It’s one of my pet peeves—when someone thinks my visually impaired (aka blind) dog has become a challenge to care for. But a visually impaired dog is still your friend for life, and like a good friend, you should ensure they are safe in their home environment.
As anyone who has ever tried to help a visually impaired person will tell you, it can be challenging to know just how to help and what to do to ensure someone who is impaired is safe. The same applies to safely supporting your visually impaired dog.
Here’s how to safely support your visually impaired dog.
Why Do Dogs Go Blind?
Nobody chooses to go blind, and there are several reasons why a dog may go blind. The most obvious reason is age-related causes, but there are also certain diseases and injuries that can cause a young dog to become visually impaired.
Diseases Causing Canine Blindness
Genetic conditions and diseases can cause a dog (or any animal) to become visually impaired and even blind. A few typical culprits when diagnosing your dog’s sudden or gradual loss of vision are:
Canine Diabetes
Sadly, people aren’t the only ones suffering from high sugar and carbohydrate diets. Dogs are also developing canine diabetes, which (as with people) affects their eyesight. When blood sugar is elevated, the tissues of the eyes become damaged, leading to visual impairment. This may be full blindness, partial vision loss, or increased light sensitivity.
Diabetes also means an increased risk of cataracts, which can cause blindness.
Glaucoma
Disease may cause a fluid buildup inside the eye (aka glaucoma), which can create pressure inside the eye, leading to clouding of the eye and eventual loss of vision. Medicated eye drops can help manage the progression of the disease, but it can’t be cured. If left untreated, complete loss of vision results.
Suddenly Acquired Retinal Degeneration Syndrome (SARDS)
When your dog suddenly loses all vision in their eyes and their retinas show an unexpected degradation, it’s often the result of a rare condition called SARDS. Little is known about SARDS, but it can be very traumatizing to a dog as they suddenly become visually impaired.
Cataracts
Milky clouding of the eye is usually a cataract that has been caused by trauma or as a response to diabetes. Cataract removal operations can be performed, but not all dogs are suitable candidates for this, and your older dog may have to live with their gradual loss of vision.
Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA)
Some dog breeds are born with a genetic condition that gradually causes retinal degradation, which leads to eventual loss of vision. There is no known cure for this and breeders usually screen their breeding pairs to eliminate this gene.
Autoimmune Conditions
Some autoimmune conditions like Pannis and Uveodermatologic syndrome may lead to loss of vision due to a breakdown in the body’s immunity, which means that the white blood cells attack the eyes and the structures around the eyes.
Uveodermatologic syndrome usually targets light colored eyes in breeds like huskies, Weimaraners, and Australian shepherds. In time, this condition will lead to blindness if not treated with corticosteroids from the initial onset.
Tumors
Finally, tumors are another serious cause of blindness and partial loss of vision. Cancerous growths or tumors form on the eye, covering the retina and blocking vision, or these can also press on the optic nerves, causing visual impairment. Surgery and chemotherapy are the only options to treat tumors.
Blindness-Causing Injuries
Injuries, even from boisterous play with other dogs, can lead to blindness-causing injuries to the dog’s eye or eyes.
Corneal Ulceration
Trauma can cause a wound of the eye, which may lead to a pus-filled ulceration on the cornea. If the injury isn’t treated with medicated eye drops, surgery may be the only option to drain the ulcer and restore vision. If left untreated, complete or partial vision loss may set in.
Trauma
Blunt trauma, such as from a contusion to the head or eyes, may cause blindness in dogs. I think of our old farm dog that was kicked by an annoyed mare, rupturing his eye. The eye had to be removed, and while the dog was lucky in being able to see fine with his other eye, he did suffer partial blindness because of the loss of his eye.
Old Age and Blindness in Dogs
With age, some dogs tend to suffer degradation of their eyes. The retinas may become covered by benign growths, and clouding can happen due to vitamin deficiencies. As old age progresses, the dog may suffer greater vision loss.
Biggest Challenges for Visually Impaired and Blind Dogs
To help your visually impaired dog, it’s important to know what they will need help with and what challenges they will face while they adjust to their loss of vision.
Physical Obstacles
When your dog suffers partial or full loss of sight, they will no longer be able to see obstacles that are ahead of them. Tripping, bumping into things, falling over things, and hitting themselves against immovable objects will become a real challenge.
Your dog will require help navigating their world, avoiding harmful and dangerous items, and finding their way.
Disorientation
Not being able to see, especially if it happens suddenly due to trauma, may be very disorienting to your dog, and they may either refuse to move or run around madly. Guiding your dog to help them adjust to their loss of sight will be instrumental in keeping them safe and avoiding them feeling disoriented.
