My daughter's dog is going blind

sammyg2 · 01-04-2008, 10:31 AM

Just got back from the vet, my daughter's 5 year old dachshund corgi mix is going blind. Something called acute retinal degeneration, untreatable. It's already progressed pretty far and the vet said he will lose his eyesight completely and it will go quickly. As it is now his retinas are totally unresponsive to light. He might already be completely blind, it's hard to say. He can still get around pretty good with just his nose and ears but he's always bumping into stuff. I told my daughter a joke that we should make him a little crash helmet. She kind of laughed but not really.

I figure as long as he can find his food and water and can be left alone during the day without hurting himself we can get by, but if it gets to the point where we have to put him down how do I tell her? That aint gonna be an easy thing to do. Hopefully it'll never come to that.
He's a great little dog. Well mannered, well trained, and very affectionate. He follows her everywhere, sleeps at the foot of her bed, the whole nine yards. I know it's small potatoes and insignificant compared to what else is going on around us but it still sux.

legion · 01-04-2008, 10:40 AM

How old is your daughter? I think that has a lot to do how to handle the situation. (Though I have no suggestions.)

I guess I was lucky. I was 18 when we had to put my dog down, the dog was 11 (wiemerander/lab mix). We think she had a stroke and she was no longer responsive. I KNEW exactly what was going on and what we had to do.

sammyg2 · 01-04-2008, 10:44 AM

She's 14 and has had the dog for a while now. We got it at the pound as a reward for her making honor role 6 times in a row.
When she sits on a chair the dog lays on her feet. If she's walking, the dog's chin is about 2" behind her heels. When she takes a shower the dog cries because he can't find her.

legion · 01-04-2008, 10:46 AM

I think if the time comes, your daughter is probably old enough to handle it. Small dogs can live to 15 or more. I'd be surprised if the dog didn't last another 4 years.

baldman · 01-04-2008, 10:47 AM

I'm sorry to hear that. I would get in front of the issue now.
We had a Rottweiler who at 10 years old got cancer in both his back feet. It was his third time with cancer (front foot, mouth). We talked it over with the vet and decided he was just too old to go through amputations on one foot, then the other after recovery. When we talked to our daughter about it we said "This is eventually going to force us to put him down, but we can enjoy him now." She was upset (7 years old at the time) but when "that day" came she knew it was for the best.
You may tell her "Some day he may not be able to find his food or water. If that day comes it's not fair to him if we keep him here just for us." Nothing softens the blow of losing a pet, but advance notice makes it a bit easier.

Super_Dave_D · Super_Dave_D's Garage

He will be fine, you wont have to put him down due to being blind. I know a woman here at work whose dog is blind and does just fine and knows where everything is (as long as she dont change things around).

Rikao4 · 01-04-2008, 11:04 AM

Have some friends, both have dogs that have this.
German Sheperd, his eyes are kind of evil looking , great dog and as long as he stays in the yard all is well. He plays catch..listen and finds ball.

Mutt, same on the eyes, same interaction with people and toys.
It's work, but worth it..
Rika

stomachmonkey · 01-04-2008, 11:10 AM

Dog will adapt.

Friends Poodle lived 5 years blind as a bat. IIRC the dog was around 18 when they put it down due to cancer.

tcar · 01-04-2008, 11:13 AM

MY sister has a cocker spaniel that's been blind for over 5 years. He does fine. Occasionally bumps into things that have been moved, but never gets hurt.

When people come to the house they have no idea he's blind. Functions VERY well.

Dogs use smell and hearing to a much greater degree than we do to begin with.

Playing 'fetch' or catch days are pretty much over, tho.

You do NOT put a dog down for this. That'd be wrong.

sammyg2 · 01-04-2008, 11:19 AM

Thank you for the encouragement. I'd never put the dog down unless it was absolutely necessary as in he would hurt himself if left alone of something. Sounds like he'll be OK based on other experiences so I feel better.

pwd72s · 01-04-2008, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sammyg2

Thank you for the encouragement. I'd never put the dog down unless it was absolutely necessary as in he would hurt himself if left alone of something. Sounds like he'll be OK based on other experiences so I feel better.

Good thinking...

speeder · speeder's Garage

Yeah, they adapt to blindness really well. Especially if he's a little house dog, just following her around, he'll still be basically functioning @ pretty close to normal.

This subject hits a little too close for me, I posted a couple days ago about whether to put down my crippled German Shepard, didn't know what the heck to do, so finally I took him to the vet to get his opinion. The vet, (who is a helluva good vet), said that I was basically running a nursing home for the dog and as long as I didn't mind doing it there was no reason to put him down at this time. The time will come before long, (it's a degenerative and fast-progressing condition), so I'm going to enjoy him and vice-versa while I can. Good luck and enjoy what sounds like a great little dog!

LeeH · 01-04-2008, 07:26 PM

Here's a book your daughter might want to read:
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9780440416968
It's a fictional story about a girl whose dog had the same disease.

oldE · 01-05-2008, 03:29 AM

As stated above, your dog will adapt (and seems to be adapting well).

One of our dogs is Colby, a shepherd/husky cross rescued from a puppy mill. We suspect he was blind since birth, but no one really knows.
Colby runs around the yard, knows to stay away from the electric fences and romps with the other dogs. He has problems with stuff that is moved (we make a point of 'showing' him if we've re-arranged stuff in the house.), but his biggest problem is with the other dogs. If he is walking around the house, he can usually smell another dog in his path, but sometimes tails get stepped on. That earns him a sharp bark of reprimand, but it's no biggie.
We sometimes joke about the extra layer of bone in his skull from running into chairs, edges of doors, clothesline post, etc., but he shakes it off and keeps running. In reality, he is less trouble than any of our other dogs.

Keeping her dog with its change of sensory ability will be a great lesson for your daughter, helping her to learn that beings with 'handicaps' are still beings (be they dogs or people) that enjoy life.

Les