How Good Is A Dog's Eyesight?

[Garden Girl]

Hi all - yesterday morning I let the dogs out our bedroom door then a few minutes later I got up and went out another door into the backyard. Soap saw me from about 30m and didnt know it was me so he did his 'stranger danger' bark and I spoke to him then he realised it was me and stopped. He has done this to my boyfriend as well, though it was dark that time.

Also sometimes I get the feeling he cant see, or loses sight of, a ball or toy if I throw it past him...its happened in all sorts of light, morning, afternoon etc

Not sure is he's distracted or if its something else. What range should a dog be able to see??

Cheers

Jaynie

[Luke W]

Hi all - yesterday morning I let the dogs out our bedroom door then a few minutes later I got up and went out another door into the backyard. Soap saw me from about 30m and didnt know it was me so he did his 'stranger danger' bark and I spoke to him then he realised it was me and stopped. He has done this to my boyfriend as well, though it was dark that time.

Also sometimes I get the feeling he cant see, or loses sight of, a ball or toy if I throw it past him...its happened in all sorts of light, morning, afternoon etc

Not sure is he's distracted or if its something else. What range should a dog be able to see??

Cheers

Jaynie

I've been told dogs see differently to people.

They don't see detail very well but rely on recognizing blocks of shapes. People look more like sillhouettes to them. They miss some of the finer detail.

Their color vision isn't the same as ours either. It's very easy for them to miss a red ball on green grass. A white ball on green grass is much easier for them. Even a lighter colored green ball on dark green grass is easier.

Also, their perception of motion is much better than ours. If you are standing still, they are less likely to recognize you. Start walking and they can immediately recognize your gait.

Edited November 13, 2008 by Luke W

[Heidii]

this has happened to myself and my partner with his german shepherd. Only once i have spoken he recognises me or him. We just laught at off and call him a silly dog!

[WalandLibby]

Their vision in low light is better than ours, consequently they have less need for colour vision than we do (as it isn't much use in low light). This low light vision is vision that recognises movement. It's pretty normal for dogs to startle when they see their owners in the dark, and not be able to id them. And to have to search a bit for toys in the grass.

There are also differences in how dogs with different shaped heads see. I'm not sure about the Border specifically. They have a mesocephalic (medium shaped head) structure, but it's getting towards the brachycephalic type (short muzzled dogs). (My Koolie for eg is also mesocephalic, but his head is much closer to the canine average than a BT's). Anyway, the longer, narrower a dog's head, the more response to movement appears to be hard-wired and difficult for the dog to choose to ignore, and the less close vision the dog has, and the shorter the muzzle, the more a dog's vision seems to be like ours, with increased awareness of detail and less automated response to movement. So I would expect a Border to show reasonably good close, detailed vision, as far as dog's go.

There are lots of conditions that can affect dog's eyesight. If you're worried about talk to your vet.

To test his vision (in a very general way) try dropping a cotton ball at various points in his range of vision.

Edited November 13, 2008 by WalandLibby

[puggy_puggy]

As WalandLibby explained it is thought the longer the dogs nose the better long distance vision it has, which short/flat nosed dogs having better short distance vision. It all relates back to what the dog breed was originaly bred for and if you think about it most long musseled dogs were bred to be working dogs so needed to be able to spot their masters from a long way away whilst most short/ flat musseled dogs were bred to be lap dogs and respond to the expressions on their masters faces.

I have experenced with my pugs that they are terrible in knowing where I am in a park if I am a long way off and calling them. They look around not being able to spot me. But they often watch tv, actually crying and going up and pawing the screen, and recognise other animals and actually take a dislike to some people on the tv.

How old is Soap? Do his eyes look clear of cloudiness or brown like pigmentation (staining)?

[Garden Girl]

Soap is almost 10 months old - his eyes look normal ie not cloudy or anything like that.

I think the short muzzle thing and colour vision makes sense. He is a terrier and originally bred for ratting and things like that (I think) so his distance vision probably isnt as useful as his close range vision.

Thanks everyone