrier 5 Ways to Recognize Vision Loss in Dogs

I have also had the privilege of caring for him through some puppy gastrointestinal illnesses, several broken bones in his wrist and enough allergies to make 10 dogs itch.  Now that he is a senior dog, I also have the privilege of helping him age gracefully, which compared to the rest is a bit of challenge for me because I still think of him as my precious puppy or my very active adult dog.

It’s not difficult to notice that he has slowed down with age.  However, it was a slow process for me to notice that Oz is losing his vision.  Call me a bad pet parent.  I just thought Oz was becoming a klutz!  It wasn’t until our big 11-day camping trip that I finally realized Oz cannot see well at night.  He wouldn’t move from his little pet chair once the sun went down, not even for a walk or to bark at approaching critters.

It wasn’t until that realization in camp that I began to look back and recognize some of the other signs of his vision loss.  For most dogs, night vision is the first to go and so it is for Oz.  Maybe you have already been down this road.  If not, here are the 5 ways I finally recognized Oz’s vision loss.

5 Ways to Recognize Vision Loss in Dogs

5 Ways to Recognize Vision Loss in your Dog

1)  Your dog becomes a klutz.  If the lighting in the house was dim, Oz would trip over toys, bump the corner of the wall while turning into a room and even walk into closed doors.  One night we found him under my bedside table instead of in his crate and assumed since they are right next to each other, he got confused.  It made my heart break a little.

2)  Your dog cannot see the treat in your hand until he smells it.  I would hold out a treat for Oz; he wouldn’t see it.  I have to place it directly by his nose for him to “see” it.  Thankfully, his food and water bowls have been in the same spots since we moved here so he can find his meals quickly.

3)  Your dog is nervous or afraid to walk at night.  Oz used to walk in front of me on our nighttime “business” walks but now he walks directly at my side or just behind me.  A little passing shadow can send him into a barking fit at night because he cannot see what is coming at him, even if it is nothing at all. 

This next one, pet bloggers will understand.
4)  If your dog has cataracts or clouding, they will make his eyes look weird in photos.  This one I really notice now as Oz does have some clouding.  Since cataracts and/or clouding block the light from entering the eye and passing through the lens, the light refracts back at the camera giving the eyes a cloudy appearance in photos.

And finally,
5)  Your veterinarian will confirm it.  I may have been a nurse to people, but that doesn’t make me a veterinarian by any stretch of the imagination.  If you suspect your dog is losing his/her vision, take your dog to the vet for a complete eye exam.  We did and yes, Oz is losing his vision.  Thankfully, it is only his night vision for now.

Later this month, I will be sharing some of the steps we are taking to help Oz cope with his night vision loss…that is, if you all don’t mind reading a post written by me instead of “Oz”.

Have you recognized vision loss in your dog?  
What did you do to help your dog cope?



31 comments:

  1. Ello OZ my pal...I had da cattyracts when i waz only 5....day finalee realise wot appenin when i fell into a river coz I dint see da edge!! Pffft

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  2. You made Mum smile this morning (nefer easy in the mornings I can tell you) 'cos you talk so warmly about how each age of dog is a wonderful time, each wiv its challenges (I haf no idea WHAT she means) but so enjoyable wiv your furfriend.
    I finks you should haf one of those miners hats Oz, wiv the light on the front then you can always light your way
    Loves and licky kisses
    Princess Leah xxx

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  3. We can definitely relate to this post as we have noticed a change in the eyesight of both of the girls. Like you said, the night vision seems to be the hardest thing. We noticed that they were staying upstairs much more. When I started turning on more lights for them to see better, it sure made a difference! It is so difficult to see our pets age...

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  4. I was diagnosed with PRA (Progressive Retinal Athrophy) a few years ago and have been losing my sight. Mom says I'm now at least 99% blind. I still know how to find my way around my house and find my way to the yard....but Mommy is so worried what will happen when we move to our new house soon. I'm a little worried too, but I know my pack will help me through it.

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  5. Reilly too also has some sight degradation - his vet explained it is like looking through a haze for him and the main thing for older dogs is not to move furniture - they cope really well with a loss of vision as long as nothing changes in their everyday environment

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  6. Shiner's eyesight seems OK usually... although sometimes I wonder. She was just growling at a jacket on the couch a few minutes ago. BOL. Our vet always used to tell people that clouding is not cataracts, although older dogs can easily develop them. As dogs lose their sight they will have poor depth perception too.

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  7. Roxy has been having night vision loss for about a year or so now. She is still pretty OK in the day light though. A woman I met here has a 10 year old chihuahua that one day looked like he was not feeling very good. I commented on that, and she said he had been off for a few days. Two days later she told me he suddenly lost all his vision. He has been to the doggie ophthalmologist and they are not 100% sure what caused it. 3 possible scenarios, on of which is a brain tumor. So sad for the little guy. And I'm sure very scary.

