Cataracts in puppy?

[katiejaye]

My husband and I have been researching miniature schnauzers for a while and have finally settled on the breed. We have gone through the Kennel Club to find a reputable breeder and have just been informed about a litter of black minis by a breeder. She was very honest and informed us she had been breeding for 20 yrs and for the first time she has had a litter where three puppies are affected with heriditary cataracts (all dogs have been eye tested). She is not going to sell the two boys with cataracts but she has two more males who are cataract free and one female who has a half cataract in one eye. She has informed us that she has had the female checked by an eye specialist who does not feel that the cataract will affect the dog long term...i.e. in terms of blindness etc. We contacted the Kennel Club who confirmed that this lady is a VERY reputable breeder and shower.

Anyway Q is my hubby and I particularly wanted a bitch and she is the one with the cataract. We are going to meet the breeder on Monday and see the male pups too and see how we feel about it then. We are still interested in the bitch puppy though and wondered if anyone had any experience in heriditary cataracts in dogs/schnauzers and their long term implications? Should we consider the bitch or stay away? Also we are not planning on breeding her.

 

[GinaB]

I have a mini

mine is salt and pepper. Nearly impossible to get solid blacks over here.

As for cataracts our 7 year old lab bitch has one in her left eye. She developed it when she was 3/4 I think. She doesn't have a problem, still goes out shooting but has been known to misjudge and run into trees! She could have got an op done for £2000 to remove it but it only has a 50/50 chance of success and we didn't want to put her through it for it not to work. (money wasn't an object, we'd do anything for them)

 

[katiejaye]

thanks for the reply, we had a cairn terrier who had a cataract in later life and developed glucouma from it but I just wondered what the long term implications would be for a puppy. We are not concerned really about how the dog aesthetically looks so we probably wouldn't opt for surgery either.

Just out of interest is your mini a male/female and what isshe/he like character wise? We have opted for a mini as we have heard that they have lovable, cheeky personalities and are very sociable. It took us a while to locate a solid black litter too but we were determined to find one

 

[GinaB]

My mini is a female. She's called The Beast aka Tess. She is a stubborn, spoilt brat but I wouldn't have her any other way! Very cheeky little girl, loves going out for long walks, is learning how to swim at the age of 6 with some help from the lab I mentioned above. She's quite protective and isn't a fan of children, but then again she wasn't brought up near them. Once she gets to know someone though she loves them.

I just fell in love with her. We picked her at 5 weeks I think it was. I picked her up and was checking her over, she licked my nose and then fell asleep in my arms. Love at first sight!

Some pics...

Looknig very hairy!

Loves the camera...

They can be athletic...

As you can tell, she's always on the move!

 

[CSYMolly]

I dont' know anything about schnauzers but my GSD was born with one and had it removed as a puppy and it never came back, did they not suggest surgery??

 

[sylvapak]

I had a husky with cataracts... if you want her just as a pet and dont want to breed then it shouldn't be a worry. Our old girl still had the sharpest vision even with cataracts... its just depends on how bad it is... and you can have operations done if you feel you would want to.