Willie

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Update 03/11/08:

Willie has had two more good weeks since returning. He isn’t barking so much at the resident dogs, which is helping in their getting along. There’ve been only a couple of spats of late. The resident dogs still won’t play with Willie and he has just about given up trying. He’ll approach the resident female but she still just cowers. His barkie style of play scares her. 

Often running around, Willie’s been much more active outdoors. His foster mom can watch him from the kitchen. She saw dirt flying one day. He had dug three holes along a new fence line – oh, Willie!! She ran down, filled his excavations with rocks and dumped some poop in too. Why a vision impaired dog would want to escape is a mystery, but Willie devotes almost 100% of his time outdoors to checking that fence.

When not tending fence, Willie explores around the shrubbery. A scratch under one eye was just about healed when he came in with a fresh one. He crawls under big evergreens in the yard where there are a lot of dead branches. True to his breed, a little “bushwacking” just doesn’t slow Willie down.

Willie makes the trip to the bus stop each morning with his family. They can’t get out of the house without him. One day they passed about eight deer on the street while driving to the stop. Willie didn’t see them but perhaps he saw vague shadows. During the day he may choose to stay in the van (in the garage) for hours. He seems happy to sit in there by himself, maybe just in readiness for the next trip to the bus stop.

To know Willie is to be impressed with how adaptable, content and loving a boy he is. His interests and pleasures are the same as those of sighted dogs. His need for companionship, especially human companionship, is typically Springer strong. If you have a heart as big as Willie’s, and need someone special in your life too, please ask about meeting this boy. 

Update 02/24/08:

Willie returned to MAESSR’s care due to family issues, not through any fault of his own. He moved to a new foster home with two young female springers and two kids, aged eight and ten. Willie is the very first vision-impaired Springer his family has met and they are absolutely amazed at his abilities.

It was early evening when Willie arrived at his foster home. Within an hour, he had the location of the water bowl, outside door and hallways mapped, quicker than most of the prior fosters with good vision. He also found the dog toy basket, took all the toys out and squeaked a Wubba for an hour. 

Willie just loves to be outdoors exploring in his fenced yard. He moves about the yard easily, sometimes running a bit. He spends a lot of time border patrolling the fence. His foster mom can’t figure out whether he’s attempting to find an escape route, mapping the yard or just smelling. He did stick his head through the vertical aluminum fencing so he is watched closely when out. He’s very interested in spots where he hears people talking in other yards. Willie is given a lot of time outdoors during day light when he can see somewhat, and, less time when it’s dark and he relies on other senses. Increased activity will help Willie lose a few pounds so that he can run around more and not get breathless.

Indoors Willie is a generally quiet, calm dog. He sleeps bedside on a dog pillow but really would much prefer his human’s bed! He sleeps quietly and stays put, not anxious to get up in the morning at all. Willie just loves to hang out with the humans and purrs in pleasure as he gets petted. He’s fully housebroken and doesn’t seem interested in trash or counters. He does have an excellent nose and will find little things that may be overlooked, like a small bag of pretzels in a backpack on the floor or food crumbs left on the floor of the van. Willie is only crated when his foster mom goes out. He barks a bit when left but is always quiet when she returns. Willie loves to go in the van on errands. When his foster mom returns from an errand, Willie is always curled up sleeping on the driver’s seat and happy to see her. 

Willie is doing fine with the resident dogs. He much prefers the quiet, non-barking laid back girl to the bossy barker. His foster mom thinks Willie would much prefer a home that didn’t include a barker since he really can’t tell if she is barking at him or something else. He hasn’t yet started playing with the resident dogs but is comfortable around them. The younger resident female has made a lot of play bows, but Willie doesn’t pick up on them and she goes off onto something else.

Willie is a real people dog. He loves every single person he meets and cherishes their attention. He is more than happy to sit by almost anyone’s feet and get petted. He’s good with the children in his foster home and would do best with kids that are at least as big as he is. He could certainly knock over little ones and not even know it. 

Unlike humans, sight follows smell and hearing in importance to dogs. Willie is a prime example that being vision impaired really doesn’t alter his life that much. He’s a well adjusted, happy boy. He is looking for that forever family that will take him for interesting walks, play with him, love him and keep him safe. The lucky family that calls Willie their own will be getting much more than they could ever have imagined. Need a companion? 

Original:

Wilson, known as Willie, to all that love him, was picked up as a stray in Georgia and went to the shelter. He came into rescue intact with fleas and the resultant tapeworm, ear infections, eye problems, positive for Heartworm microfilaria (not adults so it was a new infection), not housetrained, and with little to no training. Willie is now up to date on all of his shots, the microfilaria have been killed, the ears are all clean and he is just finishing up some antibiotics to clear up yeast skin due to so much licking and biting at his skin, probably from a flea allergy. Willie is also now house trained, crate-trained, knows sit, rides nicely in the car, takes treats gently and is a pure pleasure to have as a foster dog. 

Sadly, Willie has been diagnosed with significant retinal degeneration. This means that he has significantly impaired vision and there is nothing we can do to repair it. He can see some shadows we think in bright light and nothing when it is dark. He is absolutely not slowed down much by his disability. In fact, he loves to play with toys and will chase a bouncing ball. He follows his foster mom around the house and the resident female springer around the yard in games of chase. He will calmly and quietly lie down by her feet while she’s watching TV or folding the laundry. He has mapped out where things are in the house and navigates with ease. It is truly amazing to see the amazing adaptability of blind dogs.

At some point it is likely that Willie will develop cataracts and lose whatever vision he has left. He will not be a candidate for surgery and it would be a disservice to him to try it as surgery would be painful and give little to no expected benefit. Retinal degeneration can be genetic in springers and if his people had tried to get him to rescue or have his eyes looked at by an ophthalmologist there is a process that could possible reverse the issue if it is caught very early. Sadly, Willie didn’t get that chance so he’s now looking for someone who will help him navigate the world safely and with love. This boy is a lovebug and is wonderful and calm in the house and gentle too. He likes kids that he’s met but can be exuberant if they have a toy. He does not do well with cats and while in Georgia there was an incident with a chicken so a farm dog he will never be. 

Though Willie started out his young life as a stray with little direction, he now knows what pleasures behold to the dog living the MAESSR life and is happy to give you kisses and cuddles to let you know how grateful he is.