Some Special Lethals
Below are 4 very special Lethals! While there are some precautions that we take, life for them is as normal as it is for the hearing and visual Aussies that also live with us. Please take a moment to see what life here is like for the Lethal Whites.
Meet Spirit. Although her eyes appear to be "starbursts" she has no impairments that are obvious. Our vet did a thorough check and one eye seems to be normal (completely round) while the other is slightly oval. She does have one ear with full "merling" and appears to have no hearing defects that are obvious (she hears everything she WANTS to). Spirit is, in every way, quite "normal".
This is Kandoo...an "aussielad". At birth his left eye never formed, leaving him completely blind in that eye. His right eye is impaired, but he does have some low level of vision. Kandoo is also partially deaf, but can hear some, although he cannot always distinguish where the sound is coming from. He is housebroken, uses a doggie door, managed to avoid falling in the swimming pool (which is now fenced in). He relies on his sense of smell, vibrations and, of course, the other aussielads. Kandoo is the "greatest" ...strong, independent and extremely loveable. Read Kandoo's story on Pets with Disabilities page.
This is Aiko. His eyes are blue, but somewhat smaller than they should be, leaving him visually impaired. He manages to get along just fine, but will occasionally run into a chair or something that is out of place. We believe that he has little hearing impairment because he does respond to his name when called and hears most noises. Aiko is housebroken, going through the doggie door. He loves to go for walks, but has a tendency to "zigzag" so that he can smell everything...everywhere. Aiko is extremely active and loves to play with all our other Aussies.
This is Dimmer, another "aussielad". We believe that he is totally blind, but there's a possibility that he may see some shadows. His hearing appears to have little impairment, if any. Much to our dismay, he discovered how to use the doggie door without any human help, but much assistance from some Aussies, which we will not name at this time. We have been potty training him through the front door, on a leash because of our unfenced swimming pool situation (which has now been resolved). Aussies are extremely intelligent, even the impaired ones, so he figured out this one all on his own (well, he may have had some help). :-) Dimmer loves to play and chase all the other Aussies, occasionally running into something. But he seems to just "bounce off" and continue on. He is very loving and affectionate and maneuvers through our home as if he is sighted.
We have shown you Dimmer alone, and would now like you to see him at play with his best new buddy, Kandoo, along with some pics of Aiko. Sage paid a visit to all her "old friends" and had a great time. All of our "lethal whites" are as normal in play as any "perfect" Aussie. More proof in pictures will be displayed as they are taken. Please don't count these great guys out...they do have so much to offer. We've also added some new ones of Dimmer and Spirit.
Watch the animation of Kandoo, Dimmer & Aiko
