We live in the UK and I came across a person (online) looking for a last resort home for a young puppy; the post was on a forum and was asking for help or a home for a Pyrenean Mountain dog x Welsh Collie puppy. Her name is Elsa and she was born blind and deaf. She was a bit too boisterous for the young child in the house and obviously did not understand that her play-biting was a bit too rough!
I made the 4 hour journey to go fetch Elsa. She was 3 months old then and is about 1.5 years now. You could not ask for a happier dog! She is so confident, loves playing and bouncing around and loves going for walks and herding us as we walk.
She seemed to be able to 'see' the difference between bright light and darkness. I took her to an eye specialist to see if she had any sight and they did a temporary tacking-back of her eyelid to see if her sight improved. It didn't and due to several problems with her eyes we ended up making the decision to enucleate (a very hard decision but one that was for the best).
So now else has no eyes. People still don't notice she's blind or deaf until they get closer as she is SO confident and loves running around me (I have a long extendable tape lead). She knows when I pull up on the harness to take a step up/over things and she sits and gives her paw when she smells a treat or when I tap her back twice. She knows the garden well and she plays with our other rescue dog.
She has been a challenge at times but is the most inspirational, lovable dogs I have had the pleasure of sharing my home with!
St Albans, United Kingdom
