I close my eyes and wonder.

 

Does she see things the way they are?

Now, I’m thinking. When I look at anything, I mean anything, even the keyboard in front of me, what is it I really see? I do close my eyes and wonder. What is the difference between looking and seeing? If I suddenly lost my sight, I would no longer be looking at something, but would I still see it?

This is the summary that was given to us from the West Coast Veterinary Eye Specialists stating the following,
 
“Blind, both eyes, suspect intracranial, Annie is not visual and I believe that she has been blind since birth. I suspect her blindness originates from her brain. As discussed today I am confident that Annie will continue to do well.”

I have often wondered, what does Annie really “see”, what is she “looking” at, and how does she know what is in front of her? This brings me to telling you my theory of how this can be.

For Annie to walk into a room, I think to myself, that takes courage. What I see, is a normal dog walk into a normal room with many obstacles to avoid.

 

As Annie manoeuvres herself up or down a flight of stairs, I hold my breath and wonder how scary that must be for her. When in fact, Annie is getting from A to B any which way she can possibly manage.

When the back door opens and someone enters the room, Annie will greet them. I shake my head and ask myself, how does she know that? Annie is simply greeting someone at the door.
 

As I help her to her night time bed, and we cuddle for a few moments, she soon relaxes and falls into a deep sleep. As I leave the room my heart is bursting with love, and I see, Annie’s heart couldn’t possibly be any fuller as she settles down for the night.

So, yes, even though Annie is “not visual” she utilizes her strength, her courage, her emotions, her memory, and her instinct to see her way through the day. For Annie, life without vision has never been an issue. We humans depend on our sight to guide her, and tend to forget the fact that she does see things the way they are. It’s all in the way you look at it.