Howllo Fellow Hound and getting your stitches out lovers: Well keep your paws crossed that today is the day. This has been the longest 10 days of our lives. Chaps is petrified of the cone Emma is wearing and it is just torture for her. Not only is she blind but she has to wear that awful thing and potty in during ice storms. I feel so bad for her.
Well, I will paw back in after lunch. Wish us luck.
More later….Cat, Chaps and Emma
Howllo fellow hound and needing help with blind hound lovers: Can you believe I am saying this? Emma has just gone blind from primary, close angle glaucoma. It began happening about a year ago when she lost the sight in her right eye.
It has just been too hard on us for me to blog about it, but now is the time and I feel we can help others.
Wisdom does not take sight, it takes vision. Vision can come from many places and mine came from my blind basset hound named Emma, AKA:
Early Morning Misty Air, my fourth basset hound.
Can you believe it? Emma is now blind! It is so sad………
This was one of the first pictures I saw of my girl! The eyes did me in! Sigh!
This is her journey and I hope it helps others that face the horrific realization that their beloved hound is going blind. Emma went blind from primary, close angle glaucoma and we will focus on this in her blog postings to come. I want to help people in my position.
Your emotions will run the gamut but don’t fear. Emma is here to help and guide you along the way. Just like she has helped everyone who loves her. The journey is just starting and we plan on doing a specific blog category. You will see it listed to the right under categories.
It is called: Emma’s blind wisdom – Seeing with your heart, and nose!
Your hound is blind, but you do not need to live in the dark. Let us help you every paw step of the way. Hang on to your blind hound and soon to be blind hounds folks, this is going to be a wild ride!
More Seeing with your Heart and Nose Later…. Emma Rudert
P.S. This took me months to write. I was so devastated.
Emma pawing in trying to help others in need.
Emma slept through the night with me. I had Chaps in the office bed with the door closed. He was all set up and this is where the dog door is. I also have a front area for potty breaks which is where Emma is used to going since she was a pup.
Chaps hated being in the back, but he got over it.
It is a huge help if you can keep your hounds separated. I do not have human kids, but it might be helpful to plan this. If you think it will work, have your kids sleep with the hound that is separated.
I suggest you sleep with the hound that had the surgical procedure. This night is so important. If you have a blow up mattress have it already set up next to the dog bed. If not, sleep on the couch near the dog bed.
You will want to put a bell on the hound to alert you of movement. Chances are, the hound will not move due to the anesthetics.
Emma here pawing in about my prosthetic eye implant on the right side!
Of course it is pelting rain and Emma has had the worst surgical report the surgeon has ever had in his career. All I want is a drink. This is just too much to handle. I do not want to see Emma in this condition at 2 years old. Well, regardless, it does not matter what I want.
Emma has her fake eye and we are on our way home. She is groggy. My main concern is getting her inside my home from the car. I cannot carry her. She weighs 63 pounds. Thank goodness she can walk.
My advise, if you are a single person who cannot carry your hound, enlist help.
My Mom was with me every step of the way and my Dad was sitting with Chaps. Emma made her way into our home up 8 steps. We stopped off first to go potty. This is very important.
She was so groggy and I cannot tell you how proud I was of her. This is a a major surgery.
If you have kids or other animals make sure they are quite. When your hound enters the home make sure your kids and other animals are sitting quite or are in other rooms. This first night of rest is so important. Emma slept through the night!
A hound that has this type of surgery needs peace and quite.
You can lay with your hound which is what I did. Remember, this is a family member. Tell everyone to be calm and sweet. This will pay off in the future of this hound re-acclimating.
In most cases your hound will be wearing a cone. For some reason my Opthalmologist did not think she needed one. I thought that was odd. Looking back, I cannot believe she did not scratch it! My Mom and I sat with her around the clock however. I would suggest your hound wear an e-collar because most people are not as fortunate as myself and work out of your home with your sweet Mom and Dad living right upstairs.
Emma did much better recovering from this surgery than she did with the eye removal surgery she eventually got in her left eye one year later. (Enucleation)
Emma’s breeders, BoBac Bassets, paid for both surgeries.
