Blindness in dogs

Hi , I am new to this site, I have a 7 year old dog that has just been diagnosed blind in possibly both eyes. We are all devastated by this but slowly coming to terms with it . Seems so unfair to happen to a young dog.
Not sure why this has happened but he has an appointment with an eye specialist next week, and very worried about what they will say is the cause.
He seems to be doing well notices people and other dogs in the street etc but makes a funny noise in the night whilst sleeping and sometimes cries . This is what is worrying me right at this moment.Im wondering wether hes a bit frightened of not being able to see anymore . Has anyone elses dog experienced this?

Hello Louise and welcome
We had a blind Cocker and she managed very well without sight . You would never have known she was blind.

Dogs don't need to rely nearly so much on sight as we do because they have such a refined sense of smell and acute hearing which compensates to some extent for loss of sight.
They also have whiskers called vibrissae which act as feelers and help with spacial awareness .

You little dog should learn to adjust to loss of sight very quickly .

Hello, and I am so sorry that your dog is going blind - it must be a shock to both you and him, and I really hope that the cause is nothing sinister; usually it isn't so try not to worry too much.

I will say that our last dog was gradually going blind before we lost her, and she coped extremely well. As long as things in the house are not moved around, your dog should manage very well, but of course you will have to be careful when out on walks to steer him clear of hazards.

I have everything crossed for you, and hope to hear some good news after your visit to the eye specialist.

Welcome to Dogsey
Agree with Meg
My 10 year old dog has very poor sight(in her only eye),had to have an eye removed last April...trust me it took more out of me than it did her...she's still exactly the same in her personality,spoilt brat!!

Thank you both, its such a worry, when were out he knows the route but i tell him when there's steps and pavements.
but today we tried with out telling him but watching to see if he managed. he done well.
Any idea why he cries or the noises in the night i haven't heard these during the day unless its less noticeable. i do worry that he maybe in pain i hope not though.

Good to hear he did well on his walk...forgot to say "down" once when we came to a step and mine fell off it Totally my fault
I have Lacey in my bed at night and she didn't cry,but then all dogs are different.Be great when the specialist is able to tell you what's going on.
Just out of interest,did the vet test him for dry eye?

Hi Louise
I would just talk to him occasionally in a bright voice as reassurance , other than that he will find his own way .

This could be dreaming, dogs make all kinds of noises when they sleep .
It may be because you are aware of your dogs sudden disability you are looking for things and noticing sounds which have always been there.
Signs of pain in dogs usually take the form of loss of appetite/shivering/depression.

Do you know what has caused the loss of sight, he may or may not be in pain.

not that im aware of

I haven't got a clue why hes lost his sight but he has an appointment with the specialist next week. he was very quiet for about a week before this he didn't follow me like he used to , didn't bother with any other dogs or take notice of people .The vet said he maybe depressed at not being able to see or he may have some form of cancer or tumor and this caused the blindness. hes a bit more livelier now jumping at people that talk to him and takes notice of other dogs ,sometimes hell play fetch sometimes he don't.

Oh I can imagine how you feel about this. I do hope you get a lot more info from the vet to help you understand it all.