advice on behaviour of blind dog

[teifryn]

HI, My 12 year old Lhasa Apso has just had her remaining eye removed, (1st one removed at 6 months), first few days she found her way to kitchen, water bowl, back door to garden by walking along walls, when we call her she has no idea where to look. Last few days (eye removed 2 weeks ago) she seems to have absolutely no idea where she is, charges around bumping into everything (nothing has been moved), and if we call her or there are loud noises/bangs she has no response at all, only the smell of food and the sound of food being prepared gets a reaction ? any advice would be great, it is so distressing to watch her like this. thanks...

[Christine]

Welcome...I am sorry about your little one. It will take some time and patience. Are you sure she has her hearing? It almost sounds as though she has lost it as well and that would be even more confusing for her in the beginning. There is wonderful information and suggestions under the blind and deaf forum by a former moderator and I know she would give you further advice if you need it after reading through the information. She has blind and deaf dogs who win agility contests.

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=8770 and viewtopic.php?f=20&t=5613

Also, it would be helpful to you to join some blind dog groups. http://www.blinddogs.net and check the Yahoo Groups as well.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/blinddogs/

[teifryn]

Thanks for your quick reply, i did wonder if Lu Lu has lost her hearing as well, i thought she was responding to the noises in the kitchen, but it could well be her smell, she does seem startled when i touch her (even though i always speak first) it is so sad, but after reading some of the feedback on the site, there is hope for a happy life, i was just so worried i had let her down, even though i thought i was helping her...

[Christine]

You have not let her down and if she could speak, she would be the first to tell you that. If you had, you would not be here asking for help. If she has lost her hearing, her new normal will change from "only" being blind, but there are ways to deal with it. Once you know where things stand, you can begin to make those changes that will make things easier for her. The number one priority is to stay upbeat as our beloved pets sense our mood and take our lead. Stand strong and let her know that everything will be okaye and you will also begin to see that too. I am going to share your thread with Karen who is an inspiration to all of us.

As a beginning, you now know that her sense of smell can be used to help her - she has given you your first clue.

[Christine]

Karen sent this note for you:

All dogs start out deaf and blind as pups. They acclimate to sight & hearing at about 2 weeks, but before that, they live in dark and silent worlds. I rescue dark silent world pups. I can tell you, my pups ALL of them, every single ONE of them, they are dogs first, aussies second and deaf and blind a distant third. We humans stress so, we cry, we carry on, we sob when we talk to them or look at them. We HUMANS are the ones who need the most help.

My Nanner dog was losing her sight. She may well have lost her hearing, but she never let on, because she was a velcro dog. My Gabriel is deaf and blind from birth and now more than 8 years old. He too is a velcro dog. He knows where I am at every moment. I'll say right here and now that vision is the more challenging loss in my experience. Hearing not so much. Of course, there can be NO recall when the deaffies' head is turned, so fenced yards and leashes are a must. My deafblind guy does stairs, he educates others, he has every inch of the yard and house mapped:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpEC6jiK ... ature=plcp

In the beginning, I tried all the excellet tips that Karen G has gathered over the years at
http://www.blinddogs.net/tips_help.html.
My blind only tested high for agility. I tested low . She's 9 y.o. now and hasn't slowed down yet. She goes through life at 400 mph.

Scent training can be useful, we dont need it here, but Karen G's wonderful tip page will give you some great ideas.

As long as you are sure it's not neurological, she will adapt with your HIGH sense of fun and play and silliness.