New Beginnings: Blind and Beautiful in Birmingham

This story is about me! I am a purebred 7-week old Shar-pei puppy who was found on the side of the highway. A human made a very irresponsible decision and left me for dead! My newly found human friends at the Greater Birmingham Humane Society named me Crinkle for obvious reasons. I am blond, wrinkled, gorgeous, and I think I may be blind, but everybody has their issues. I am going to let my human friend tell you the rest of the story."

My name is Alice Tepper and I am the Volunteer Coordinator at the GBHS. When we received Crinkle, we had no idea if she had any viable vision. With the exception of her eyes, she seemed very healthy and natural. We called the Alabama Veterinary Specialists-Veterinary Eye Care center in Bessemer and they agreed to see her. Fearing the worst, I thought, “Surely, she will have to be put to sleep if she can not see”.

We arrived on a Wednesday morning and patiently waited for our turn. I tried to comfort Crinkle, then I realized she wasn’t the worried one. With her ever so present human/animal bond, she was actually comforting me in her very normal puppy way. Everyone at the vet hospital was cooing over her. They were genuinely happy to see us. When they called us into the examination room, we were greeted with wonderful warmth and tenderness. Dr. Jana Korsch an Ophthalmology Resident was going to be Crinkle’s angel; we just didn’t know it yet. She took Crinkle back to run an ultrasound on her eyes. I just sat quietly and hoped for the best.

When she returned to the room, Dr. Korsch didn’t seem distressed, but her diagnosis was grim from my perspective. Crinkle had severe entropion of both eyes, which had led to ulcerations and the rupturing of both corneas. She has no chance of vision­her retinas were completely detached. My heart sank to my feet. That was the worst possible news she could tell me, or so I thought. As she handed Crinkle back to me she said, “Our goal is to keep her comfortable until we can remove the eyes.” I looked at Dr. Korsch astonished that she would recommend such a thing and she said, "There is no reason that Crinkle cannot have a full, normal life as a blind dog. My staff and I would like to help in any way possible."

I was ecstatic and terrified all in the same moment. We would need foster care and a special needs home, but first things first. Crinkles surgery was scheduled the following morning. As I watched her the night before surgery, I was still skeptical about her having a normal life as a blind dog and out of the blue, Crinkle found one of my dog’s toys and began to play with it like a normal puppy. What an epiphany, she is not a blind puppy, she is a normal puppy who just happens to be blind.

Crinkle did very well with her bilateral enucleation (eye removal). Dr. Korsch placed silicone prostheses in both eyes to keep them from sinking inward. She is on antibiotics for 7 days and the stitches will be removed in 7 to 9 days. After her surgery, Melissa Hull, GBHS Director of Operations, and I took turns fostering her. On Sunday, Nov. 14, she went to Shar-pei Rescue in Tennessee to start her new life!

The point to this whole story is accountability in spaying and neutering your pets and knowing that there are animals in this community with special needs. If Crinkle is raised properly with the special attention she requires, she will be a wonderful companion for a family somewhere in this big world.

A special thanks from Crinkle and the Greater Birmingham Humane Society to Veterinary Eye Care and Alabama Veterinary Specialists, Dr. Jana Korsch, DVM and their whole staff for their knowledge, compassion, skill, and empathy.

We realize that this week's new beginning is not the "norm"; however, we felt it necessary to share such a wonderful story where a young puppy is granted a drastic new beginning at life. Crinkle's second chance was only possible because of the generosity of Veterinary Eye Care and Alabama Veterinary Specialists and the willingness of Shar-pei Rescue of Tennessee to re-home her. We found great tips regarding how to live with blind dogs at http://www.blinddogs.com/tips.htm.

Since coming to Shar Pei Rescue of Tennessee, Crinkle has been given a new name. She is now Zoe.

Zoe is a very smart little puppy. Her hearing is exception, even better than most puppies, I think. She is learning her way around our house very quickly. She bumps into things, but that doesn't slow her down. She loves playing with Luke, our little mini, and with Izzy (see her special story, too).

Zoe will stay here with us unless an exceptional home comes along that has experience with raising a blind dog. We have two other blind dogs, Sasha and Sumo. Sasha was 8 years old when we rescued her and her entropion had never been fixed. Sumo, on the other hand, had glaucoma and had to have his eyes removed just like Zoe.