Blind rescue dog helps owners see world in a different way

Three-year-old husky Cookie was rescued by RSPCA officers on New Year’s Eve after concerns about a number of animals at the site.

RSPCA Animal Rescue Officer (ARO) Sam Matthews was worried when she saw Cookie’s eyes and contacted a vet for advice.

She said: “Cookie was tethered in a yard and was being used to guard the site, but it was clear that she couldn’t see and had a serious problem with her eyes.

“Cookie was relying on her hearing and, with her movement restricted by her tether, it must have been a horrible existence for her.

“Her owner had taken her in from another owner and said her eyes had always been that way, so didn’t want to get veterinary treatment for her. But our vets advised that, while she was blind, her eyes would still be causing her serious discomfort and pain.”

An independent vet certified that Cookie was suffering, which enabled ARO Matthews to take her into RSPCA care.

She was taken to the RSPCA’s Finsbury Park Animal Hospital, in north London, where vets discovered she was suffering from buphthalmia (enlarged eyeballs) and bilateral glaucoma - which had left her blind.

Vets and behaviourists worked together to assess what the right course of action was to treat Cookie. 

RSPCA Chief Veterinary Officer Charlotte Beckett said: “We would never remove both eyes in a sighted dog because that would be a hugely traumatic experience, and losing their sight overnight would have life-long implications for them.

“But as Cookie had likely been blind since she was a puppy and had acclimatised to this, after careful consideration we felt it was the right thing for her. And we’re so pleased that she’s adapted so well and is thriving in her new home.” 

The RSPCA is sharing Cookie's story ahead of International Blind Dog Awareness Day on Sunday (23 August). 

After recovering from the surgery, Cookie was fostered by Paul and Anna Regan, from Bracknell, Berkshire, who had recently signed up as new fosterers following the loss of their beloved dog, Wilf.

Paul, 65, said: “Losing Wilf was such a big wrench in our lives. We said we wouldn’t have another dog, but when Anna suggested fostering, I thought it was a great idea. We could get our dog fix, help a dog in need, and then send them back when they had a new home.

“We didn’t know anything about Cookie - other than her being blind - but agreed to meet her. When she came out, and we saw she had no eyes and still had stitches from her surgery, it was quite confronting. 

“But she was full of confidence, came straight up to us and leaned into us. She was the spitting image of Wilf, and it brought all of those memories back.

“We found out a bit more about her, and that there had been a question mark over whether she might need to be put to sleep, so when we found out she’d been given a chance at life, we felt we needed to give her a chance. We were not just fostering a dog but rehabilitating her.”

Cookie joined Paul and Anna in February from Millbrook Animal Centre, in Surrey, and it soon became clear that she’d never lived in a home before and she struggled with separation-related behaviour, so the RSPCA’s clinical behaviour team stepped in to support them. 

RSPCA Regional Clinical Animal Behaviourist Heather Taylor said: “We helped Cookie’s fosterers to slowly introduce the idea of Cookie being left alone, starting at less than five minutes and gradually working up to just over two hours.

“Now that Cookie is happy being home alone for short periods of time, her fosters, Paul and Anna, felt they could offer her a forever home, which is wonderful.”

“The first time we left her, she howled the house down; it was pitiful,” Paul added. “We would watch her on ‘Cookie Cam’, and she’d wait by the door for us to get home. It was a long process, but we got there in the end.

“We’ve had to make changes to accommodate her; we put extra padding on the doors and moved the furniture around to make it easier for her.

“She knows now that this is her safe space; she comes to us for affection and nuzzles into us. She sleeps in our bedroom and jumps up onto the bed at dawn.”

Paul and Anna signed Cookie’s adoption papers on 17 July, making it official - Paul added: ‘Even after she stole 3kg of brisket off the side! - but they said they’re still willing to foster too.

“Cookie is so resilient, nothing fazes her,” Paul added. “She’s inquisitive, friendly and loves to play with other dogs.

“She has settled in so well; we couldn’t, in all honesty, give her to another family. We’d invested so much in her, and we’d fallen in love with her. She looked so much like our old dog; we couldn’t let her go.

“We wanted to give this poor dog a second chance, but she gave us a second chance too, by showing us we could love another dog again. 

“And she’s shown us how to look at the world differently too. We’re so lucky to have her.”