“I’ve had two blind dogs,” someone told me at the BlogPaws Conference. “One would crash into walls, bounce off and keep going as if nothing happened. The other dog became scared of everything.”
Fortunately, Buffy, my 9-year-old cocker spaniel, is like the former. She bumps into many things each day and I worried about bringing her to the conference.
Buffy had glaucoma, and she had her second eye removed only 2 ½ weeks before the conference. The vet removed her eye (enucleation) since her ocular pressure remained high. Eye medication only works for a short time in dogs, unlike with people. Pressures above 35 mm Hg feel like a migraine headache. Buffy had pressure spikes as high as 75 mm Hg. Sometimes the ophthalmologist could get her pressure to drop. If the pressure dropped within a few hours, then some of Buffy’s eyesight returned. But after a week of blindness at the end of March, I knew there was no hope of her eyesight returning. My vet recommended removal. Buffy now looks like a stuffed toy with her eyelids sewn shut.
Buffy has a Muffin’s halo, which helps blind dogs not bump into things, but she doesn’t like it. She gets stuck underneath chairs and in corners. She seems to prefer bumping into things. To read more about Buffy’s journey with glaucoma read these posts.
From 20:20 Vision to 0:0 Overnight—What Happened?
Nearly Blind—Buffy’s Stages of Glaucoma
- Buffy had never been in a motel room. I always camp with her. I had planned to camp, but lows in the mid- thirties and snow predicted while traveling, made me decide to get a motel.
- She did fine in the motel room. She didn’t bark and hardly bumped into the furniture, unlike home. The small room was easier to negotiate.
- How would she act with people and strange dogs coming up to her? I’ve heard some blind dogs can become very fearful of people and dogs. This is partly because they can’t interpret their body language.
Buffy with Dexter - Buffy actually seems more friendly. Anyone can come up to her and pet her and she is fine with dogs sniffing her nose. She loves the extra attention and all the pets.
- Would she bump into chairs?
- I kept her on a tight leash and guided her in the conference. She didn’t bump into things more than usual. If there were extra seats, she liked sitting in the chair next to me.
- Would she be able to keep up?
- Buffy walks slower and stops when she notices a change in the floor. There were many stairs—with the vendors and meals on one level and sessions on the next. Buffy seemed to prefer the stairs to the elevator. I always stopped her at the stairs and used “wait” and “stair.” She would investigate and figure out if she needed to step up or down. It actually worked pretty well—even when I was carrying the stroller.
Buffy in the Frontline pool of balls 
Buffy in the exhibit hall - We were late for a few sessions since grass was not located near the building. I tried to hurry her along by using the stroller, but she preferred to walk.
- Buffy walks slower and stops when she notices a change in the floor. There were many stairs—with the vendors and meals on one level and sessions on the next. Buffy seemed to prefer the stairs to the elevator. I always stopped her at the stairs and used “wait” and “stair.” She would investigate and figure out if she needed to step up or down. It actually worked pretty well—even when I was carrying the stroller.
- Would she become stressed at the new situation?
Buffy with the Whimzees exhibit - Buffy seemed to roll with the punches. She trusted me to take care of her.
- What was my backup plan?
- Since I was staying at a different motel, I couldn’t leave her in my room. I did have several options though. I brought a crate if I needed to leave her in one of the pet parks (provided by BlogPaws). She could have stayed in the car since the parking garage was cool. But I knew Buffy would prefer to stay with me.
- I also had the stroller, which I used a few times, but she didn’t like it—she preferred to walk.
Lessons Learned
I’m glad I brought her. I taught many people about glaucoma and Buffy got a lot of attention.
- When people offered to help carry the stroller up the stairs or hold Buffy’s leash—I should have accepted. I felt proud that I could do it all myself, but I read an article in Ask Amy about not refusing an act of kindness. Sorry everyone who offered!
- Buffy did quite well at the conference because I was paying a lot of attention to where she was walking.
- I wish I had nominated my website and stayed for the awards dinner. I had to leave early to get to work the next day. I felt that my blogs weren’t good enough—but several people came up to me to say they liked a particular post. That felt great!
- Learn the names of the people behind the websites. The website names are familiar, but not the writers. I probably missed many good opportunities to talk to people whose posts I enjoyed.
- Update my business cards. I still have pictures of my springer on them. When people see my cards, but then see me with Buffy, it gets confusing.
- Stay at the hotel if possible. I missed many opportunities to socialize since I stayed at a different place. Buffy seems like she would be fine if I shared a room (which I had been afraid to do).