The enucleation did require a cone and it was a must. It was very itchy. We will get into that in our enucleation blogs.
More from our Emma, blind but not without INSIGHT!
Emma here, pawing in with another update! Poor girl. She looks so pathetic. The rain is pelting down and we meet with her surgeon. He informs us that it is the hardest procedure he has done in his life. Keep in mind, this guy is getting ready to retire. Emma, being the severely allergic hound that she is, has indeed had an allergic reaction to the surgical scrub. What more can this poor girl endure?
Prior to surgery, the surgeon tells us that he can determine if this is primary or secondary glaucoma. Primary is hereditary and secondary is trauma related. Of course, looking back on it there was no way it was going to be secondary. Emma’s eye examination, done as a pup, already stated that her drainage angles were mal-aligned in both eyes.
We are informed that Emma, indeed, has primary closed angle glaucoma and this means that she will go blind in her second eye eventually. The surgeon informs us that her left eye has severely mal-aligned angles and this has pre-disposed her from birth to glaucoma which means blindness.
This is why it is so important when you are buying a puppy you see a normal opthalmologic report with normal drainage angles. I will continue to harp on this. Basset hounds are already pre-disposed to this travesty and this is one way you can guard against blindness.
This was a heart wrenching lesson. One that I do not want you to go through. Keep in mind that I did not pick Emma from the litter. The breeder picked her for me. Had I been given a choice of picking a pup with normal eyes or a pup with abnormal eyes, I would have picked normal. We love Emma because she is our family member and we will love her though thick and thin. She is amazing and faces all of her many challenges with dignity and grace. I have learned so much from her.
Me giving Emma her first bath!
Next Blog………Emma’s first night with her prosthetic eye.
More later from Emma, seeing with your heart and your nose!
Emma repawing in! This is a tip to everyone who wants to buy a basset hound puppy from a AKC – BHCA breeder who does opthalmologic examinations. This exam is called a gonioscopy. The breeder has several reasons for doing this examination. First and foremost they do not want to keep a puppy with abnormal angles in their breeding program. The goal of a reputable breeder of any kind wants to better the breed. Secondly, they can present the potential educated buyer (other show people) with the documentation that the puppy has normal angles and therefore is not at a greater risk for developing glaucoma.
Make sure you buy a puppy with normal angles! You do not have visions of the show ring but you do have the right to a hound that grows old with vision.
Most reputable AKC breeders of basset hound puppies do angle checks at their opthalmologic office because the breed is pre-disposed for glaucoma. Again, they want to make sure they do not keep and breed a pup with the potential for this disease.
The pups are taken to an eye doctor for what they call an angle check or gonioscopy. The doctor puts a lense on the eyes and determines if the pup has normal drainage angles or not.
The eye doctor will then fill out a form from the Canine Eye Registration Foundation to certify what the health of the pup’s eyes are.
Do not buy a puppy from the breeder unless the word normal on the right and left sides are checked. It is NOT worth the risk. Cover all of this up front before you even look at pictures of available pups.
The reputable breeder will provide you with a copy of the eye examination report. Make sure you get a copy of it. It is wise to keep this in your medical records file.
Both of Emma’s eyes had abnormal angles. I did not know an angle from a circle so I had no idea what this meant when I drove from KY to TX to buy a basset hound puppy. The breeder selected Emma for me. I was told that Emma had a normal eye examination.
Buyer beware! Once again, Basset Hounds are pre-disposed for Glaucoma.
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER,
buy a pup that has abnormal angles, unless you are fully aware of the disadvantage this pup has in life. Glaucoma is painful for the hound and your other family members. It is also extremely expensive. Emma began going blind from glaucoma from birth.
Why would you go to the trouble to research/select a top notch, reputable breeder and then buy a hound that is more compromised to health problems? Get the results of the eye report prior to the visiting the breeder. I speak from experience. I only wish I would have had this information.
I will eventually have my own list of questions on this blog for you to ask the breeder you are considering. If you need it before I post it, just e-mail me via the contact page and I will send them to you.
More Later from Emma, the hound that sees with her heart and her nose!
