A Natural Solution to Help your Blind Dog Navigate their World
Is your aging dog losing his vision?
Are you considering a "special needs" dog who has visual impairments or has even gone blind?
Has your dog experienced an accident that has caused him to go blind?
Caring for a visually impaired or blind dogs can be overwhelming at times, especially when concern for your pet's safety and happiness is always on your mind.
These can be scary scenarios for dog owners. As humans, we rely more heavily on sight than perhaps any other sense that we possess. The thought of our dog going blind and living in a dark, confusing world can really stress us out... But keep in mind that dogs utilize their nose more than their eyes, so when they are unable to "see" in the traditional sense, they can still experience so much of their world through scent.
Their world can remain vibrant and comfortable, but that doesn't mean that they don't need help adjusting to all of the obstacles in day-to-day life. Tables, chairs, rugs, and doors become things to run into, they will need a safe zone. While we can never prevent all accidents, we can at least go through training a blind dog to reduce the number of times they occur for our beloved and special pets.
What are Tracerz for blindness in dogs?
Innovet's Tracerz is the go-to product for blindness in dogs. Tracerz are adhesive, scented markers that you place on objects to train your dog to identify them before he runs into them. These scented markers can help your pet visualize his home through other senses and start adjusting his travel around obstacles. Tracerz are made with your dog's sensitive olfactory organs in mind and are made from gentle and natural essential oils. Each adhesive can emit scent effectively for a year and do not put off odors that people can smell unless they're very close to them. Cats and other pets can benefit from Tracerz as well!
We use all natural oils to help your dog recognize boundaries, which helps to prevent bumping into furniture or getting lost in various rooms. These small wax dots attach easily to your furniture or wall corners, and release a scent that is comprised of all-natural oils, providing a safe and effective way for training a blind dog to maneuver throughout the living environment without bumping into objects and harming themselves. The effects are not immediate; however, over the course of a few days, your dog will learn how to use their keen sense of smell to maneuver throughout the home or office, and you no longer have to worry about his or her level of independence.
Tracerz is the result of Matt working to find a way that would help Maximus to retain his independence around the house, find food and water but also be able to stay safe by avoiding potentially dangerous situations, like stairs.
Matt and Dave, founders of Innovet, believe strongly that pet products should be safe and natural. This makes them ideal for pets and also the environment. It’s important that we all do our part to take care of the earth because we only have this one planet.
We want to make sure that we take care of this planet and only develop and sell products that are earth-friendly. As well, all natural products seem best for pets as we can never truly know how chemicals are making them feel.
This is why every product we formulate is made with the environment and your dog in mind. If it isn’t safe, it doesn’t pass the test to be sold. A lot of research goes into every single product and Tracerz is no different. It was created to fill a need and a niche that no one else was filling, a natural, eco-friendly way to help blind dogs.
We have worked diligently to create eco-friendly products that are affordable and effective. We go out of our way to ensure that the best ingredients are found to include in all of our formulations. Why? Because of Maximus and the other dogs we’ve loved for many years. Every product we create is created with our own pets in mind.
Many of them, specifically developed for issues our own pets have had.
Without Tracerz, even a well-acclimated blind dog will struggle to cope with these sorts of changes. With the help of familiar scent markers, your blind dog will be able to "see" with their nose and will be able to adjust to the unavoidable moves with more ease.
Tracerz are specific scented oils with a bag of round scent markers that you can attach in the environment of your home, office or place that your pet frequents. They can be used to alert him to a spot to avoid or a path to follow. The scent allows him to create a map within his or her mind that will help to maneuver through the household safely and find things and places.
There are six different scents in the bag that can be used to represent certain things.
We don’t use pheromones that may attract dogs to things. Instead, we use natural essential oils that can help to alert dogs to dangerous situations or help them find specific areas of the home or office.
Why Did Innovet Create Tracerz for Blind Dogs?
Tracerz for blind dogs was developed to help Maximus, Matt’s Labrador Retriever who lived to be very old and had many health challenges. Maximus developed an eye condition at age 7 that left him blind. Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) took his vision and it was a hard transition for Maximus. Suddenly, his own home was filled with potential dangers because he couldn’t see what he might walk right into.
Every table, wall, and piece of furniture was a potential pitfall, but he was an otherwise healthy dog at that time. He did face some other challenges as he reached his very senior years (Maximus lived to the age of 16) but when he became a blind dog, he was still a young, active pup that wanted to continue to move around on his own and even play.
Matt wanted his dog to be able to still enjoy his life, even in blindness. Tracerz was the idea that Matt came up with and it worked so well for Maximus that he just knew it was something that the blind dog world would welcome. There wasn’t anything around at that time, specifically for dogs that were visually impaired.
Tracerz for blind dogs are scented markers that dogs can find and use to help them navigate their life and avoid dangerous obstacles. You can use them at the office, in your house, on your patio, and anywhere that have your dog regularly.
