Doggone it.

Yesterday we learned that our sweet pug Miss Daisy had lost her sight totally. The morning before she woke up unable to see, whimpering, and afraid to move. Earlier in the year we had a cataract removed from her right eye because her left eye had already had a retina detachment. She’d only had one usable eye for awhile and my husband was willing and wanted her to have the surgery – followed by a regiment of lots of eye drops for healing the eye. So we did it. All was good until she woke up two mornings ago.

I took her to the eye specialist who did the surgery yesterday morning and we sadly learned that her right eye just had the retina completely detach also. She is diabetic, and is old, and the possibility of reattaching the retina would not work.

Miss Daisy was a rescue. She had been left to fend on her own after a divorce in Kentucky. With help from friends she found her way to us. So, we know we have given her a better life than what she had where she came from, and years have gone by – and she is part of our family.

It’s so hard to watch her now, as she doesn’t understand what has happened to her. She continues to whimper when left alone. She doesn’t move. She seems so sad and lost. If she lies next to me, touching me, she settles down. I am trying to talk to her often so she hears my voice. I have googled what to do for a blind dog and we are trying to make our house safe and adaptable. In time she will use her nose, and ears, and touch – and will know where she is. But it’s going to take time. She is not there yet. She needs to be retrained. It will take patience and time.

Friends have told me how their blind dogs have adapted. That gives me hope. The vet told us that pugs do better than other breeds. Daisy is older and not that active anyway. So we have that going for her.

But right now is tough. Since she is diabetic she gets shots of insulin after each meal. Now she is also on two sets of drops, 3 times a day, and a pill twice a day. She’s needs to be carried outside to do her business (and yes, she has had accidents because she doesn’t know where she is.) To get to our lawn there are steps to do down. Steps she cannot see.

The love of a dog is special. She has no ill will. She doesn’t get mad. She doesn’t understand. She is sweet. My heart breaks for her, and having to watch her in this new struggle is really hard. We all are adjusting. Again: She IS family.

Doggone it.