Chris Packham’s summer warning to dog owners of danger that ‘could lead to blindness’

Chris Packham has warned fellow dog owners of the dangers grass seeds pose to pets, after one of his own poodles had to be rushed to the vet twice.

The TV presenter and nature photographer said that his poodle, Nancy, had to receive treatment on two separate occasions after a grass seed was found stuck behind her eyelid, according to the BBC.

Chris reportedly noticed that Nancy’s eyes were watering, among other symptoms similar to conjunctivitis.

“Her eye was inflamed and clearly sore,” he said. “She was becoming increasingly distressed.”

Both times, Mirka Palenikova, the specialist vet providing the treatment, was able to safely remove the grass seed.

“I could see there was quite a lot of discharge coming out from the eye and she was in pain so we had to apply topical anaesthetic into her eye to be able to examine her,” she said.

The vet stressed the importance of dog owners paying close attention to their pets to detect any signs of conjunctivitis early.

Additionally, she urged owners to check for grass seeds in their dog’s eyes, paws, ears and fur after every walk, as they could lead to blindness if left untreated.

“I would advise not to walk dogs in areas where there are obvious grass seeds or meadows with long grass,” she added.

As for Nancy, she has been prescribed a pair of specialist ‘doggie goggles’ that she now wears when going out in the long grass to prevent grass seeds from getting stuck behind her eyes again.

“When I heard about them, I was very sceptical and thought this is ridiculous,” Chris said of the goggles – reminiscent of driving sunglasses.

“Although I thought it was an absurd idea, ultimately I’d rather have a dog with two perfectly functional eyes than a dog that had lost one of them because of my prejudice.”

And with the black goggles seamlessly blending into Nancy’s dark coat, safety has never looked so cool.

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