I have moved Bella's blog to a new site. I have had to many problems posting and answering posts in Blogger. I will keep this site up for a while, but will only be posting on our new blog.
Please come visit us there if you are following here!
Thanks:))
Pam & Bella
New Site/Blog
http://blinddogretinaldetachment.wordpress.com/
Isabella
To cute for words
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Bella's dog going blind poem
Bella, my sweet Isabella.. So young so full of life
What must you be thinking as you’re loosing all your sight?
Those beautiful big brown eyes and those ears that stand so tall
You love and play so freely as if nothings wrong at all
My heart just breaks in pieces knowing cards that you’ve been dealt
Maybe I’d feel better if I knew just how you felt
Unconditional love pours over not fearing future dark
Your courage so amazing on the things you will embark
You love me in your heart not just through your weary eyes
I’ll use that as a comfort when sight finally says good bye
I can feel your calm beside me saying it will be okay
We’ll get through this together as we snuggle love and play
Some say that this awful and really really sad
Living with a dog whose sight is going bad
I tell them you have taught me to be brave and to be strong
To focus on what matters not what some consider wrong
There will be many challenges the day that we all dread
But loving you comes easy and we will forge ahead
When your eyes fail you completely and you no longer see
You’ll be safe here with your family right where you were meant to be
By:
Pam 01/11/2012
Please excuse the "title" it's so blunt so it can be searched by people going through similar issues:)
Monday, January 9, 2012
Thoughts for the day...
We were told and I have read that if a dog is going to go blind then this is the best way vs. other ways...weird as that sounds.
Reason being is because this condition is gradual, they have time to get used to it and because no pain is involved... unless they get glaucoma as a secondary condition (which will present a multitude of other challenges).
Well every couple of weeks I notice Bella squinting her blind eye, which is a sign of pain. I'm told if it continues and happens frequently that she needs checked, yet again, because her lens may be tilting forward and causing pain. I find myself constantly looking at her to make sure she's okay. Will I ever not be worried?
She was playing like her normal self all afternoon when I got home from work and at this point she seems unaffected by being partially blind.
Except I remember, in hindsight, that at night when no lights are on, she would and still does wait to walk upstairs until I turn them on.
Night blindness is the first thing a dog going blind experiences.
I am also told that dogs use their other senses way more than eyesight unlike humans and she will adapt well.
I wonder how anyone really knows this, unless they are a blind dog?
Reason being is because this condition is gradual, they have time to get used to it and because no pain is involved... unless they get glaucoma as a secondary condition (which will present a multitude of other challenges).
Well every couple of weeks I notice Bella squinting her blind eye, which is a sign of pain. I'm told if it continues and happens frequently that she needs checked, yet again, because her lens may be tilting forward and causing pain. I find myself constantly looking at her to make sure she's okay. Will I ever not be worried?
She was playing like her normal self all afternoon when I got home from work and at this point she seems unaffected by being partially blind.
Except I remember, in hindsight, that at night when no lights are on, she would and still does wait to walk upstairs until I turn them on.
Night blindness is the first thing a dog going blind experiences.
I am also told that dogs use their other senses way more than eyesight unlike humans and she will adapt well.
I wonder how anyone really knows this, unless they are a blind dog?
Sunday, January 8, 2012
The challenges we are facing
I noticed something wasn't right with Bella's eye in early November, 2011. It just had a weird green glow. It just looked different.
We went to visit family out of town for Thanksgiving (Bella's second home and some of her favorite people!) I mentioned to my daughter and husband that I really thought she was blind in one eye and when we got back home she needed to see her vet. Everyone kept telling me she was okay, but a mom knows...
My husband took her to our regular vet and sure enough at that time she was diagnosed with a hereditary condition (*see about me*) that had already taken 90% of her vision in her "bad" eye...her retina had almost completely detached.
We decided to take her to an ophthalmologist out of town who was recommended to us by our vet that specializes in animal eye care. We wanted to verify her diagnosis and because they have more advanced equipment to do testing.
Hearing that your 2 year old lil baby was going to be completely blind was, and still is, heartbreaking.
Bella's favorite thing to do is play with her little tennis ball. If no one wants to play, she will take it to the top of the stairs, hold it with her paws and push it down with her nose. Once it lands at the bottom of the steps she will run down to get it, bring it to the top again and repeat. It saddens me to realize that once she is completely blind I wont ever see her doing this again...
Awee...Bella's favorite spot at Christmas time!
She loves anything soft and warm. She has multiple beds, and if there is a blanket laying anywhere, she'll find it and burrow until you cant even see her.
We'll have to sprinkle vanilla scent on all these things so she can find them when she looses her eyesight completely...
We went to visit family out of town for Thanksgiving (Bella's second home and some of her favorite people!) I mentioned to my daughter and husband that I really thought she was blind in one eye and when we got back home she needed to see her vet. Everyone kept telling me she was okay, but a mom knows...
My husband took her to our regular vet and sure enough at that time she was diagnosed with a hereditary condition (*see about me*) that had already taken 90% of her vision in her "bad" eye...her retina had almost completely detached.
We decided to take her to an ophthalmologist out of town who was recommended to us by our vet that specializes in animal eye care. We wanted to verify her diagnosis and because they have more advanced equipment to do testing.
Hearing that your 2 year old lil baby was going to be completely blind was, and still is, heartbreaking.
Bella's favorite thing to do is play with her little tennis ball. If no one wants to play, she will take it to the top of the stairs, hold it with her paws and push it down with her nose. Once it lands at the bottom of the steps she will run down to get it, bring it to the top again and repeat. It saddens me to realize that once she is completely blind I wont ever see her doing this again...
Awee...Bella's favorite spot at Christmas time!
She loves anything soft and warm. She has multiple beds, and if there is a blanket laying anywhere, she'll find it and burrow until you cant even see her.
We'll have to sprinkle vanilla scent on all these things so she can find them when she looses her eyesight completely...
In the begining
We got Bella from a Chihuahua breeder locally. She was so tiny that when I was holding her in the car as we drove to surprise my daughter Jocelyn at her friends house, she thought I was holding a baby bunny!
The first thing you notice about Bella is those beautiful big eyes!
Now those beautiful, expressive eyes are presenting a challenge to her because
she has lost all sight in one and will, in the future, go completely blind...
*see about me*
Awee... One of her first pictures of Bella as a puppy.
She fit in a cup!
The first thing you notice about Bella is those beautiful big eyes!
Now those beautiful, expressive eyes are presenting a challenge to her because
she has lost all sight in one and will, in the future, go completely blind...
*see about me*
She fit in a cup!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)