wow... it's be such a long time since I posted!! YIKES.. I know summer is busy for everyone so hopefully Aspen updates weren't missed too much(many of you are fb buddies so you are still in the know)!!
So what's Mr. Aspen been up to.. Lots of playing... lots of socializing for him and he's been doing great. He now goes for walks on Friday's with a girl in my social work class.. lots of playing at play pals but sadly we have some not so great news to report. Aspen was diagnosed with bilateral intermediate cataracts :-(
As you can imagine we were very sad to find this news... Actually a better description would be shocked!!! We didn't have a clue that anything was going on with his eyes and had every expectation that he would pass with flying colors. We were just doing the required testing because we wanted to be responsible berner owners but never once thought about the results. Aspen can catch a tennis ball, he can differentiate between balls, he can spot a rabbit or squirrel from all the way across the yard. It turns out it's in his peripheral line of sight. Which may even explain some of his shy and nervous behaviors. Aspen has had his eyes check but only by a regular vet and they were not dilated which is the only explanation I can think of as to why it wasn't caught.
Ok so now what... in Aspen's situation operation would only be considered if it were to get worse. So now we wait. He will go back to see an opthamologist to see if it has progressed. If it gets work he will need surgery. In the mean time I am looking into alternative medicine so we will see. So good thoughts an prayers for Aspen!! I will make a point to post more... promise.
We all learned a very important lesson here.. All of this testing is NOT just for dogs involved in breeding programs.. they are for dogs like yours and mine too!!
