Clean Run - November 2017 - 35

In 2013, along with Dr. Gina Day and
Dr. Maureen Powers, we began a research study that tested various aspects
of agility dogs' vision (see Dr. Day's article
on page 28).8 With Dr. Day administering
the testing, Maureen Powers performing
the statistical analysis, and myself assisting in the logistics with support from
Lauri Plummer, we tested over 200 dogs.
The conclusion from our work (paper
now submitted) was that refractive errors
likely affect our dogs' jumping ability, but
binocular factors are also involved. Dogs
with strabismus or myopia/astigmatism
tend toward being poor jumpers. We
also began testing puppies to get early
recordings of any refractive errors they
might have. We continue to collect this
data from the puppies as they grow to
see how their eyes change over time and
how these changes might affect their
jumping ability. Statistics are available at
the link included in the references below.
In 2013 we began fitting ETO dogs with
contact lenses and asking the handlers
to record and videotape with the lenses
fitted each time they trained. We aban-

doned this testing because it was difficult for the handlers to fit the lenses in
their dogs' eyes for each training session,
and at times we could not determine
whether the lens had remained in for the
entire session. If a lens was found to have
fallen out during a session then we could
not make any conclusions on whether
the lenses helped or not in that training
session. We had more questions than
answers. Should we have our dogs wear
lenses at all times like a human wears
glasses? Did they need to wear them
for each session? How did we evaluate
progress unless we compared jump grids
used for testing with and without lenses
each time? My frustration with the study
turned from trying to discover how to
help dogs with ETOs see better, and how
to diagnose and discover the problem
in young dogs, to just doing research on
how vision affects a dog's jumping.
Linda Mecklenburg and also I designed
some grids to analyze dogs' jumping abilities and to rate the level of a dog's ETOs.
These were not complicated grids. Usually they were a straight line of four jumps,

with different spacing of low jumps with
and without bars on the uprights. We
abandoned this testing because we
found that we were asking handlers to
present jumping challenges to their ETO
dogs that caused early jumping efforts
as well as possibly associated crashes.
We could not with good conscience ask
the owners to put their dogs at risk of
injury or cause further lessening of the
dogs' confidence over jumps.
In November of 2013 I took a group of
handlers and their ETO dogs to UC Davis to meet with Dr. Chris Murphy. Dr.
Murphy performed retinoscopies and
other tests along with his veterinary
assistants at the UC Davis Veterinary
School. On August 26, 2014 that group
of dogs and others joined in on a testing day overseen by Dr. Murphy at UC
Davis. Dr. Murphy re-tested the dogs' vision and then they videotaped the dog's
performances while jumping a simple
grid I designed where we could measure takeoff and landing spots. Dr. Murphy inserted corrective or non-corrective lenses in the dogs' eyes without us

You'll refer to this book again and again...

Developing Handling Skills is the most comprehensive book available
on dog agility handling. It is designed to be a resource that you will refer
to for many years to come. After many years of observation, study,
experimentation, and practical application, Linda Mecklenburg
has arrived at a simple but comprehensive approach to agility handling
that is appropriate for all dogs and handlers, from the beginner
to the most accomplished competitor.

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run - November 2017