The February sun can be treacherous not only for human eyes, but also for our four-legged friends. It is during this period that it can easily happen that the dog begins to struggle with serious health problems. If you notice that your eyes are squinting while walking, definitely focus on that moment.
Does your dog seem to constantly turn around, rub his paws on his nose and eyes, or make his eyes water excessively when walking in snowy fields or mountains? At such a moment, you should definitely not just wave your hand over similar signals. It is not just an unpleasant feeling from bright light, but a condition which experts call it snow blindness. In addition, the consequences of such a condition can be painful for the animal and in some cases even permanent.
Beware of UV radiation
What is the danger actually? It is nothing more than the fact that especially freshly fallen snow (but in many cases also older snow) acts as a huge mirror. While at other times of the year and under better conditions for the dog’s eyes, ordinary terrain reflects only a small percentage of solar radiation, snow cover can reflect up to eighty percent of UV rays – directly into the dog’s eyes, which move much lower to the ground than human eyes.
You can also bake homemade cookies for your dog on a winter trip:
The dog’s cornea suffers a lot
This really intense dose of radiation can literally burn a dog’s cornea. We can imagine the condition as our burnt skin the moment we fell asleep on a sunny beach. But it is all the more serious because in this case it is the animal’s sensitive eye tissue. Also remember the fact that the higher the altitude you climb during winter fun with your furry friend, the more aggressive the UV radiation and the risk of vision damage rises steeply.
If you fear that you will not recognize the problem early enough, you are unfortunately very right to fear.
Snow blindness is dangerous
Snow blindness manifests itself inconspicuously in dogs, but it is all the more unpleasant for the animal. The first the warning signal is precisely that narrowing of the eyes and the subsequent one . As soon as you start to think that the dog is disoriented, does not want to walk in direct light and is looking for shade, it is necessary to pay attention immediately. This may be the first warning sign of the aforementioned damage to the cornea.
Symptoms only appear at home
While the first symptoms are easily overlooked by many less observant breeders, in a more advanced stage swelling of the eyelids and a strong discharge from the eyes appear. It is important to know that symptoms often do not become fully apparent until several hours after exposure to strong sunlight – that is, only in the comfort of your home. At that moment, however, the work of destruction is already complete. If you notice such a condition, the only quick help for the unfortunate animal is to immediately move it to a dark room and apply cool compresses. Never delay a visit to the vet, because only he can prescribe special soothing drops with antibiotics, which the dog will absolutely need in order to be able to prevent the so-called secondary infection.
Some breeds are more sensitive
An interesting fact is that some breeds are more susceptible than others to such eye damage due to UV radiation. What breeds are we talking about? These are primarily dogs with light pigmentation around the eyes or breeds that suffer from chronic eye inflammation to a greater extent. A big risk is the so-called pannusi.e. immune provoked. Such a condition is typical for, for example, German shepherds or greyhounds. In these dogs, even a short stay in the harsh February sun without protection can cause irreversible clouding of the cornea and gradual loss of vision.
Will you get your dog glasses?
So let’s take a look at how to best protect the dog without having to spend the whole winter locked up at home. The modern way of breeding offers a solution that may look funny at first glance, but it is functional. It is about special dog glasses with UV filterwhich are still more widespread west of our borders like dog goggles. This is not a fad, but a real and very useful tool that blocks harmful radiation and at the same time protects the dog’s eye from mechanical injury from ice crystals or twigs. It is obvious that we probably won’t buy them for a walk in the city park, but they will certainly come in handy during a winter holiday in the mountains.
There are other options
Have you decided not to buy glasses for your dog – for whatever reason? Then there are other options for winter protection of his eyesight. For example, try to plan longer walks in the early morning or late afternoonwhen the sun is not so high and the radiation intensity is therefore much lower. If possible, choose routes through the forest or shaded valleys where the snow does not reflect as much light directly into your face. At the same time, breeders of short-legged breeds should be even more careful, because their pets are even closer to the ground, and their eyes are thus exposed to a greater onslaught of reflected rays. Winter nature is beautiful, but the safety of the vision of our four-legged friends should always come first. How do you decide? Glasses or modification of the daily regime?
