How do you know when to put down an old dog that has recently gone completley blind?
*****
Most dogs cope well with vision loss, provided their environment remains constant. If she has good quality of life otherwise, is not in pain, and the medication controls the heart condition adequately, there is no cause to euthanize at this time.
Glacierwolf
As a responsible pet owner - you need to do what is best for the animal. If the animal is blind and happy - then be happy with it's companionship. However, if the animal is suffering and having a horrible time - and there is no cure or fix in sight..... that is when its time to let the animal go. You do it to relieve the animal's suffering. Especially if the animal is so bad off it could accidentally harm itself really bad. Oh. Do not put down your own animal. Find someone else to do that.
Lauren
Go talk with your veterinarian - they can help you make the decision. It can definitely be a difficult decision to make but oftentimes it is the best option for your dog. Think about your dog's top three favorite activities (eating, going for walks, greeting people at the door, playing with a ball, etc.). Is your dog still able to do these things? If not, do you think your dog is getting enjoyment out of life? If your dog does not want to or is unable to participate in favorite activities or is having an increasingly difficult time breathing and getting around, it may be time.
Verulam
Regardless of the health issues (and being blind for a dog, isn't a life-sentence), if the down days outnumber the up days, then it's getting to the time, provided your vet has nothing more to offer. We had a boy lose his sight, at around 5 years, when he took a full face of crop spray being spread in the field at the back of our property - in a high wind. (Illegal)! He lost his sight almost immediately and his mother lost sight in one eye too - she was up there with him and I didn't get to them in time. We had to let him go because we had another male who he didn't get along with before this happened. This boy was a dog we took back after his home was lost. Our other male had been with us before he came back. As it was, he started snapping at any of our hounds who passed by, and us too. After a long talk with our vet, we all decided it was kindest to let him go. Broke my heart as he'd been through so much before coming back to us. We had the local Vet School check his eyes and there was massive imflammation back of both eyes, so it was the crop spray. It's all about quality of life and so is really an individual situation thing. See your vet, with both of them before you make any decision like letting them both go. So sad.
JOE
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