Composed of a blend of essential oils that are scented individually, there are no harmful additives within Tracerz. No harsh chemicals will be added to your home and you also won’t be overwhelmed by smell as these scents are only really picked up by an animal with a stronger sense of smell.
The essential oils are in trace amounts and humans don’t smell them unless they are up close to one of the patches. Dogs and cats can locate them though. In fact, they have such a strong sense of smell that they can find Tracerz from a long distance.
They are designed to be attached to a wall, furniture, or anywhere that your pet may need to avoid. They can easily be concealed out of sight and they will stick to wood, vinyl, plastic, trim, carpet, and nearly anything in your home.
They can also be removed if need be. These scented markers are a very cost effective method of assistance for your blind dog in a safe and easy manner. Once he realizes that Tracerz helps him find his way and avoid pitfalls, he’ll begin to naturally seek them out and create a map in his head.
Dogs react to scents stronger than they do to sight. They can create an outline of his pathways in their heads, using their nose to lead the way. Tracerz helps to activate that part of his brain that is scent-oriented and dedicated to the olfactory sense. Now that your dog has gone blind, his other senses will be strengthened but only if he receives the exercise. Tracerz gives your blind dog the the work needed to develop the senses he has left over.
Dogs do not perceive the world as we do, they may get frustrated at their current situation in that moment but they will not lament their blindness after the moment of frustration. They will continue to move forward with the best possible tools they have.
A Dog’s sense of smell is 10,000 stronger than a human’s, tested and true! Some dogs can detect a single cell of cancer from a human’s skin. Bloodhounds can track fugitives or lost children by tracking the dead skin cells that blow from the body as you move. Just hanging your arm out the window as you drive leaves a trail of your scent down the side of the road.
This is an amazing ability of the dog that makes a solution like Tracerz work so incredibly well. As we stated ,Dogs are extremely resilient so when they are confronted with a challenge, their other senses turn up a notch. Like the way of the world; the better you are able to adapt and adjust accordingly, the more likely that you’ll survive!
Dogs are amazing survivors because they are so adaptive to new surroundings, different situations, and the health challenges that they are faced with. If you doubt this, watch a three legged dog run. They are just as fast as the other dogs and they don’t let things stop them, not even going blind.
Matt was pleased with how easily Maximus adapted and learned to use the scented markers in his environment. Still, you should be very cautious outside of the home. A blind dog should always be leashed when away from home. Understand that unfamiliar places mean danger to him and you must be his eyes, use your voice and be very watchful of him. A short leash is necessary to prevent him from running out in front of you and stepping into something dangerous.
That said, blind dogs can live very rewarding and happy lives. Tracerz simply helps to make them more comfortable at home and ease their transition to living without their vision. We hope that they will make a positive impact on you and your pet. We’re sure that they will work well and we guarantee that they are non-toxic and free of chemicals.
Tracerz will work for both dogs and cats and might even work for other types of animals, though they haven’t been specifically designed for other animals. We hope that you’ll love them and share your stories with us when you do.
- MOMarisa O.Rated 4 out of 5 stars4 years agoSmart Dogs Smart Tools
Prissy, our 6 yr old vizsla, succumbed to a sudden a severe case of glaucoma this summer and had to have both eyes removed. Her confidence was shaken and her world was turned upside down. I bought Tracerz to help her find her way around the house again by scent. Within 2 days she began to use the scented walls as her paths and guide. 3 weeks later she’s regained her confidence. She’s cautious but far more comfortable with navigating her own way about without an escort. She’s actively avoiding obstacles ...and at least not knocking into them as hard as she was. The Tracerz tool is definitely making this transition easier for Prissy and for us.
- MSMarylee S.Rated 5 out of 5 stars5 years agoScent Markers Really Do Work Well
Our 9-year-old diabetic miniature schnauzer suddenly went blind with diabetic cataracts. I had heard the onset of such blindness could occur suddenly and for Oliver it happened overnight. The scent markers really did help him to maneuver around furniture, get to his water and food bowls, and navigate to the door for potty breaks.
- SBSherrie B.Verified BuyerRated 3 out of 5 stars8 months agoTo long to get
I returned , unopened.
IPInnovet Pet8 months agoWe apologize for any inconvenience regarding your return. Please reach out to us at info@innovetpet.com, and we'll provide further guidance to resolve the issue. Thank you for your understanding.
- LSLinda S.Verified BuyerRated 1 out of 5 stars1 year agoTracerz Scent Markers
I don't think that it is working. I followed the directions very closely and after over a week, my pup is still running into things. I don't feel that the cost is worth it.
IPInnovet Pet11 months agoWe're sorry to hear about your pup's experience. Please reach out to us at info@innovet.com with details for assistance and a possible solution. Your satisfaction is important to us.
- JLJanet L.Rated 5 out of 5 stars3 years agoTook a couple weeks for
Took a couple weeks for my recently gone blind pooch to figure it out but once she did, it has really helping her navigate through the house. If you have a large house, ask for extra dots.