[rachb]

I recently got a Weimaraner puppy, Bandit, she is 9 weeks old tomorrow.

Today was a rainy day and I could tell Bandit needed an outlet rather than sitting by the fire chewing on her toy so I took her and our motherly whippet out the back for an explore while the rain had stopped. During this I practice encouraging Bandit to stay with me by walking a few metres away slowly while shes distracted and praise her when she prances over to me. Unfortunately our whippet got excited and decided to sprint over to me and Bandit turned her head to look and copped a dog claw in her eye (our whippet sometimes run close to things and dodge away). I raced her to the vet, where she has just finished surgery and sadly had her eye removed.

Now I am asking for some advice on how to cope. They are saying Bandit is recovering very well, but I cannot stop crying about the incident. I feel like I should have known, I shouldn't have let our whippet out with us despite her being well behaved with Bandit (and Bandit loves her). I can assure our whippet had no bad or aggressive intentions, it was completely an accident. But I can't rid the feeling I'm a failure at raising and protecting my pup, I can't stop crying over it. She had a perfectly healthy functioning eye and now it's gone. I keep thinking how I should not have done the steps away or let our other dog out or I should've kept her in and continue to play with her and her toys.

Please help me on how to relieve this guilt.

 

[JudyG]

So sorry this has happened, but it sounds to me like a complete accident! Without being there to see for myself, it just sounds like your whippet was being playful, but with sad consequences. I think you now have to concentrate on helping Bandit to live happily with the use of one eye. I'm sure there are good people on this forum who will have some advice on how to do that. :huddle:

 

[mhop]

A good friend at work has a dog that is completely blind. There was no accident that caused it to be this way; he was born as such, and knows no other life. Granted, this is a different situation where no guilt is involved, but I want to assure you that Bandit, as with most blind/disabled dogs, will come through this like a champ, and you MUST get past your sadness and distress, and that WILL be picked up. As Judy stated, this was absolutely an accident. Wishing and doing the "If only I..."'s will not change what has happened.

I posted on your other thread about the "puppy blues", and I'm sure that this occurring now, given your past history with depression/anxiety, will make this time even more difficult for you.

Perhaps it will help you to have some of your friends over in shifts to help you care for and play with Bandit as he overcomes his new infirmity. Watch him. He'll be the same dog as ever. He'll show you that he will never, ever hold any blame to you, and will only love you.

 

[Grabby]

I'm so sorry this happened to your pup. I understand your feeling responsible and guilty but we can't wrap them in bubble wrap or keep them from all risks. It's terrible that she lost an eye but she will adapt quite well. Dogs don't react emotionally to this type of thing the way a human would. There's no angst or negative thinking associated with the loss of an eye or a limb, etc.

 

[ChessaQ]

Sadly these things happen. I don't think it's your fault at all, it was a freak accident. I've known many dogs missing an eye or even completely blind that live very normal happy lives. I doubt your dog will even notice a difference in a week or two. Sorry this happened but don't feel guilty!

 

[Springer3]

I understand why you feel bad, but it was not your fault. How could you have for seen such a thing? I know she's just a puppy, but rest assured she will do well with one eye! My one Springer had a eye removed at 11 years old & she never missed a beat after the operation. It was much more traumatic for me than it seemed to be for her. This little one will adjust just fine. Best of luck & don't beat yourself up.

 

[Naira]

I'm sorry this happened. It was very humbling as freak accidents like this can happen to anyone. Unfortunately, my 7 month puppy has the rest of her life to have a freak accident. It wasn't your fault and I know your puppy will go on to live an awesome life. One of my favorite dogs at the dog park is a one eyed rescue. He is the sweetest thing.

 

[traciek88]

This wasn't your fault, and wasn't even really your Whippet's fault. It was a crazy accident that happened in play. Luckily your dog still has another eye, so she can still see. On top of that, she's still a pup so she'll learn to adapt quickly, and probably function just fine as an adult. *hugs* Accidents happen, and you need to forgive yourself. I'm sure Bandit has already!

 

[kmes]

I agree. Easier said than done, but no need to feel so guilty. Accidents happens.

One of my dogs had to have an eye removed. She did just fine. The recovery was very quick and was back to normal (better than she had been for a while actually as her eye had been painful) pretty much next day. Fwiw the cataract in her remaining eye worsened and she's now pretty much blind but still doing quite well. Dogs are pretty adaptable!

 

[TiggerBounce]

Accidents happen, don't blame yourself!

Dogs usually do just fine with one eye gone. Most are not visually oriented anyway, so they learn to cope very well.

 

[akodo1]

Freak accidents are going to happen.

Dogs are much less reliant on sight than we are.

The thing is now, the dog is over it and needs YOU to be NORMAL, calm, and collected.

 

[SugarPaws]

I'm very sorry to hear about your puppy! but no one is to blame and the first step is understanding that no one needs to take the responsibility of the action. It happened and now this is your puppy's new life (which in no way is of less quality than it was before, so you shouldn't feel like you ripped off your little sweetheart). Bandit holds no grudge against you and is only thankful that you still love him. He doesn't need pity, but the love you already have for him Best wishes. I hope you are doing okay. You can always rely on your family, friends, and faith (if your are religious) to help get you through this rough patch. :huddle:

 

[StormyPeak]

I'm also sorry to hear you puppy suffered a major injury...but don't feel guilty about what happened...it sounds like a sheer accident that never would have happened if Bandit had been a half step off from where she was or had turned her head a fraction sooner or later than she did. This was a totally unexpected event that you shouldn't feel guilty about.

