Dog blind in one eye

[Mrs Trellis]

Hi folks, just wondered if anyone has any helpful advice.  Yesterday we adopted a very sad little dog: terribly thin, slight heart murmur, blind in one eye.  I haven't had a disabled dog before, tho my last Cavalier developed the heart trouble they often have.

Any tips for looking after a half blind dog?  Last night he slipped a few times on our tiled floor and also out on the street.  I don't know if that was due to his poor sight or general weakness. He has had worm tablets and is due another dose next week but there were worms (some wriggling) in his poo.  I've emailed my vet about that.

[Rabbie]

Ask your vet for a good wormer. Dogs usually manage fine with only one eye so I think his problems are due to his general weakness and not to his eyesight. I am sure he will soon improve under your care

[Judie]

We have a little dog who came to us with a right sided cataract 6 years ago. She manages perfectly well with moving around but we do keep her on the lead when out as she is now getting quite deaf and with the eyesight problems, can follow anyone rather than us! When giving her her food or a titbit, I always make sure I present it on her good side. She also has a heart murmur and a collapsing trachea but you'd never know it.

Well done for taking him on!

[Mrs Trellis]

Thanks Judie!  This one also has a slight heart murmur and may be a bit deaf (the rescue organisation mentioned that on the website but seemed unaware yesterday).  Also he has not peed outside when I've taken him out but done 2 large wees indoors.  I'm wondering if he was an outdoor dog.....  The fosterer didn't mention any problems of that sort. What have we taken on ? !

 

[Chrissie]

If he has a peeing problem, I would confine him to a small space - only one room or perhaps two - in the house until he is used to them and no longer pees there.  Meanwhile, go through the usual routine of giving some sort of peeing command outside and then repeating it with reward if he does pee e.g. "busy boy, busy boy,......yeeessss!  GOOD BUSY BOY!"  etc etc.  Dogs rarely pee where they eat or sleep, so if he is doing this he may have a medical problem.  We have had a couple of deaf dogs and would advise just using simple handsignals* (visible on his good seeing side) with every command - he will cotton on in the same way as a hearing dog.

*We were taught what I believe are standard hand signals in the UK:

Sit:             Clenched hands on chest

Come:         Arms stretched wide

Good boy: Thumb up

Stay:       Hand held up palm towards dog

Our French deaf dog learnt them within a couple of days and has never looked back.

Well done you for taking on this poor little soul - he will soon feel very grateful and happy.

Chrissie (81)

[Mrs Trellis]

I suppose it would be mean to call him Nelson?

 

[Chancer]

I am blind in one eye and share all the problems that your dog has, including not being able to bring myself to pee outside like my compatriots [;-)]

Your dog is however very lucky as nobody is willing to adopt me [:(]

Its a dogs life [;-)]

I forgot to say that now I live in a tiled flat I cannot even drag my butt across the carpet or down the stairs to get rid of the worms [:-))] I guess dong that at other peoples houses may explain why I remain unadopted.

[Gardian]

[quote user="Mrs Trellis"]

I suppose it would be mean to call him Nelson?

[/quote]

Not at all - very appropriate.

The original had 'guts' & a determination to overcome his disabilities / injuries. Hopefully your little chap has too.  

[Kitty]

A close friend had a King Charles spaniel with one eye for at least five years as a result of a car accident.  It did not impair her at all.  So your dog collapsing is likely to be general weakness.

One advantage of a one-eyed dog is that you will not be able to walk down the street without starting up a conversation with a fellow dog owner.

[Mrs Trellis]

Well, 2 days since we collected 'Nelson'.  He had been given worm tabs and was due a 2nd dose next week.   The pooh looks less alarming now and my vet said it was OK to give him the 2nd dose.  She also said the tabs he was given for the heart problem are diuretic.  Anyway, he doesn't ask to go out but if I think it's about time, I get him outside and he performs.

