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Blindness in Dogs

blindness in dogs






Blindness in dogs - what exactly causes dog blindness?


A complete guide to this relatively common problem including the causes and symptoms of glaucoma and other retinal problems that may affect your beloved pooch.

Causes of Blindness in Dogs

blindness in dogs


Unfortunately blindness in dogs is more common than you might actually think. The causes of this problem may be due to a variety of reasons and your pooch may even be born that way. However, it is much more common for dogs to develop vision loss over the cause of a few months  - similar to when humans lose their sight. Below we have listed some of the most common causes of blindness and vision problems in dogs...
  1. Inflammation of the retina.
  2. Infection of the retina.
  3. Detachment of the retina.
  4. Glaucoma.
  5. Disease affecting the cornea.
  6. Cataracts.
  7. Your dog may suffer from an injury to the eye which may cause sight problems.
  8. Disease or diseases affecting the occipital cortex.
  9. Posteria and Anterior uveitis.
  10. Cushings disease can also affect your dog's sight - leading to cataracts (a misty covering of the eye lens).
  11. Strokes are also a cause of blindness in dogs - this can happen suddenly either leading to a temporary state of blindness or it may lead to permanent loss of sight.
  12. Loss of sight can also be caused by disease affecting the optic nerve.

Blindness in Dogs

Diagnosis and Treatment


Diagnosis...

For a vet to diagnose blindness in dogs he or she will need to perform a few tests on your pooch.

  • The first stage to determine whether your dog has lost his sight is for the vet to check that their is no illness that is causing the loss of sight. Consequently the vet will need to perform...
  1. A physical examination to check that their are no physical causes to the loss of sight.
  2. The vet will then need to perform am opthalmic examination - but this depends on whether the vet is qualified in this area to do it (otherwise your dog will be referred to the necessary practitioner).
  3. Finally the vet will need to perform a neurological examination.
  4. The vet may also take some blood.
  5. The vet may also decide to take some cerebral spinal fluid and perform tests.
  6. The vet may also decide to perform a CT or MRI scan on your dog to further examine the causes and help diagnosis.
  • Sometimes a simple test is also performed in the veterinary surgery - this is when vet uses a threatening gesture directly in front of your dog - if your dog then blinks then this will help to determine whether your dog has completely lost his sight
  • The vet may also set up a small obstacle course in the surgery and watch and monitor how well your dog copes with the obstacles.
  • Sometimes specific conditions can cause your dog to have problems seeing at night - one condition that is associated with this problem is Progressive Retinal Atrophy - by watching your dog move around at night may help you to determine whether your dog has developed vision problems.
Treatment...

  • Unfortunately the treatment for blindness in dogs depends completely on the diagnosis. However, the most common cause of blindness in dogs is a nerve disease called Optic Neuritis. Causes of Optic Neuritis can include meningitis which inflames the eye, distemper, infection or a tumor. Unfortunately in a recent study, 12 dogs that were treated for the underlying causes of their loss of sight - 5 were still left blind after the treatment.
  • If your dog has suffered a retinal detachment then your dog will need to be treated fast. The reason for this is that the lack of blood to the eye will cause the sight and eye to deteriorate rapidly. If the detachment is only partial or your vet manages to catch the problem early then some sight may be preserved - speed is the key.



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