Emma repawing in: Little did we know this morning, the March 16, 2007 when we all woke up, Emma was experiencing her first signs of closed angle, primary glaucoma. Emma was only 3 at the time.
I noticed immediately that her right eye seemed a bit cloudy, even before I got out of bed. It was early spring and Emma suffers terribly from allergies. Maybe it was just a flower she got into out back the night before?
I kept looking at her all morning and it just did not look right. I called my vet and made an appointment that day. He agreed with my preliminary, diagnosis. He sent us home with some eye ointment.
Had I been more informed I may had been able to save vision in that eye for an undetermined time period. Emma had abnormal angles when I bought her. I did not know an angle from a circle. I was given no warning about what that meant. Poor Emma, I might have been able to do more according to my eye doctor.
I went home with my 8.00 eye ointment and in the process killed all hope of saving vision in that eye forever. I may have only been able to save her vision for a year or so, but a year is a gift when your hound is so young.
Glaucoma is fast acting and you need to be as well. My Vet and I were so used to her severe allergies he and I both over looked the dreaded glaucoma. Emma also has a dermatologist who has her on a special diet. Emma is allergic to protein in her food. She is also allergic to most everything else.
Poor Emma, she has so many problems.
No matter what your hound’s problems are, check the obvious. Glaucoma.
My little 2 year old girl just before she lost the sight in her first eye.
I have a glossary of terms to the right under the header Navigation. Here you can look up words that may be very helpful. Remember, Glaucoma is VERY FAST acting. Get to your vet or an emergency Vet ASAP!
More later from Emma who sees with her heart and her nose!
Howllow Fellow Hound and BHCA lovers:
I was just reading the January/February issue of the Tally-Ho. From now on, all issues are going to be in color which will be great because the Tally-Ho has fantastic pictures of basset hounds from some of the top breeders in the world.
I have been a member since I rescued Natalie from the pound in 1994. Anything basset hound and I am all over it. At that time the publication, well….was not very good. So, after awhile I let my membership lapse. Then, I wanted to re-join and have been a member ever since.
I found the following motion very interesting. I was very pleased that the board has decided to donate to these grants that will better our beloved-ed breed. So many of us have hounds or have had hounds who have suffered through these types of medical issues. Anything to better our breed’s health is well worth the money spent!
Motion #07-08
I move, “That the BHCA partially support the following grant requests out of the AKC/CHF Basset Hound Donor Advised Fund”:
Pending Grant No. 747: The Mapping and Characterization of Mutations Responsible for Canine Glaucoma
Principal Investigator(s): Elizabeth Giuliano, DVM, MS, DACVO, University of Missouri, Columbia
Sponsor(s): No Sponsors
Grant Amount: $82,080.00 (half paid by AKC/CHF)
Start Date: 10/1/2007 Duration (in yrs): 2
BHCA Amount: $20,000 (BH breed specific)
Pending Grant No. 919: Molecular Genetic Characterization of Canine Cystinuria for the Development of Carrier Tests
Principal Investigator(s): Paula S. Henthorn, PhD, University of Pennsylvania
Sponsor(s): No Sponsors
Grant Amount: $48,924.00 (half paid by AKC/CHF)
Anticipated Start Date: 1/1/2008 Duration (in yrs): 1
BHCA Amount: $2,000 (BH breed specific)
Pending Grant No. 1028-A: Genetics of Gastric Dilatation Volvulus in the Great Dane
Principal Investigator(s): Mathew Pletcher, Florida Atlantic University
Sponsor(s): No Sponsors
Grant Amount: $10,800.00 (half paid by AKC/CHF)
Start Date: 9/1/2007 Duration (in yrs): 1
BHCA Amount Required: $1,000 (generally applicable to BH breed)
Motion: Brian Pechtold
Second: Gene McDonald
Voting Yes: (9) Brandt, Engle, Ferguson, Kintner, Lane, McDonald, Pechtold, Rush, Williams
Voting No:
Abstain:
Vote not received: Opeka,
Motion passed and is resolved
I think it is great that our club will be apart of researching these very important heath issues. I will keep everyone updated.
A healthy hound makes for a happy family.
More Later…Cat, Chaps and Emma
and thought that this was very interesting!
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