Anxiety
While dogs are predator animals, they still feel afraid if they are vulnerable. When your dog becomes visually impaired, they will feel anxious and afraid. Comforting them and reassuring them with familiar routines will help them adjust and reduce the likelihood of stress-driven behavior such as nervous chewing or sudden urination in the house.
Depression
Some dogs find the adjustment so great they feel depressed. A dog that used to go running with their human may feel utterly depressed if they no longer go running because they can’t see.
Pain Management
Some conditions that cause loss of sight will also have a pain component that will require management. Don’t assume your dog isn’t in pain just because there’s no outward sign of pain.
How to Safely Support Your Visually Impaired Dog
If you have a relative who suddenly loses their sight, you would take any and all measures to ensure they are safe and comfortable, and you should do the same for your canine partner if they become visually impaired. Here’s how.
1. Keep Things the Same
One of the first steps is to ensure you keep things exactly the same in your dog’s environment. Don’t move furniture around or move their water and food bowls away from their regular place. Your dog will work on memory instead of sight, so don’t displace them by changing things around.
2. Use Your Voice
Your dog still has other senses instead of their sight. Use their keen hearing to help you communicate with them. Call your dog by name, and train them to follow the sound of your voice and listen to specific vocal commands. When you need to signal to your dog that they are about to face a specific obstacle, you can use specific words such as:
“Step” for a step up or down. You can use a lowered tone for a step down and a higher tone for a step upward.
“Careful” when they are about to bump into something. It’s also a good idea to train your dog to then stop moving if you use this command.
“Here” to call your dog over to you by following the sound of your voice if they seem confused or lost.
“Potty” to help them understand when you take them outside and signal they are in a space that’s appropriate for their potty-business.
“Close” to tell them they need to walk next to and touch you if it’s a busy place or a space that’s unfamiliar.
3. Simplify Things
If your home is full of stuff, it’s a good idea to simplify things by removing loose objects that may be in your dog’s way. Ensure coffee tables are far enough from the furniture if your dog tends to jump up.
Keep doorways clear and unblocked. Place magnetic catches on cupboard doors to ensure these are always closed and not left ajar, which can become a serious obstacle to a visually impaired dog.
4. Tag New Pets and People
There will always be moving things such as people and other animals that your dog won’t know are there. Even though they may smell a new dog or a visitor, they won’t necessarily know exactly where that person is.
Tagging that person or animal with a bell on a string or on an elastic band can help your dog use sound location to find where these variable elements to their environment are.
5. Use Smell
Smell is another powerful sense for dogs, and you can use it by placing a specific scent in specific areas to help your dog remember where to go and help them find places. A lavender scent can help them find their bed, while a lemon smell can become associated with the kitchen.
If you do use smells, ensure you keep the rest of your home scent-neutral to simplify things. Use the same smells for people. Keep to the same cologne or perfume and deodorant to help your dog find you.
6. Keep to Familiar Routines
Your dog will need support with familiar routines to help them not feel overly anxious. If you always walked your dog, keep doing it, but use a short lead or a harness to offer them extra support. Some dogs have a favorite friend at the dog park, so keep to play dates so they can socialize and still feel like a dog.
Visually Impaired Dogs FAQs
How can I help my visually impaired dog?
Reassure them with familiar routines and by preparing their environment for success. Small steps like not moving furniture, training them to follow your voice, and placing sound stimuli on different things such as people can help your dog keep track of things they can’t see.
How can you tell if your dog is visually impaired?
When your dog suddenly begins bumping into things or their eyes become watery and cloudy, it’s likely their vision has become compromised. To ensure your dog doesn’t become visually impaired due to a preventable reason, take them to the vet for regular checkups.
Are dogs sad when they are blind?
Some visually impaired dogs struggle to adjust, especially if their owners aren’t correctly prepared. Your dog’s life isn’t over because they lose their sight. Instead, their sustained joy will depend on your reaction to the diagnosis and supportive action you take.
Read More Jack’s Dacks:
- How to Naturally Relieve the Symptoms of Incontinence in Elderly Dogs
- Natural Remedies for Dog Incontinence
- 4 Best Treatment Products for Urinary Incontinence Burns in Dogs
The Final Sight
There are many visually impaired dogs who live a full and active life. With a bit of preparation and some awareness of their dog’s new challenges, a proactive owner can ensure their dog is supported and continues to live an active, healthy, and happy life.
For more information, always consult with your vet, and ensure you take your dog to for regular health checkups to monitor their loss of vision and the accompanying conditions.