You puppy will adjust very quickly to her new outlook on life and totally forget she had another eye to look out of...dogs are like that, they move on and don't dwell on 'what life could have been like, if only...' Which is a good lesson to learn from a dog in many cases. : )

I don't want to trivialize what happened to you, because it had to be horrific to see your puppy in pain and to find out it wasn't a fixable wound...in regards to saving the eye.

But I hope that in time, after the dog is older you might even be able to highlight this now unique thing about your dog that makes her different from most other dogs. Most dogs usually only get a little bling by way of a collar or fancy dog tag. You can, if say going out for a walk, put a pretty eye patch on your dog, or for Halloween, get her a dashing pirate's eye patch, for Valentine's Day find one with a lovely heart decorated on it or even a heart shaped one, or if you are in the States a red, white and blue, or flag patch for July 4th...etc... .

It's not anything anyone would have wanted, but it's also something that can't be undone, so I hope you can, in time, exchange the guilt for - at minimum - acceptance without the guilt.

And - at best - go with it and see some smiles come from people when they see your dog with a beautiful, (or silly) bit of felt/cloth or leather that gives her dashing looks even a bit more attention upon occasion.

I did a little search and it seems there's a few dogs out there who are looking good in spite of having just one eye. :thumbsup:

Again, I hope in time you won't feel so guilty about what happened.

Best wishes,

Stormy

 

[DuckDodgers]

Accidents happen. One of my dog's siblings (a VERY nice puppy with lots of potential) was killed in a freak accident as a young puppy when she had a head on collision with her owner's large breed dog. It was horrible and everyone felt awful, but (as someone said) we can't wrap them in bubble wrap and prevent any potential harm. Your puppy is young and will adapt just fine to having only one eye. Even older dogs who lose an eye or their entire vision do just fine. I'm sorry to hear that it happened, but there is no need to feel guilty.

 

[amaryllis]

That's just a freak accident. How could anyone predict that happening?

The puppy, btw, is going to move right on once he gets over any lingering anesthesia sickies. Follow his example.

 

[rachb]

Hello everyone!
Thank you all so much for your support, Bandit had packing in her eye for a few days as she bled an abnormal amount and only just got it removed. I was pretty emotional for a while, occasionally crying when I looked at her and thought about what happened. However she has now had that removed and she looks fantastic, she literally looks like she just has one eye closed. After an emotional, tumultuous week I can now say we are getting on just fine. I honestly feel this incident brought us closer, when the first week I was worried I wasn't bonding to her, now I look at her and feel love and affection (occasionally frustration with her normal silly puppy antics ) for this pup. We even had our first walk yesterday! This accident has not slowed Bandit at all, in fact she continues progressing into the beautiful dog I see her becoming. I cannot thank you all so much for your help, support and encouragement. Without the support on this thread, I would've felt a lot more alone.

Thank you!:huddle:

 

[fruit loop]

OMG, you poor thing and your poor pup.. Dont beat yourself up, it was an accident and accidents happen. You will feel very raw and shuck up today after what you have been through..so be kind to yourself :huddle:
Your pup will manage just fine, and previous posters who have had experience of this seem to think so too. Life is for living, but that sometimes comes with risks and you cant wrap your pup up in cotton wool, they wont thank you for it and its not the life you really want for them. Big hugs, i hope the recovery is quick, but honestly...not your fault or your whippets fault . keep us updated with progress x

 

[JudyG]

Hello everyone!
Thank you all so much for your support, Bandit had packing in her eye for a few days as she bled an abnormal amount and only just got it removed. I was pretty emotional for a while, occasionally crying when I looked at her and thought about what happened. However she has now had that removed and she looks fantastic, she literally looks like she just has one eye closed. After an emotional, tumultuous week I can now say we are getting on just fine. I honestly feel this incident brought us closer, when the first week I was worried I wasn't bonding to her, now I look at her and feel love and affection (occasionally frustration with her normal silly puppy antics ) for this pup. We even had our first walk yesterday! This accident has not slowed Bandit at all, in fact she continues progressing into the beautiful dog I see her becoming. I cannot thank you all so much for your help, support and encouragement. Without the support on this thread, I would've felt a lot more alone.



Thank you!:huddle:

That's a lovely update @rachb, & I'm pleased you & Bandit are finally bonding! It's strange how fate often plays a part in these things, I'm not saying you would have wished this awful injury on little Bandit for one moment, but through it a good thing has come, you are closer! Keep us updated on her progress, she's such a stunning looking dog, I can't wait to see how she grows :thumbsup:

 

[fruit loop]

Wonderful news !!!!

 

[StormyPeak]

rachb,

Thanks for the update and I'm also glad that you are feeling a bit more positive about how things will be with your puppy from here on out. It's good to hear, that you are feeling much closer to your dog and also the the puppy is showing you that even a major injury isn't going to keep her down or slow her down : )


Stormy