I suspect he's just very old and that explains the leg weakness, heart murmur and blindness.  So long as we can give him love and care it's worth it.  He does become quite lively when I take him out and is very interested in food! He needs to poo immediately after eating.  Maybe because he is so thin his stomach has shrunk?  (Sorry, this is probably too much information!)

[Chrissie]

Just wondering how Nelson was getting on?  Hope he is still improving.

Chrissie (81)

[Mrs Trellis]

Thanks for asking!  Well, he is still not very house-trained.  The person who briefly fostered him says he was no problem and used to go to the door when he wanted to go out.  He was OK for the first 4 nights, but last night seemed restless so was taken out 4 times - and still peed on the floor this morning!  We've had other dogs that have been unreliable at first, so hope he will soon settle down. It gets tedious clearing up.  Also if we need to go out for more than a short time, I wonder what we'll come back to.  We are going to a friend nearby on Thursday and usually take the dogs but I'm not sure I can trust this one.

[Chrissie]

Oh dear, very wearying for you - and probably for him as well.  I think you are right - it is better to return home, and clear up the pee, or whatever, at home, than sit and worry about someone else's house!  Also, he may be freaked out at being taken to yet another new house.......  Has he yet accepted you as his new home and looks forward to the cuddles and talking?  It took our latest little one a good 7-10 days before he (quite clearly) decided I wasn't going to beat him or eat him but just hold him loosely and witter on in my strange silent foreign language.....!

Chrissie (81)

[Mrs Trellis]

Considering he was found wandering and in a terrible state, he seems quite happy and unbothered.  Our other dog, rescued 4 years ago, was so nervous that at first she cringed when I reached to stroke her.  She gradually started to bark when people came to the door, and after a few months she played with a toy. She still leaves the room if someone suddenly shouts or loudly swats a fly. 

Nelson (tho we still say Charlie) is very greedy!  He accepts cuddles and strokes but seems generally passive (except when a friend's big dog got too personal - then there was a bit of a scuffle).  He is probably at least 10 years old.

[Jo]

My friends little dog had to have an op after swallowing a cooked bone, the op was a success, but afterwards she noticed as soon as he had eaten he needed to go outside for a poo very quickly. It turned out the food was going straight through him and his gut wasn't absorbing anything. He continued to loss weight despite eating well and had to be pts. I don't know how much of the history of your little fella you know, but could that be a possibility?

[Mrs Trellis]

That is sad.  I hope not the case here but we have no history.  This dog could have been chucked out because of health problems, not being clean in the house, owner died....

Yesterday he came upstairs at 6.00 am.  I put him out in the street (on a lead) but nothing.  Later we came down to wee and poo.  Today, same time, same story so I reluctantly put him in a dog crate rather than face more cleaning up.  He didn't complain for about an hour and a half and performed when I got him outside!

  He seems reluctant to go out sometimes, possibly the cold as he had a haircut before we took him.  I think he's not too keen on the dark tho we have not-very-bright street lights and I suppose only having sight in one eye makes  it worse.  The rescue people were told the blind eye was not treatable but our vet says it is a cataract.  The other eye has the beginnings of a cataract too.  Apparently an operation might be possible, depending on the state of the retina.  But for a dog of at least 10 and a cost of at least 500 euros - we'll wait to see how it goes.

[Pommier]

I wouldn't feel sorry or reluctant to crate him. Hopefully it will cure the problem because dogs don't like to soil their beds, and if all goes well he'll soon learn to hold on until he's taken outside. Our dog (and previous ones) loves his crate as his space and goes in for preference as he won't be disturbed. If your dog's not happy with the dark, what about taking a torch out to shine on the ground in front of him?

[Mrs Trellis]

Good news - he has managed to go all night with no accidents! 

He comes upstairs around 6 every day - too early for me as I don't sleep well or go to bed early.  I tried to get him out of the side door but he rushed back in.  I wonder if someone used to chuck him out?  It isn't dark with the street lights, just not extra bright.  Anyway, it was after 8 by the time I resurfaced, washed and dressed and took him outside.  I did use the crate yesterday morning at 6 and that worked too.