Wondering if my doggy is giong blind?

Deb and Ed M wrote:
The million-dollar question: if you toss a treat his way - does he see it/catch it?

Jack the Cattle Dog developed cataracts in his old age; and although he could get around just fine (up/down steps, in and out of the car, etc) - he couldn't catch anything tossed his way. But you could clearly see the haziness in his eyes. I'm assuming you are NOT seeing that in Tiki?

Well, yes and no. Tiki is not food oriented in the least. He will eat a tree if it is pretty stinky, like bacon or salmon or roasted chicken. He will eat it from your hand, but if you throw it down he sometimes has to look for it if he's not looking directly at me.

I took him to our vet this afternoon. She says she can't see any cataracts and he is definitely seeing close up, like if I put my finger to his inner eye. But it is quite apparent that his peripheral vision on the left eye is very poor. If you try to sneak your hand behind the right eye he is quick to catch it. On the left, your hand has to almost get in front before he sees it. The vet gave me a referral to an ophthalmic specialist and I will call her tomorrow.

In the meantime, my vet wants to do a dental deep cleaning. Tiki's breath is horrible. It smells like something crawled up in there and died. We have held off on the dental because he has been so traumatized in the past, but it's time. His teeth look terrible. We'll get that on the calendar in two weeks (we're going camping next week.)

Thanks for all the good advice and well wishes. I did some reading about Bichons last night and apparently they are at high risk for eye problems, I think about 11% of that population. Yikes~!