Our sweet 8 month old puppy, Tater, has been diagnosed with severely deformed eyes and juvenile cataracts and is therefore currently 80% blind. Tater is the sweetest of puppies and it has been heartbreaking to watch him crash into fences, street poles, parked cars and other objects that he cannot easily distinguish as well as fall into a somewhat panic at the park when we get more than 30 yards away from him and he cannot tell where we are. It is also evident that Tater’s eyesight has continued to worsen in the past couple of months. The hopeful news is that there is a surgery that can possibly help him, but it is an extremely expensive procedure that can only be performed by a doctor in Pasadena. While there is no guarantee that this surgery will be successful, the doctor feels confident that it will improve Tater’s sight and can hopefully save him from going completely blind. Although we have insurance now, we are not covered for this expensive surgery and the ongoing medication that he will need throughout his life.

Like all dogs, Tater has worked his way very quickly into our hearts and we cannot imagine not doing everything we can to give Tater a chance at having a better life with sight. The kids have been desperate to help in some way so we helped them to create a bumper sticker to sell in order to raise money to help with the estimated 7K in surgery expenses that we have been quoted and the 3k that we have already paid out getting to this point and the additional expensive monthly eye drops that he will need.

In an effort to turn Tater's bad luck into something positive, we are selling these bumper stickers not just for Tater's surgery but with the intent to donate a portion of the proceeds to organizations like Blind Dog Rescue Alliance so that we can help other blind dogs as well. If you are interested in purchasing a bumper sticker, please paypal/venmo Tater at taterworthington@gmail.com (or click here).

Tater arrived as an early Christmas surprise under the tree on December 17, 2017.

For Chase and Cecily, it was love at first sight.

If you would like to send a message to Tater, you can email him at taterworthington@gmail.com.

We would like to thank, with all of our heart, all of the wonderful people in our lives who stopped by Chase and Cecily's fundraiser today and to those who donated from far away. It was just an incredible day and I think it really made our kids feel like they were doing something special for Tater and that they were contributing to not only Tater's surgery but other dogs too who have eye problems by donating to the Blind Dog Rescue Alliance. They really worked hard by making signs, hanging signs, squeezing lemons, making lemonade and baking a variety of treats not to mention setting up and taking down the pop-up store. We said we would be open from 2-4 but it went until 6 and we sold most everything.

We also are so appreciative of our cousin and her family for doing a dual sale today over in Los Altos Hills and for friends for bringing more lemon juice and the wonderful lemon bars that sold out early.

We also are so appreciative of a special friend, who loves dogs beyond measure, for his incredible donation through the sale of some of his special whisky.

Other neighbors contributed as well with their fresh, organic lemons so we could make the lemonade today. It is really special when you see how many people care about you and how much they care about Tater. Tater sends his love and thanks to all of you as well and hopefully soon he will have a whole new view of the world.

Tater’s surgery took place on Monday. We have good and not so good news. The doctor was able to remove the cataract from his left eye, this was the better eye, but unfortunately, because he is so young and due to all his eye deformities, the casing for the lens was what she described to be the thickness of about 1/10th the thickness of Saran Wrap, therefore she wasn't able to get a replacement lens to hold. This was a total bummer. This means he should be able to see far away in his left eye, but not things up close. This is better than before, but a bummer that his close vision is not better. But he didn't have far vision before, so it will be exciting to see what he can now see and how he responds to this new view of the world.

We had to make a quick decision during surgery and decide what to do with his right eye. She said if we went forward with the right eye, he would likely end up with the same situation. But if we waited, there are risks of his eye no longer being viable for the surgery, but on the other hand if we wait, the casing will grow thicker over time and may be able to receive a lens. She said there were pros and cons to both options. We decided with her that it makes sense to wait, so we did. But it means we have to do this all over again in a year for his other eye.

