Eyesight or lack of

[FayRose]

I may be getting over anxious about Molly, what with one thing and another but I think I need to talk to you folks about something that is worrying me more and more.

In the past several months, Molly has taken to barking at anything that approaches in the lane when we are out for walks, not just people or dogs, but anything that moves and in some cases nothing at all that we can see, which is why I'm now concerned about her sight.

A couple of days ago when out on a walk, she shot off up the drive of our neighbouring farmer, after their terrier or a scent or just playing. I walked on as usual and when I got near the end of their track, turned, expecting her to be trotting back to me but no sign. I called and as I was starting back to look for her, she ran out of their drive and belted off in the opposite direction. I followed, calling her. Eventually she must have heard me and started to run toward me but then stopped, staring toward me, hesitated and when I called she came further toward me but cautiously, stopping every few paces and staring at me. When she was about 9 metres away, she seemed to recognise me and roared up wagging furiously. This has never happened before.

The barking happens anywhere. Today when out with OH, he tells me that when they were in the field that she frequently walks through, she suddenly turned toward the pond at the bottom of the field and started barking furiously. As far as he could see, there was nothing at all different, nothing moving, no dogs or people.

Could this possibly mean she has sight problems? Her eyes (apart from producing a lot of gloopy stuff due to the allergies) look perfectly normal, in fact lovely clear, shiny eyes.

The other thing is, how on earth can dogs' sight be checked? Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

 

[Boogie]

I have no answers, but I do know that Guide Dogs sight is checked before they either become breeding stock or working Guide Dogs.

How they do it I’ve no idea
.

 

[Selina27]

Sorry to read about this with Molly @FayRose . Does it sometimes happen at dusk? I've been given to understand that dog's don't see very well in the half light, something to do with the way cones and rods are aligned in their eyes.
But perhaps it's happening in daylight aswell?

I think if it were me I'd me talking to the vets. There is a specialist eye veterinary clinic not far from me, so there must be ways of checking eyes. I believe they do amazing things there!

I hope you can get to the bottom of the issue xxxx

 

[HAH]

This must be worrying for you @FayRose - hopefully it's a temporary blip for Molly, but I can completely understand your concerns. The barking might have another cause (maybe other sensory triggers, such as hearing, or even sense of smell, might be awry?).

I'd definitely take her along to the vet for an MOT, because it could be down to all sorts of things they'd be able to spot. All the information out there says to see the vet, as particularly with eyes a lot of conditions are treatable or even reversible, and catching things early can make a big difference.

But there do seem to be some interesting home tests just to see if there are potential issues with eyesight, which I found in this article: How to Test Your Dog's Vision at Home
One is to drop a ball of cotton wool just beyond her nose, and see it she tracks it. Another is to shine a torch towards her and see if she squints (the normal reflex). But hopefully a visit to the vet might help get to the bottom of it? Good luck xx

 

[Amber]

Last year Amber was diagnosed with very small hereditary cataracts. They were spotted by our vet as she had a number of episodes of gunky eyes. To get them checked out we had her looked at by a specialist ophthalmic vet at our regional specialist vets. The good news for Amber is that they are small, the rest of her eyes are very healthy, are too small to cause any vision problems and are most likely not to cause her too much trouble in the future.

Whilst we were there a number of guide dogs were having tests.
I was very impressed by the thoroughness of the examination with lots of expensive looking equipment and he did do reaction tests with her.

I would certainly support getting her eyes checked out.

 

[FayRose]

Thanks for your help, HAH, that is very useful info. and I'll read that article.

 

[Cath]

If you are worried I would pop along to see the vet. They are the best people to help you both

 

[Atemas]

Goodness @FayRose I understand your concerns. I really have no experience of this but I think you need to pursue getting Molly checked. Blimey our dogs are such a worry. Hope you can get some answers quickly.

 

[MellowYellow]

Hi Fay, I would go straight to the vets, there are loads of diagnostic tests that can be done to test her eyesight and to rule out any issues, hereditary or otherwise.

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

Sounds like it's worth a check with your vet to put your mind at ease. Hope you can get some good answers soon.

I wonder if she is having a temporary loss of sight that's causing some...maybe the right word would be 'mirages'...that she's then barking at. Kind of like humans get floaters in their vision? Just thinking as I had a blind foster a while ago who snapped at invisible flies and had some other intriguing behaviours that may have been linked to his sight loss.

 

[M.F.]

We also notice Snowie is not so good at recognizing us from afar. If I want him to notice me, I wave my arms. My understanding is that dogs see moving objects more easily than stationary ones.

If you’re worried, I’d definitely have her seen by a vet. Just recently I watched this presentation of vet research on reversible vision loss. Retinal toxicity suspected due to gaba-ergic anti-parasitic drug use.

 

[Charlie]

@FayRose I'm sorry you are having this worry with Molly. How old is she? Agree pop to your vets as even suspected eye issues should never be ignored and it will put your mind at rest. Hattie has 'cloudy' eyes due to her age but it hasn't affected her eyesight. Hope you're ok. xx

 

[Lab_adore]

What a worry @FayRose I hope the vet clears Molly of any problems

 

[FayRose]

Heck, that is scary stuff M.F. I need to check what's in the Seresto collar Molly wears. That is an interesting point you make Emily_Babbelhund, that is what it looks like she's seeing, mirages, something that's just not there.

Thanks to you all for your thoughts and suggestions, all very helpful and supportive as usual.
Off to the vet again.

 

[Boogie]

It’s also possible that she’s smelling or hearing real things you don’t perceive?

Tatze often barks at the door, I tell her it’s nothing then later discover a parcel in the porch.
.

 

[snowbunny]

Does this more often happen when the light isn't so good? Willow is far more likely to bark at "things" (often that I can't see) when it's not fully light. And I'm often surprised how they don't recognise my husband when he joins us part-way through a walk - I'll say "Where's Daddy?" and they'll look, and maybe start towards him, but it's not until he's really quite close that they fully trust it's him.

Try not to worry, but for your peace of mind, I'd go and talk to your vet about it. If there is something there that needs treating then better sooner rather than later, and if not, you can stop worrying about it.

 

[Selina27]

Does this more often happen when the light isn't so good?

I haven't looked into it, but I'm pretty sure that a dogs vision isn't good in the half light, as I mentioned above something to do with cones and rods being different to ours. I'll Google it I think.

 

[Selina27]

Having just looked in to it briefly, it appears I got it the wrong way round, they can see very well at dawn and dusk!

 

[snowbunny]

Having just looked in to it briefly, it appears I got it the wrong way round, they can see very well at dawn and dusk!

Interesting, because Willow is definitely more skittish when it's darker!

 

[Selina27]

Interesting, because Willow is definitely more skittish when it's darker!

I've seen that in dogs aswell, I haven't got time to look properly. It is to do with the rods though, and how much light they can process.