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Good morning!
My Dewey was just diagnosed with progressive retinal atrophy and I'm looking for any advice I can get from people experienced with the disease. I want to make his transition into blindness as smooth and easy as possible (for both of us) and would appreciate anything anyone has to say!
Thanks,
Courtney and Dewey -
Does your dog have symptoms of going blind? How old is he? Who did the diagnosis?
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And have you told the breeder? And if the breeder is known did they say there was any PRA in Dewey's pedigree? Do you have Dewey's pedigree And as Andrea asked who did the diagnosis? And how old is he… There are many Basenjis that have been called PRA, but what they really have is what is known as reflectivity in the retina that some Vet just assume is the start of PRA.
While I have not had one with PRA, typically blind dogs do quite well .. and since it is progressive and sometimes very slow, the biggest thing you see is that they have night blindness but retain some vision in lighted areas. The biggest thing is to never move the furniture.. and their other senses take over to the point that sometimes you don't even know they are blind.Let us know the details?
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My brother's fur baby - not a Basenji - a shelter mix (who knows what breeds), but only 6 years old became blind during the summer. According to their vet, nothing can be done to help his girl, Ginger. His wife picked up some books on the disease and they are heeding much of the advice about helping Ginger live the rest of her years. They also have another shelter mix (about 1.5 years old) Max who is now her eyes for her ears. Max has a cat bell on his collar so Ginger can hear where he is. There are many, many more inferences they use from the books they've read and incorporate in their daily lives. I will see my brother and SIL tomorrow and get the names of the books they've been reading - and make a post.
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He has symptoms of night blindness, which is what prompted me to take him to the vet. The vet did some simple testing and recommended that I take him to a specialist for a more thorough exam and test, which I did. I was told that Dewey had early onset, slow progressing retinal atrophy.
He is doing great so far, as he can still see when it is daylight and I've been keeping the rooms he has access to well lit at night.I don't have a pedigree for him, since he is a mix and was a rescue from a store that had been closed down and was going to euthanize their remaining dogs.
Thanks everybody -
How old is Dewey? And it could be that it will be real slow and the only thing that he will really have a problem with is night time…. again, however do not move the furniture....
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My previous beastie gradually went blind in one eye (not PRA) and managed to adjust just fine. He would tilt his head to see better and I did watch around room/building corners so he wouldn't run into something but otherwise he managed just fine. He was even able to continue catching rabbits!
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Dewey just turned 1. I'm hoping that it will progress slowly enough to only have a real effect on his night vision, that would be wonderful. I've also been going to a homeopathic vet that is going to be doing accupressure (and eventually accupuncture) and massage therapy and even if that doesn't help preserve his vision, it will keep him happy and relaxed.
