Quote:
Originally Posted by Bitsy  He barely walks around. He stands in one spot and moves his head like a robot to the left, then to the right...over and over again. When he does walk, he is very cautious. He would walk right off the edge of the bed if I let him. He has ran into things, but usually he goes slow and careful.
I was playing with him, and pulling the toy away, he would pounce right onto it. I did it today and I would move it to the side instead in front, and he would still pounce in front...he had no idea it was slightly to the side.
Also, he never looks at you, he looks around, but doesn't make eye contact.
When I go to pick him up, he seems startled by my touch at first. Like he didn't know it was coming.
His sense of smell seems really strong. If he smells food I am holding he will get so excited he would leap from my arms if I let him. |
He definitely shows signs of blindness or clinical blindness. Our black lab is blind and exhibits what you have described above. Our lab was not blind from birth but since she has been blind (she's now 7 1/2) she has a much heightened sense of smell and hearing. She also sleeps a lot more now because there's just not as much to do when she's blind and she doesn't play much anymore although we have taught her how to retrieve the ball again and she can play fetch outside very well by sound. I would suggest getting a tennis ball (even one of those small ones) cut a hole in it, pry it open and insert a bell so he can hear it. Hopefully his hearing is acute enough to be able to hear a bell. He will learn to play based on hearing. Baby toys with rattles or chimes would also work for play time. Also, help him landmark his surroundings. Try to walk him through the rooms he will be in most of the time by speaking to him when you walk. Our lab has also learned the term "stairs" and if we say stairs she will automatically lift her leg and feel for it. We also use "stop" when she reaches the bottom of stairs. Make sure to teach him danger places like where the stairs are or the edge of the bed so he doesn't hurt himself and get scared. Once he feels more confident in his surroundings you should see more activity and interaction from him. It does take a lot of time and work but they can learn and compensate very fast.