Tater is back with us- sleepy and groggy, but sweet as ever. Recovery will take a little bit and requires a whole regiment of medicine, but then we will be able to take him to a park and hopefully our retriever will be able to see a ball and retrieve it! Thanks for all the love and support. ❤️

Tater has had two check ups already and appears to be recovering well. We have had to keep him slightly sedated in order to keep him from quick moves or jumps which can be damaging to his eyes during healing. He is aching to go outside to play with his friends, but a few more weeks of recovery are needed. It's not easy keeping a 9 month old from running around!

What a difference a day makes! We got some bad news regarding Tater on Thursday. During his check up the ophthalmologist decided to do an ultrasound and she was sad to say that it appeared that his retina had detached in the middle of his left eye. It was something that they were worried about happening after surgery and we have been keeping him a little sedated in order to keep him from making any wild movements, that could result in a retina detachment. We were feeling pretty terrible about the news. We kept wondering whether we had made the right decision to do the surgery and whether we had sped up his inevitable blindness and had taken a few years of semi sight away from him. We were feeling pretty terrible.

But the next day we were able to talk to Tater’s surgeon who is the only one who has ever actually seen the inside of his eye. She said she is not worried and that what the ophthalmologist saw on the ultrasound is not the retina detaching after all. It is one of the many deformities in his eye but she saw it when she was in surgery and is confident looking at the ultrasound that it is instead a vitreous layer in front of the retina. In other words, if she is right, we are back on track and hoping that when he is fully healed he will be seeing better in this eye than he did before for a very long time. We are soo relieved! It's been quite a roller coaster so far with this little guy!

Freedom!

The latest news regarding Tater’s crazy eye situation is that his right eye lens seems to have prematurely dissolved to the point where his pupil is more clear. The doctor has never seen anything like it before. She has never seen a lens disappear this fast. This unusual turn of events means the cataract has reabsorbed, but it also means that with the cataract went the lens. So essentially what ended up happening is that what we did in the left eye in the first surgery has essentially happened naturally in the right eye It appears that Mother Nature did the surgery for us. The hope back in July was that we would be able to remove the cataract in the left eye and replace the lens, but the lens replacement wasn't successful. The lens allows for the eye to focus up close. The disappearance of the lens in his right eye too means he will never be able to see near. This is not great news, but the good news in all this is that without cataracts in both eyes, he can more easily see far and up close he can see shapes and contrast. So the latest news as a result of today's recheck appointment is that there is likely not going to be any additional surgery. Tater will never see far away, but he can see and we will take what we can get and are thankful that he is not completely blind.

It's been four years since we posted an update on Tater. He continues to be a happy puppy, just a little older and wiser. He spends his days out in the front yard watching over the neighborhood and saying hello to old friends and making new friends every day. His eyesight is getting worse but he continues to persevere. Occasionally he bumps into things or gets scared by shadows, but for the most part he has managed to find his way in the world with very little issues. He needs eye drops twice a day to keep his eyes as healthy as possible and never complains about it. He is a joy to have in our family. He is sweet, gentle and is always ready to cuddle and support someone that is feeling down. We love our Tater Tot!

The best part of taters day is meeting and greeting new and existing friends outside. He is usually laying down on either the porch or the grass and once he hears someone pass by, he hurry's over to the fence and jumps up to say hi to everyone.

It is very rare that you pass by Tater and he doesn't jump up when he is outside. And you will be Lucky if Tater brings you his toy. When this happens all tater wants you todo is play with him and his toy.

Other adventures Tater loves to do is go on long walks and hikes and get into the wilderness so he can explore more. He as well loves to go to the water on a hot day and get a refreshing soak. He is trying to live the dream of a dog

Another part of taters day that he loves and cant wait for, is when the mail person comes. He waits to hear a noise from the mail person or a mailbox open and close. Then he starts barking to say hi and waits for them to come to his house. He hopes to be gifted with a treat but if not he just loves the attention. Tater also loves to play dress up and become a model.