Becoming a dog owner is exciting, but it comes with a lot of responsibility. For those who are lucky enough to own a dog, it is important that they know each and everything about them, including your dog’s eyesight.
While some of the major things that you should be aware of include their diet and specific habits with respect to their breed, knowing about your dog’s vision is also important.
Having perfect eyesight is crucial for everyone, whether it’s humans or animals. However, contrary to popular belief, a dog’s eyesight differs from ours.
So if you thought that your dog’s eyesight works in the same way as your vision, this isn’t true. Knowing the differences between human vision and dog vision is crucial to understand specific behaviors of your dog, which might be the result of a change in its vision. This is why we have compiled all the information that you would want to know about a dog’s eyesight so that you do not only make your furry friend happy, but also understand them better:
First off, many people have a misconception that dogs can’t see colors as they are colorblind. You might have heard many people saying that dogs can only see the world in black and white.
Well, if you were confused or even sad about this, don’t be. Your dog can see more colors than just black and white. However, the difference occurs in the limitation of the color spectrum that is produced in response to the color receptors in our eyes.
Cones are the color receptors that both humans and dogs have in their eyes. Although the quantity of cones in a dog’s eye is far less than that of a human eye, humans are trichromatic. Trichromatic means our color spectrum has three colors, red, blue, and green. In contrast to that, dogs are known to be dichromatic, which means their color spectrum has two colors, blue and yellow. This limitation lessens the combination of colors and the shades that are known to a dog’s eye in comparison to that of a human eye.
After knowing this fact, you must keep this in mind when buying toys or training items for your dog. However, you might be confused since most toys available for dogs are brightly colored, so your dog may find it hard to recognize it. Well, that is more to draw your attention towards the item and not that of a dog. Hence, try to get toys in other colors, such as blue, yellow, grey, or even green, as your dog will find it easier to respond to them.
If, after reading the first point, you are feeling a bit sad because of your dog’s color vision restriction, we have good news for you. Along with cones, another significant part of your dog’s eye is rods. Rods are the light receptors that determine how much a human or dog eye can see in the dark.
It is known that a dog’s pupil carries many more rods than that of humans. Hence, your dog will probably have an excellent night vision even when it is difficult for you to navigate.
If you have ever stared into your best bud’s cute eyes, you would have noticed that his pupil is large, which allows more light receptors to be present in his eyes. This is why you may have noticed a shine in your dog’s eyes at night. You can now feel better about how your dog is blessed with the night vision!
Peripheral vision refers to the overall vision, which includes the sides and how vast it can be. This is another area where dogs have an advantage over humans.
Unlike your dog, you may not be able to look at both sides without having to tilt your face when you are looking straight. But you would be surprised to know that dogs can do that. Our peripheral vision is known to be around 180 degrees, while, on average, a dog’s can be somewhere around 250 degrees. This is the reason why your dog starts to bark or finds something to chase even when you are unable to see it.
However, one thing to keep in mind about this is the fact that the vastness of the vision can depend largely on the breed as well. Some specific breeds are known to have a bad peripheral vision but even at that point, it is 220, which is still better than humans. Others can have it for as much as 290 degrees!
The last fact that we would want you to know is about near and farsightedness in dogs. For humans, the term used to describe ideal vision is 20/20 vision. This is what an eye doctor determines when they have to identify the number of your contact glasses. Well, it turns out that dogs are generally nearsighted.
This means that on average, if you and your dog are standing next to each other, you may be able to see as far as 75-80 feet, while your dog can only see an object, which is at max 20 feet away. After that, it gets blurred for them. This pointer is significant for you to know so that you can keep this in mind whenever you are out for a walk or just casually playing with your dog.
Who doesn’t love those adorable puppy eyes? Better yet, now you also know how to take care of them! We would suggest that if you find anything unusual with your dog’s vision, consult a vet right away. Just like humans, dogs can also have issues with any part of their body, including their eyes, and it is our responsibility to take care of that! For any further assistance, services, or products for your pet, feel free to contact us!
by Bobby J Davidson || You can’t buy love, but you can rescue it™ .
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