Wynnlake Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 As the title states one of my puppies a few months ago went blind over night. The bitch 18 months old was blind for some time and her sight has been gradually returning. The owner now thinks she has full eye sight. I have only just heard about this through the owner of the stud dog, so I dont know the entire story. I want to be able to give her some ideas when I call her, at the moment the stud dog owner and myself have ruled out genetic reasons for this blindness (still happy for any ideas in this department) and have an idea it might be through some sort of poisoning. The bitch was on a farm when it occured, she was living in the country prior to going blind. Not long after moving to a different house in a different town the eye sight has returned. Environmental? Poisoning through a plant or food she has eaten? Chemical? There have been no other signs or symptoms, just the blindness. She has been to an eye specialist, who has confirmed there is a very slim chance of a genetic disorder but couldnt offer any other information in regards to what it could be. The regular vet and stud dog owner suggested Ivermectin? Dunno Any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanati Whippets Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 The only time i had seen anything like this was years ago when i had bought a bowl (from a shop kinda like the op shops here in Australia) to use for my puppies to eat out of but didn't realize it was a lead bowl. After a few vet visits and finally figuring out what the problem was, Once i took the bowl away from them in time they could all see fine. Only the smallest one had a small dot on her eye that never went away. She could see but not perfectly out of that one eye. I think they had some medication too... sorry it was many many years ago.... :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilderblu Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 Could it be something like Toxoplasmosis? (found in the ground, passed around through cats and other animals faeces) What about the virus that has passed through kangaroo mobs in the past. I've heard there has been some more cases of blind kangaroos? I don't know alot about that virus but is it passed around from mosquitos? Very interesting. I would have thought some kind of virus or environmental factor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jed Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 Was she speyed/had a caesarian/had an anaesthetic before she went blind? Some anaestetics do cause this. Other suspect would be poisoning.Weed sprays, insect sprays etc, or the drift from them to the dog's environment. Or heavy metals. I think I read somewhere about a vitamin deficiency causing temporary blindness, might be worth asking, or googling. Good that her sight is returning. Great outcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WreckitWhippet Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 How frightening Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancinbcs Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 (edited) Just googled lead poisoning symptoms and came up with this list that includes blindness. Lead affects many body organs especially the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and the nervous system. Symptoms include lack of appetite, vomiting, abdominal pain, constipation then diarrhea, chomping of jaws, blindness, seizures, muscle spasms, behavior changes, circling, and incoordination. No idea if the blindness can occur without any other symptoms but I suppose anything is possible. Also found this about poisoning of dogs in general. Symptoms can vary depending on the type of poison ingested. The most common symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, difficulty breathing and seizures. Other symptoms include hazy eyes or sudden blindness, changes in behavior and muscle spasms Edited April 21, 2010 by dancinbcs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Libertybrook Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 could she have been kicked in head by a cow or horse ? I think you mentioned she lived on a farm? blood clot or stroke?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benshiva Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 I think it may have been some sort of poisoning as well. Thank God she has her sight back, how scary it must have been :nahnah: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonduca Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 The only other thing I could think of Wynnlake is diabetes...maybe the vet could do a BSL on her :nahnah: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oakway Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 It's called SARDS and happens quite often just google it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozmalinois Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 Had something very similar happen to one of our dogs - She started screaming like she was in pain if you walked past her, raced her to the vet and watched her go blind while we sat in the surgery. They did test after test but all they could come up with was her white blood cell count was basically nil. Gave us some prednisone and antibiotics and took her home. My vet continued to consult some specialists but they couldn't pinpoint any 1 disease etc or reason for it. The fact that we watched her go blind in a matter of hours has everyone baffled. Within a week she had all her eyesight back but was left with one eye that is clouded. She can see perfectly and has no other side affects from it. Her last blood count was perfect! So has everyone totally stumped and the vet shaking his head. This occured nearly 2 yrs ago and there has been no sign of anything wrong with her since...... Will google SARDS would love to know exactly what it was. Never seen anything like it before! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wynnlake Posted April 22, 2010 Author Share Posted April 22, 2010 Oakway, I googled SARDS and it mentioned it is irrevisable and results in comlete vision loss. This particular dog regained complete eye sight after a couple of months? Thanks for the idea, but I dont think it's that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wynnlake Posted April 22, 2010 Author Share Posted April 22, 2010 Thank you everyone for your idea's. I'll take them all back to the owner and discuss these points with her, see if we can come to a conclusion. I'm very interested in anymore ideas people have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oakway Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 A close friends bitch went blind in a few hours and was raced to the vet and diagnosed with SARDS, it is irreversible. The dog is still blind well over 12 months later. It also (SARDS) has side effects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wynnlake Posted April 22, 2010 Author Share Posted April 22, 2010 A close friends bitch went blind in a few hours and was raced to the vet and diagnosed with SARDS, it is irreversible.The dog is still blind well over 12 months later. It also (SARDS) has side effects. Thank you for your reply and so on this occassion this is not SARDS as the bitch has regained her sight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oakway Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 A close friends bitch went blind in a few hours and was raced to the vet and diagnosed with SARDS, it is irreversible.The dog is still blind well over 12 months later. It also (SARDS) has side effects. Thank you for your reply and so on this occassion this is not SARDS as the bitch has regained her sight. Yes so I had noticed by your earlier reply. I was just letting you all know SARDS is irreversible and has some nasty side effects. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puglvr Posted April 23, 2010 Share Posted April 23, 2010 Okay a very long stab in the dark. We had a puppy with a liver shunt and he went blind but his vision returned aver a few days. This is how the liver shunt was discovered. He was 7-8 months at the time. A blood test for this may be worthwhile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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