Blindness is not necessarily a huge disability for dogs, meaning a high quality of life can still be maintained.

Surprisingly, blindness presents few problems for the average household dog. In fact, an owner will often be unaware of their dog's loss of sight until they move to a new environment or modify an existing one.

However, if you are at all concerned about your dog's eyesight, arrange for an examination by your vet.

If loss of vision happens on a gradual basis, as with senile cataracts or progressive genetic conditions, animals learn to find their way around furniture, food bowls and stairwells as if their vision was perfect. Poor vision isn't necessarily that much of an obstacle once you go outside, either - even games of fetch can be possible! And long walks on the lead can be enjoyable if the ground surface is relatively even and the route familiar.

If your dog is suffering from impaired sight, there are some things you can do to help - starting with the other functional senses.

• We all talk to our dogs and routinely use verbal cues, so just make speech more frequent and exaggerated for the blind dog.
  
• The sense of smell, meanwhile, can be very useful for 'tagging' specific areas of the home. For example, hazards such as stair landings could be identified with small amounts of lemon oil or potpourri, or where possible mark important objects with smells like peppermint and eucalyptus.
  
• Don't leave obstacles in unexpected places and avoid moving furniture around, as this could cause confusion.