Living with a Blind or Deaf Pet: Tips from the Vet

Living with a blind or deaf pet can be a rewarding experience, though it’s not without its challenges. It requires thoughtful consideration of how you arrange your environment, how you train your pet, and how to sort out your family’s rhythm to accommodate your pet. And, while there are struggles with a blind or deaf pet, there are also funny, endearing, heartwarming, and plain silly moments that make the struggles worthwhile.

In this article, we will break down sensory impairments in pets, how to adjust your home and routines to accommodate a blind or deaf pet, and other considerations to make life easier for you both.

Understanding Sensory Impairment in Pets

Why do pets end up deaf, blind, or both?

Among dogs, a common cause is a genetic disorder caused by breeding two dogs with the merle gene together, resulting in a double merle dog who is usually white with hearing and vision impairments.

Factors like cataracts, diabetes, glaucoma, and tumors can lead to blindness or a vision impairment in pets. Similarly, age-related degeneration and acute trauma from an injury can lead to vision impairments.

Deafness can also be caused by age-related deterioration or a trauma from an injury. Some dogs become deaf after chronic ear infections or ruptured ear drums. Others experience nerve damage or a tumor that causes hearing loss.

Some breeds are prone to congenital vision or hearing impairments. Before you purchase a puppy from a breeder, talk to a veterinarian to find out the risks.

“For the majority of pets, decreasing sensory abilities happen gradually with aging and are not readily obvious or perceived by the owner,” advised Dr. Margot K. Vahrenwald, DVM, CVJ, Owner/Veterinarian at Park Hill Veterinary Medical Center, an AAHA-accredited practice in Denver, Colorado. These pets adapt very well and may need only some accommodations to prevent injury with blindness, such as a halo collar and gating stairs.”

If you suspect your pet might be experiencing a new vision impairment, you probably see your pet bumping into things or perhaps seeming “lost” within your home. Maybe the light or shadows seem to startle or scare your pet.

If you suspect your pet is losing his or her hearing, you’ve probably noticed that they don’t react to sounds that used to cause a reaction. Or, a lifestyle factor may give you the first clue: For instance, if your dog always rushed to greet family members as soon as the garage door went up and now no longer reacts, you might have an indication of hearing loss.

Gradual sensory impairments sometimes take longer to notice because the impact is minimal at first and only worsening over time. Plus, our pets are extremely good at compensating for their diminishing sense. A cat’s strongest sense is her sense of smell, so a cat who is losing vision may use compensatory behaviors like using her nose to navigate her environment, making it harder for you to discover the impairment.

Sudden onset sensory impairments can be more noticeable because they’re often a result of a specific cause, like an injury, and your pet won’t have the time to develop those compensatory skills.

“Overall, blindness and/or deafness have minimal impacts on quality of life,” assured Dr. Vahrenwald.

In both cases, the most important first step is to seek out a definitive veterinary diagnosis, possibly from a specialist, to rule out other explanations.

Creating an Ideal Home Environment

For a blind pet: The single most important thing you can do for your blind pet is to keep your home environment consistent. Your pet will mentally map your space, so rearranging furniture or swapping out large pieces of home decor will confuse your pet and can cause accidents and injury. This goes for the outdoors, too. Make sure your pet has a small, fenced-in potty spot and train your blind dog to walk on leash for safety’s sake.

Utilize your pet’s other senses to aid in navigation. For example, use your voice and touch to let your pet know where you are and to avoid startling them. Mark certain spaces in your home with different scents to lead your pet from place to place. Consider hanging bells on the exterior door and teaching your blind dog to ring them when he wants out. For blind cats, ensure the litter box is always in the same place without anything blocking access.

Create a safe space for your blind pet with sensory toys and a mat so that they can always find comfort.

For a deaf pet: Your deaf pet will need a little extra help finding you in the house. Use light flicks or stomp on the floor to alert your pet to your presence and to avoid startling him. Ensure that your yard is securely fenced or that your deaf dog is never outside not on leash without a reliable way to recall them. If your pup is interested in dashing out the door, install a baby gate to keep that from happening.

Some pets are blind and deaf. For these pets, combine both sets of strategies and adjust–with lots of care, attention, and patience–as needed.

For all pets with sensory impairments, a predictable, reliable routine is the kindest gift you can give. Arrange feeding, exercise, potty breaks, and training on as close to a daily schedule as you can. It helps your pet feel more confident and safe if he knows what’s coming from moment to moment. This is true for all pets, but it provides an extra layer of security for blind and deaf pets to know what’s happening to them and when.

Communication and Training

Training a blind or deaf dog is crucial to their overall wellbeing and safety. A sensory impairment may impact communication between you and your pet on a daily basis and during training. Adapt your training approach so you can communicate clearly and strengthen your bond.

For a blind dog, teach tactile cues, and teach a deaf dog hand signals. In both cases, use positive reinforcement to reward your dog for the behavior you want to see. For a blind dog, a traditional clicker works great. For a deaf dog, use a hand signal like a thumbs up to mark the desired behavior. Just as with other dogs, some yummy training treats can also be helpful for positive reinforcement.

Daily Care and Medical Considerations

Sometimes, pets with a sensory impairment may experience extra stress if they are frequently startled or have difficulty navigating the environment. Always alert your pet to your presence, and keep the environment consistent.

Don’t skip the wellness visits! Work with your veterinarian to determine any extra care your pet may require. For example, your blind dog may need additional eye exams to watch for infection or irritation.

Keep your daily routine as consistent as possible. Approach feeding times, potty breaks, and your family’s routines with predictability. For your pet’s safety, consider a crate or a gated-off enrichment zone when no one is around to monitor your pet’s wellbeing.

Visit your AAHA-accredited vet regularly, and socialize your pet as appropriate. Be warned, though: Once you take your blind or deaf dog somewhere, your pet will become an instant star. If your dog isn’t ready for that level of attention, work up to it slowly or hang at home.

Living with a blind or deaf pet is a wonderful experience. You are providing a safe, reliable, loving home for a pet who might struggle under other circumstances. It can feel rewarding. It also comes with an additional layer of responsibility to ensure your sensory-impaired pet is safe, contained, and free from accidents or injuries. But the snuggles and the connection when your pet learns you are his or her safety net make it all so worthwhile.

Editor’s Note: Contributor, Maggie Marton, is the person to a deaf pit bull and a deaf and visually-impaired catahoula/pit bull mix.