[Dailydrool] Glaucoma

[Elizabeth Lindsey]

A couple years ago I was in the sad position of having to pass along  
information I'd read on the Drool about glaucoma and helping bassets  
adjust to being blind. (For the record, I summarized what I'd read  
instead of forwarding actual posts on, so no one's names or e-mail  
addresses left the confines of the Drool Family.) One of Friend  
Jennifer's friends, Bonnie, had learned that her Norwegian Elkhound,  
Thor, was suffering from glaucoma. They took him to a veterinary  
ophthalmologist who gave them medication but eventually had to remove  
both of Thor's eyes. One of the reasons Thor's a special fellow is  
because my late basset friend Macy loved him very, very much and  
treated him as if he were her puppy. She was always so maternal  
toward him that he's still known in some circles as "Macy's baby."  
Any friend of Macy's is, of course, a friend of mine.

This morning Jennifer sent me a link to a YouTube video ("Thor the  
Wonder Dog.mp4") in which Thor hangs out while Bonnie talks about how  
debilitating glaucoma was to him, what a difference the surgery made,  
and the way he's now able to get around without having to rely on his  
eyes. I thought the video would be both informative and reassuring to  
those of us who may have to face this difficult decision with one of  
our bassets some day. Bonnie and the videographer, Stan, have given  
me permission to post the link on the Drool: http://www.youtube.com/ 
watch?v=tl8rENqupBo

In addition, Bonnie asked me to share the following:

"If you ever get a chance to share this with someone whose dog is  
needing the surgery and is considering the fake eye implants, please  
pass along this:

"We struggled with the decision as to whether we should pay  
considerably extra to have Thor's eyes replaced with implants. I knew  
that these implants would only be for my benefit, but still struggled  
with it because I couldn't foresee what feature I would focus on post- 
surgery if there were no eyes and my dog had previously had very  
expressive eyes. In the end we chose not to have implants for Thor,  
mostly for financial reasons but also to lower the risk of  
complications with the implants. As it turns out, I need not have  
worried about what feature I would focus on when looking at him. I  
love my dog so much that I see all of him. I automatically look at  
his face but any dog's body language gives us clues besides those  
given by their eyes. Among other things, I notice now how he holds  
his ears and the position and action of his tail much more than before.

"As you may have noticed in the video clip there are depressions now  
where the eyes once were. Because of this, very few people notice  
Thor is missing his eyes when I take him on walks or when they visit.  
Once I point it out they exclaim that they thought he was 'looking  
down' with his eyes almost closed or they assume the shadowed effect  
of the depressions to be eyes until they look closer. It's been  
almost 18 months since Thor's surgery and so far no one has cringed  
when they saw him. As a matter of fact, he basks in all the extra  
attention from visitors and strangers we meet.

"Thor's blindness has taught my children great lessons also.  
Recently, one of my daughter's 6th grade friends shared the story of  
Thor's blindness with some of their male classmates. The boys were  
curious, so Olivia showed them one of his photos attached to the  
inside of her locker door. The boys instantly pitied for Thor and  
began asking questions such as, 'Oh--do you have to carry him to his  
food bowl?', 'Do you have to put the food in his mouth?', 'Do you  
have to carry him outside to pee?' .... Olivia told me she looked at  
them like they were crazy and replied, 'Of course not! I said he was  
BLIND--I didn't say he was mentally challenged!'"

Bonnie also said that something she's learned from the experience is  
that "the eyes are a big deal to we human pet owners but not nearly  
so important to our beloved dogs with glaucoma. I daresay breeds who  
rely more heavily on their sense of smell (such as Bassets) than does  
Thor would notice even fewer changes in their ability to get around."

Thanks to all who've posted in the past about diagnosing and treating  
a basset with glaucoma and living with a blind dog. It's helped make  
a difficult decision a little easier for others.

Elizabeth

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