Blind dog experiences? Update

[DebW]

Our beautiful 5 yr. old bullmastiff, Barney, developed cataracts.  We thought we were doing the right thing by having them removed at a very very good animal hospital (it has its own opthomology department and came highly recommended).  Barney ended up being one of those statistics you hear about.  The surgery resulted in uncontrollable glaucoma and blindness.  Four days after surgery, he was seeing wonderfully and the next day he woke up totally blind.  I can't even begin to describe what we went through.  Guilt, grief, panic, and then acceptance.  I don't think I ate or slept normally for almost 2 weeks.   Barney didn't respond to emergency treatment like other dogs.  They feel there must be a genetic abnormality.  We finally went through a laser proceedure that kills off some of the cells that produce the extra fluids.  This has stabalized the eye pressures, but he's still on mulitple eye drops each day.

The good news is that Barney is adapting very well.  He was extremely well trained and trusting before this happened and is quickly learning how to get around as a blind dog.  He's learning the house quickly and loves visitors and walks outside.   What I'm looking for are suggestions to keep making his life a more fun again.  What types of toys besides the typical squeeky ones might work (Keep in mind that he can chew though most anything except very tough rubber).  Any other suggestions, experiences, or encouragement would also be much appreciated.

[Kacee9]

We had a terrier mix that went blind when she was eight years old, apparently this was something common in spayed females of that breed when they hit eight years.  She lived to be eighteen and had a very happy life even without sight.  The biggest suggestion I would give you would be to not move the furniture.  It sounds simple but some people completely overlook this fact and it is really much easier on the dog.  I would also suggest that if you have any stairs to put up baby gates to keep him from falling down the stairs.  We taught our dog that the word "bonk" meant that she was about to run into something and she would turn around.  Then she went deaf and that did not work anymore but we had another dog, a Border Collie/Queensland Heeler Mix, that would herd the other dog around and keep her from running into things.  Please don't blame yourself, you were doing what you thought was best for your animal and that is all anyone can do.  Good luck and we would love to see pictures of your boy

Kendra   

[Ratwings]

WOw, poor Barney! My 12 year old miniature poodle Rocky has cataracts.  The ophthalmologist said that he has nerve damage in the left eye and even if the cataract surgery were done, he would not have vision in that eye. The right eye is healthy behind the cataract (which is not completely formed yet), but he did say that the surgery may not work. At $2,000 for one eye, WITH my professional discount, I have decided to not have the surgery done at the moment (if ever), although every time Rocky bumps into something I feel so guilty.  He is slowly losing sight in his right eye. He gets around the house fairly well mostly, but he sometimes bumps into the other dog (who doesn't care/notice thankfully) or he bumps into things that move around, or may be placed on the floor (laundry basket, shoes, etc). The other night he fell off the porch steps when he was going inside. Otherwise he seems to be doing well and adapting.  The fact that it is gradual is helping him adapt better I think. I can't imagine a sudden loss of vision!  Sounds like Barney is doing well so far though.  There is a book about living with blind dogs: http://www.petcarebooks.com/
I also found these websites:
http://www.blinddogs.com/
http://blinddog.info/
http://www.handicappedpets.com/acc/harness/index.htm (there is another website that shows how to make a simpler, and more comfortable version of this, but I just can't find it!

[DebW]

Thanks.  The blind dog forum looks like it might have some ideas.  I actually have the book Living With Blind Dogs.  It devotes a large section to the kind of training that Barney already has, but it has some excellent suggestions for the house and additonal commands.  We've added the words "step" and "careful" to his vocabulary.  With those, we can handle 2-3 steps in and out of the house.  Barney would think he was being really picked on and tortured if we ever set him up in a harness like that  .  Bullmastiffs don't generally go ramming around anyway and he's learning to walk slowly around places he's not sure of.  We're finding that he doesn't even bump iinto things at all in rooms he's in all the time.

Our main problem is that he hasn't been allowed toys until now (post surgery instructions) and we're having an awful time getting him reinterested in them.  He's not even really interested in his favorite squeeky ones.

[DebW]

Update:  Barney is doing wonderfully.  He'll never see again, but his old personality is pretty much back.  He knows his way all around the downstairs and can make it up and down the long flight of stairs to the 2nd story (with us using the words "step" and "up").  He's playing again and pretty much fools strangers into thinking he sees.  He has found all his old potty spots when we walk him and can go right to them.  The cat has learned to signal where he is and Barney is good at going way around him.

His eye pressures have gone way down, but he's still on expensive drops to keep them there for now.  They backed him off a few and , hopefully, at his next appointment in 7 weeks, he'll be taken off a couple more.

[Ratwings]

That's great news! Glad to hear he's adapting so well.

[Marybelle]

I've seen this post, but, for some reason, it never registered who posted it, or that it would be Barney!  Poor boy.  It sounds like he's adapting marvelously, which is awesome.