Buffy at the Solid Gold exhibit, dressed as Wonder Woman - I should have borrowed a stroller instead of buying one. I found out too late that my daughter-in-law had one. Since my next dog will likely be a springer spaniel, and way too big for the stroller—I may have wasted $40.
Hopefully Buffy can attend the BlogPaws conference next year! Florida is a long drive from Chicago, so depending on where and when, and of course her health—we’ll just have to see. But I hope to be there!
Sounds like you and Buffy had a good time. She’s adorable. I’m always amazed how resilient animals are. I agree with the “stay on site” advice. I usually stay at a cheapo hotel when I go to a show but sometimes I stay in the show hotel and it is much more fun.
I’m glad Buffy did well at the conference! I love that you learned some “self” things from the conference too, like confidence. I went to the conference thinking my nerves would get the best of me, but I did great. I should have been more confident!
Yes, we all need to feel more confident at these conferences. We learn by attending more and interacting with more people. Thanks for commenting.
I think it also depends a lot on the level of trust she has in you, as well as being able to use you as a guide. They also sell “bumpers” for blind dogs, if you ever saw those? It’s like hula hoop kind of thing; goes around the head.
Buffy has a halo but doesn’t like it. Is that what you meant?
I thought I saw the two of you from a distance, but I didn’t get a chance to talk to you. I’m glad the conference turned out well for Buffy and you.
Maybe next year!
It sounds like both you and Buffy managed beautifully! Thanks for sharing your insights!
I’m glad she did ok, especially because it was such a short time after becoming totally blind. I would stay at the hotel, even if it is a little more expensive. Being able to run up stairs and drop stuff off is invaluable. It’s too bad the halo didn’t work out – maybe she’ll get used to it in time.
I’ve tried it a few times. It seems to help, but then I find her stuck in a corner, afraid to move.
Your Buffy is so precious so sorry she had to have her other eye removed. Dogs are resilient and it is impressive how they react to their new environment. I was attending BlogPaws and staying at the hotel where event happens is the way to go.
You are an incredible Mom and she is just so amazing to have handled all that with her blindness. I am not sure how Layla would have handled it all and that is something that concerns me sometimes.
Wow, I’m impressed both by you and by Buffy. Nothing better than a dog dealing with a challenge to be the best advocate for teaching others.
Thank you for your comment. Yes, I ended up teaching a lot of people about glaucoma.
What a heartwarming story. I know of others who have blind dogs and my first thought was how the dog managed in their daily lives, but it’s not just the dog that this effects – it’s a challenge for the dog parent as well! It sounds like Buffy did wonderfully and I think you should have definitely nominated your blog!
Thank you for the encouragement! Next year I’ll nominate my blog – it’s always good to hear someone likes it!
What an experience for both you and Buffy! It was a good thing to bring her so she could be an ambassador for blind dogs and glaucoma. And to learn what to do for the next time you take her to a conference.
Loved your post and reading about how well Buffy did. I’m so glad you both got to enjoy the conference. Red is blind as well, and I know she would hate the halo so I never bought it. She had glaucoma when we adopted her and the pressure in her eyes was so great, the eye doctor said her eyes were about to literally pop out of her head. Removing them was an option but we were also told of a medication that is injected into each eye once, and it shrinks them so we chose that instead. It worked brilliantly! Imagine how much you’ve raised awareness about blind dogs being as worthy and amazing as any other dog. My husband loves taking Red out in the stroller on the weekend because he sees it as a public service. He talks to people about her, they fawn all over her and they see that just because a dog is old or has issues doesn’t mean they don’t get to go out and enjoy life.
My ophthalmologist never mentioned the drug that shrinks their eyes, and I didn’t come across it with my research. It must be quite new. I might have tried that instead of doing surgery twice. I’m glad to meet another pet parent of a dog with glaucoma. I haven’t used the stroller since I got back since Buffy prefers walking. But I may need to use it soon since I like to walk a lot longer than she does!
Sat here cheering like a mad thing for Buffy. What a star. You learned and she had an awesome time too. Thank you for showing me how Buffy managed at BlogPaws – she is one amazing dog and I hope people with low vision dogs get a lot of hope from this post about Buffy!!
Thank you so much!
I met Buffy there and I was very impressed with her! I appreciate your blog, and I have learned a great deal. You should definitely submit this for BlogPaws awards next year because you have so much to offer. Sorry if my dog bothered you or Buffy, by the way. It was her first conference, and overwhelmed pretty easily.
Thank you for your encouragement! I don’t remember any dogs bothering Buffy. She seemed to take everything in stride.