Aging Eyes - Page 1

Curious as to whether old dogs eyes change in day or night vision?  I do notice some changes in my 13.4 year old bitch, but wonder if she can see OK at night?  Days are OK, but night??  Still a great nose though and still does her job of bringing me all the dog dishes;  gotta love'em.  Nan

I believe that they do change. My old girl, who lived to be 21, fully lost her ability to see at 18, ability to smell at 19 and ability to hear at 20.

OMG:  21 years old, was that a GSD?  Well my girl's hearing is also going, she can still hear me whistle and if she is looking at you will respond; but if you are behind her and call her name she does not always respond.  Really sad to watch them age like that, but I notice her vision is not as sharp as it used to be and it does kind of depend on her day also.  Kind of interesting, some days her eyes are really clear and alert and some days not so much.  I just want to keep her as sharp as possible for as long as possible.  A little gimpy also, but still good to go.  still goes on her walks, sometimes slow, but sure.  Love that.  Thx for your response,  wow  21.  Love that.  Great days,  Nan

Nans, yep, they do tend to lose vision clarity as they age, especially night vision; and when coupled with the declining hearing, it's also not unusual for dogs that previously had no issues with storms to suddenly become somewhat anxious when one comes up during the night.  I picked up a 'pager' collar for my old dogs so I could 'call' them in with the vibration--it doesn't have any shock feature--once they weren't responsive to hand signals or sound.  It worked out really well, and they aren't expensive, either.

Niesia, I too am jealous--21 years with your dog, how lucky you were to have her so long!! 

Thanks Hexe for your response, and I really do know the vision changes along with hearing and god forbid sense of smell; I hope not, but she still is a great eater; and mobility is pretty darn good.  I do find that she does much better if I keep walking her daily or every other day at least, she does not stiffen up as much.  Otherwise we are good to go; missing half her teeth but still eats raw well bones and all.  Thanks again for info.  Nan

21 years it's a lifetime and it is hard to say good by to them. This girl was a mix, but my grandma's GSD lived to be 18 in excellent health.
I didn't know about 'short life span' of dogs until I came to US. You should see my face when a vet told me that the life expectancy of my GSD girl will be 7 years!!!

My 21 year old girl lived long, happy and healthy life untill the last day. She simply jumped into her chair and went to sleep. I hope that the dogs I currently have will also live long and healthy lives.

Nans_gsd - 13.5 is a great age for a GSD and I wish you many more years with her. You have to be taking really good care of her for her to be doing so well at this age.

Niesia,

You wrote: "I didn't know about 'short life span' of dogs until I came to US. You should see my face when a vet told me that the life expectancy of my GSD girl will be 7 years!!!"

Why do you think that is?
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