Sards

CVW said:

Hello all,

I wanted to share with you my story on SARDS (Sudden Acquired Retinal Degeneration Syndrome). My sweet boy Buddy was diagnosed with SARDS over a year ago (April 2009). I have been researching it for a long time and looking for other Maltese owners who are dealing with this terrible disease. Perhpas posting our story will help any of you out there to see the warning signs and eventually deal with your blind dog.

Buddy is now 7 years old and was always so full of life, spunky, naughty, lovable, his favourite thing to do was to chase and catch a tennis ball in the park. In August 2008 I noticed that he was drinking water excessivley and eating everything in site. He was also peeing and pooping in the house which he NEVER did before. I also noticed that he was losing his "black" nose, it was becoming lighter. He gained almost 5lbs in a matter of months. I took him to the vet many times, they did blood tests and urine tests and told me he had allergies, so I put him on allergy meds. No change...he got worse, the lethargy set in around December 2008. He didn't want to go on walks, he slept all day, kind of moped around and looked very depressed. I was very worried about him but the vets couldn't tell me what was wrong, I tried new foods....just about everything. In March 2009 I noticed that he couldn't track his ball anymore and he began bumping into walls. I took him to the vet immediately and she told me that it looked as though he had lost eyesight in one eye. She referred me to a special Animal Hospital with a Vet that specialized in optimalogoy. I took Buddy the next day, they did a few tests and asked him to stay the night so that they could perform an ERG test. They did and it came back FLAT, meaning no eye sight at all in either eye. I was completely heartbroken and cried my eyes out in the vets office. He was diagnosed with SARDS in April 2009. I'm afraid there is no cure but I've read that there is a very special Vet in Iowa (Dr. Sinisa Grozdanic) that is doing experimental treatments using hormone replacement therapy....the catch is you have to get to him right away and it's experimental.

Sweet Buddy has been blind ever since and you'd never know it! It's as if he's at peace with the fact that he's blind and he's just getting on with life. I'm happy to say that he's back to being full of life, spunky, happy, naughty and more loveable than ever. Yes, it was a huge adjustment....we had to watch his every move.....tell him "down, down" when there were stairs, or "up, up" when it came to going up them! He knows "careful", when he gets to a wall or a fence or something and he trusts us implicitly. He runs like crazy in the park (on a leash) and seems to be very happy. He knows his way around the house, stairs and all....he really is a remarkable little dog, so smart, he surprises us every day. He's lost about 2 lbs, we've put him on light food diet and he gets carrots as his treat. We take him on very long walks so he gets lots of exercise.

If any of you are dealing with SARDS, please know that your little ones are not in pain. They are initially very confused as to why all of a sudden they can't see, but they adapt very quickly. They just need extra TLC and understanding.

I hope and pray that they find a cause and a cure for this disease soon.

CVW & Buddy

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