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My Yorkie is blind My Samantha is 10 years old and in the last 5 months has lost her eyesight. We have been to the vet and a eye specialist and they have told us there is nothing we can do. We are helping her get around she seems very disoriented and sometimes does not remember where she is. The new problem we are having is that she is urinating all over the house. Has anyone been through this problem?? |
aw I am so sorry! I haven't been through this myself but have worked with blind dogs. The main thing I think is to try and not move any furniture around, usually they can navigate pretty well if everything is in the same place all the time. As far as the urinating she may not know how to get to the bathroom. Maybe put up a bell by the door that she can learn to ring? It is going to be a bit of an adjustment for you and her both. Give her time. Good luck! |
I'm so sorry to hear that. I don't have any experience with a completely blind dog, but did have a Shepherd with pannus which would worsen at times and impair his vision. I would assume an option is to keep her in a more confined area with pee pads down when you aren't able to bring her to potty consistently enough. No great tips, but more than anything just wanted to say I'm sorry and hope you guys find a routine that works for both of you :) |
I had a Schnauzer who went blind and did that. I think he was also developing dementia. He seemed to get turned around in the livingroom and would lift his leg on the furniture. We knew he would never do that unless solmething was wrong and thats when we figured out he was blind. I would take him to the back door so he could get his bearings and remember the layout of the house. Once he realized he was at the back door he was fine. He did really well being blind and ran out on the deck and down the stairs with no problem. Good luck. |
We had a poodle when I was a child who developed epilepsy and blindness. She also had toileting issues, but that was anxiety-related. As others have mentioned, we kept furniture and other items in predictable locations so that she could both use them to know where she was and to avoid injury if she were to bump into things. She was able to use normal household sounds (a jangling silverware drawer, the clothes dryer running, a toilet flush, etc.) as well as our calling her name to identify her location in relation to the rest of the house. I'm sure it was frightening for her, but she trusted us to help her when needed. I wish I could remember more or offer other suggestions. Try not to be too frustrated with her if she is having accidents. She could be suffering from additional conditions which cause inappropriate elimination, and she may be suffering from heightened anxiety, especially when she feels the urge and isn't sure where she is. (I had a labrador whose knees buckled and bladder emptied if anyone mentioned ear medicine.) Best of luck to you and your sweet girl. I hope you are able to manage without too much stress on either of you! |
I had a senior male that I took in. He slowly went blind and deaf. He was able to get down from the bed on the ramp and use the pee pads that were next to the ramp. He would walk down the hall and into the kitchen. Pixie one of my other dogs, would sometimes walk beside him down the ramp and hall to help guide him. It was so special. I was amazed at how he adapted to being blind. As he got even older (17-18 years old approx) he became disoriented and scared when approached because he couldn't see or hear them. Sadly, kidney failure became so severe we had to put him to sleep. I hope Samantha can adjust. |
When my Presley went blind - we got him a Halo Vest. It worked really well. Blind Dog Halo Vest | Blind Dog Head Protection Assistance | Mobility Aid It is pretty sturdy. |
As for his potty - we had to help him a lot. Whenever he got up at night I got up with him and took him to his potty pad and he would usually go. During the day - he slept a lot and whenever he got up - he would bark and we would know he wanted to go potty or go to his food so we would let him down off the couch and he would find his way to his food or head to the door and we would take him out. Luckily my husband is retired and was home with him all day. I would never let him go on his own as we have a lot of bushes and I was afraid he'd poke his eyes. But, he usually didn't wander and would squat almost immediately or poop quickly. Then he would bark again and we'd take him back up and into the house. Because he had kidney disease the hard part was waking up 3 or 4 times a night to make sure he could go potty. It was an adjustment. He was also 16 when he went blind - so we had about a year and a half of doing this. We adjusted to his needs pretty easily. |
I wish you luck with your little one. My first Yorkie Max went blind in his last few years but he managed very well once he worked out where everything was. |
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