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  8. Oz...what most informative post. Thank you. Our eyes are the mirrors to our souls and we want them healthy.
    Hugs madi your bfff

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  9. I have none of those symptoms. I guess the first sign is when I start flying into brick walls.

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  10. Great post! Although we haven't had that problem yet, it's nice to learn and be aware of the warning signs!

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  11. We are dealing with this with Indiana right now. She hasn't really bumped into things but she will get down from the bed ad go one way off the foot stool. She also does the same thing when going out the door. At first it was just at my parents house so thought it was a weird quirk. Now she does it here at night that she has to go around me on the right to go our the door even if going on my left has more space. We had a quick exam and she does have clouding in her eyes. The vet said I can do something at home to test it that will be a less stressful way to find the answer to how bad it has gotten. I will be posting about it on my blog as soon as I get things set up to test.

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  12. I have never had a senior dog yet (my first 2 angels didn't live past 8), I will have to watch for these issues in the coming year.

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  13. So far, my eyes are in good shape. Katie also has really good vision, but she is almost deaf. Mom is happy she is going deaf and not blind, but it is something that just happens and one has to be prepared to deal with. Maybe you need some glasses, my friend? The vet did tell us Katie would need cheaters if she was a big reading dog!

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  14. Neither of my dogs have lost vision yet, but they both have eye problems that require drops. Leo has pannus and needs drops and ointment twice a day. He's no problem. But Mia, my senior dog, needs drops for dry eye and she's not having it. It's a problem because when I do manage to give them to her, she wipes her eyes like they hurt, and she acts very betrayed. I hate the idea that I'm making her afraid of me by giving her medicine.

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  15. we goes to an Ophthalmologist, BOL
    Lily & Edward

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  16. Great info. Drew was the only one with eye problems. it was a dry eye issue and we got special human drops from the pharmacy for the condition. She lived to 14.5 years. Corky lived to 16.5 and never had any issues with her eyes..

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  17. So wonderful your mom takes such good care of you OZ We will be looking forward to your Mom's post.
    hugs
    Mr Bailey, Hazel & Mabel

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  18. We know lots of stuff about eye issues at our house, first I cannot see except maybe a tiny teeny bit, and then when mom took gussie to get his nails cut two weeks ago, the vet checked his eyes out and said he has very little vision left, and he is just turning three. Very poor breeding. We still do pretty good though getting around, I cannot go down steps, but mom was surprised about gus.
    stella rose

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  19. Great post! Gabby has some cataracts starting and is a bit more cautious about things.

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  20. Bentley's vet checks his eyes and so far so good. I have been fortunate that all of my dogs have been blessed with good eyesight. I can't say the same for me though! LOL! I hope that Oz's progression is very slow. Being night blind is a pain in the rear. I can't drive after dark.

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  21. Great info! If I ever get vision loss, Mom will probably get me a pair of Prada eyeglasses....

    Love and licks,
    Cupcake

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  22. This is such a great post - so much good information. Phantom lost a lot of his vision in his last two years (age 15 and 16). We could tell at night that he was not sure of where he was when he was out in the yard. One of the advantages of being a multi-dog family - Phantom seemed to follow us around the yard so he wouldn't get lost - he WAS a very smart boy:)

    Thanks for the great post today. Good luck with Ozzie and his vision loss.

    Woos - Ciara and Lightning

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  23. It is impawtent to keep a lookout for this!

    Keep Calm & Bark On,

    Murphy & Stanley

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  24. The good thing is dogs adjust more easily than humans.

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  25. Thanks for the tips. Although our dogs aren't seniors, they will be and I want to be as prepared as possible for that day. I appreciate you sharing your experience.

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  26. Great tips! Being a mostly senior household I appreciate the information, we have been lucky so far and only Bilbo has had vision problems. Looking forward to hearing more!!

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  27. I've got some vision loss too - I can't see treats (or critters) as well as I once could and my eyes have a bluish tint (which da vet said wuz normal aging, not cataracts).

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  28. Aw, you are definitely not a bad pet parent!! I'm sure it's not the easiest thing in the world to recognize a vision problem with our dogs. Funny how once we realize it, it sort of stand out plain as day though!!
    ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!

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  29. We had a poodle when I was a kid and we didn't recognize that she was blind until we moved. She kept walking into walls and couldn't find her food or water bowl. It was really sad. I especially feel bad now that we had no idea before then that she'd gone blind.

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  30. Awe Oz, you can't get old. For dogs if the vision loss is slow they don't seem be be affected as if boom they can't see. You just don't want to go rearranging your furniture too much. I don't know about Carins but chessies have a genetic disease that will affect their night vision.

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  31. Sorry to read this but as JoAnn says most dogs do fin with poor or even no vision. Just make sure Oz understand word cues. We do have our dogs' eyes screened periodically. If you do it at a clinic (usually a dog show) it is only about $40. The ophthalmologist vet screens for cataracts and other genetic eye issues. More follow-up can be done later if needed.

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Thank you for stopping by and leaving a pawprint. I enjoy reading each and every one!
Cairn cuddles,
Oz the Terrier