by Amanda Kringle

Created on: September 13, 2010

If your reading this then you just came from the vet and were told that your collie has progressive retinal atrophy. You may feel scared, confused and completely at a loss about what this condition is and what causes it. Your vet may have tried to explain it to you, but it went completely over your head and you are still confused. Well, don't worry, you are not the only collie owner to come across this condition so lucky for you there is lots of available materials on the internet that you can research. That is why this articlewas written to help collie owners understand what it is and how it will effect their pooch. In order to understand how this condition will effect your collie, you must first understand what it is.

Progressive retinal atrophy is an genetic disease in which your collie's DNA have quite literally hard wired him to go blind. The fact that he will go blind is wired into his DNA like the color of his coat. Its is passed down by the parents of the dog as a recessive gene. It is not limited to collies but is found in just about every breed of dog, even in mixed breeds. The first sign that most owners notice is a habitual dilation of the eyes. Usually it is accompanied with excessive shine or glow in the dogs eyes. Unfortunately by the time that the condition is noticed the dog is usually already significantly night blind. This means that the dog cannot see well (if at all) at night or in low light areas. The disease will progress very quickly and usually within a year or two after the first signs of the disease the dog is completely blind. Cataracts are often present with this disease and are usually a sign that your dog is entering advanced stages. Cataract surgery maybe possible must be discussed with a veterinary ophthalmologist. The disease is not painful and it is quite possible for the dog to enjoy a decent quality of life even with this disease. While its true that this disease is not curable, if caught in enough time the dog can be given antioxidant nutritional supplements that may help the progression of the disease. Its important that your dog receive these supplements before the disease is too far advanced.

Dogs with this disease should not be bred as it will almost always pass along to the off spring. If your dog has this disease and she already has had a litter of puppies then you will need to let the prospective owners know that there is a chance the puppy will have this disease. Blood tests may be able to identify the

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>