The masked heeler had yet another vet appointment yesterday.

Her leg is good, if a little weak. They're not too concerned about it any more. Just "take it easy."

Her sore, red, torn little butt hole is much better, too. Her prednizone dose is cut in half, and by two weeks we should be able to think about getting her off it completely.

As we were doing the inevitable visiting, with this heeler desperately trying to bail off the exam table (He's seen me, I've seen him, now let's GO!), the vet happened to ask about her eyes.

What specifically did the university vet say she had (when we took her in to have her cataracts removed)?

"Degenerative retinal disease," the wife answers.

Well, it seems our vet has been visiting with a friend out of state, who trains human doctors on how to use the machines that they use to remove and replace eye lenses on humans.

He has some old machines, perfectly functional, that he can sell cheap.

And he can run our vet through the same training the human "vets" receive. Even has spare eyes laying around for practice.

"I might go up there and do that this April," he says.

And goes quiet.

Takes me a while to again realize he expects a verbal response.

If you're asking if we're reconciled and content with her being blind, the answer is no.

And if we'd be interested in trying the surgery to get some of her sight back, the answer is yes.

"Well, let's see if she's got any retinal response left."

He shines his bright little light directly into the masked heeler's cataract-filled eyes.

If the pupils contract, her retinas are still working. At least somewhat.

If not, there's no point in doing any more.

Her pupils contracted. Quickly.

So, there is hope.

Now, the biologist in me wonders, how do you get the right sized lens to replace the old one, which is crumbled and sucked out of the eye?

So I asked.

How do you test their eyes to see how their vision is? I mean, you got a doggie eye chart around here somewhere? With great big cows, medium-sized rabbits and tiny mice for them to identify?

Umm, no. No doggie eye chart. They just get back what they get back.

Kinda hard for them to complain, you know? But she might at least be able to see where the door is, where people are.

Our laughter about the doggie eye chart brought in the other vet, since we were once again one of the last appointments.

We explained about the training out of state, and the eye chart.

She turns and looks at her partner in sincere surprise...

"You're going to Rapid City in April?"

News to her, I guess. You guys gotta find time to talk.

And yeah, the wife told him about Carini's. But I had to warn him, I talked with a game warden from that state just this week, and he'd never heard of the place.

It may be gone.

Oh, yeah. Before we left?

Heeler peed on their rug.