For the past several months, this dog named Bob lived in a world obscured. What began as a mild case of cataracts in both of Bob’s eyes eventually worsened to the point where he couldn’t see at all.
Bob had gone blind — and it weighed heavy on his spirit.
“He became quieter, afraid of bumping into furniture,” Mércia Amaro, Bob’s vet, told The Dodo. “He could no longer run to greet his owner when he came home, and he always loved to welcome him.”
Sadly, for Bob, his dad’s face had become just a fading memory. But it wouldn’t stay that way forever.
Amaro is a veterinary ophthalmologist, specializing in the eyes of dogs. She knew that, despite Bob’s apparent hopelessness about his condition, his vision could be restored through cataract surgery. After coordinating with Bob’s dad, an appointment for the procedure was scheduled for last week.
And that’s when everything changed. The veil over Bob’s whole world was suddenly lifted.
“Right after the operation, he already showed encouraging signs,” Amaro said. “He kept looking up at us, as if to say, ‘I can see!’”
But there was one person Bob was looking forward to seeing most — his dad. And the next day, the pair were reunited:
For the first time in months, Bob could actually see the face of the man whom he’d been missing the sight of most. With that, his once-withering spirit blossomed anew.
“He totally transformed,” Amaro said. “There was so much joy. It was very moving.”
Bob is now recovering at home, formerly a place of unseen obstacles and the setting of his fading vision.
Now, it’s once again fully a place of comfort and love where his heart can truly flourish.