Monday, March 11, 2013

Losing Sight

The title of this post might sound metaphorical, but it is literal. Over the past week or two, we have been noticing Ellie's strange reactions to her ball when we bounce it off the floor. She loses it very easily and gets confused as to where it went, even if it's right next to her. As time passed [and the condition potentially worsened] we realized that she is going blind.

On Friday, I made a vet appointment for the following Tuesday (tomorrow) but on Saturday I was so worried (if it's glaucoma then it needs to be treated right away) so I immediately got out the phone book and called 7-8 nearby vet clinics until I found one who was willing to let us come in at closing time.

I'm amazed by the veterinary community due to my experiences this weekend. The veterinarian gladly stayed after hours to help us out, called the animal eye specialist who was willing to see us that day and the eye clinic was closed so it was just us and the vet!

He determined that she either has brain inflammation/tumors or SARDS (retinal degeneration). Her eyes look perfect, she is only 6 years old and this is not an age-related condition.

We got steroids to reduce inflammation, but her vision has not changed the last few days, so it is most likely SARDS (we will schedule another test this week).

Ellie is handling things just fine, but it's me who is heartbroken. She has a hard time finding her ball when we throw it, she can't catch treats anymore, it startles her when we pat her head, she trips over things, and we will never again get to throw the ball in the field and see her sprint at a million miles an hour chasing after it.

Here is a video that we took to potentially show the vets:


5 comments:

  1. Aww, poor Ellie! And poor you. It's so sad to see things like that happen to our dogs. Chloe, our other dog, went deaf a few years ago. It was a gradual thing and I think we were more in denial of it than she was.

    Hopefully, whatever it is, can at least be halted if it can't be reversed.

    Let me know if you do get to go to BlogPaws! I would love to meet you!! :)

    Elyse and Riley

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  2. Oh Stacy! I am so sorry to hear about Ellie! Poor girl!! It is always so sad to see our loved pets have health issues that we can't control! Lucky for Ellie, you are such a good human for her and I am sure she knows how much you love her cute little paws! Keep us posted!!

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  3. Poor sweet Ellie.all our feets are crossed
    Benny & Lily

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  4. Oh no, poor Ellie. When our twins Buffy, you realize that nearly 13 years on so slowly, more and more:(

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  5. Oh no! I'm so sorry to read this. I'm glad that you received such wonderful care though. Good thing you have pet insurance. Please keep us updated.

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