Is Your Dog Color Blind? Understanding Fido's Eyesight

One of the best parts of being a dog parent is seeing your canine friend stare up at you lovingly, patiently waiting for a belly rub or a treat. Have you ever pondered exactly how they see you? Your dog’s eyesight is a bit different than your own—better in some ways and worse in others. But do dogs see entirely in black and white, like you may have heard, or do they perceive color in some way? Below, a Las Vegas vet shares some valuable insight.

Are Dogs Color Blind?

One of the most common myths about our canine companions is that they’re completely color blind, seeing only in black, white, and shades of gray. It turns out that this isn’t entirely true.

T  he truth is, dogs actually perceive the world much like color blind humans. They see some colors better than others, while different hues of the same color can be difficult to differentiate.

How Are Dog Eyes and Human Eyes Different?

Your dog’s eyes share a lot of the same components that human eyes have, including the optic nerve, a retina, and rods and cones that help to process light in order to see colors. So why is there a difference in the way that humans and dogs perceive color?

The answer ultimately lies in the cones, which are light-sensing cells in the eye. Human eyes are trichromatic, which means that they contain three types of cones. Each of those three types serves to process different colors on the spectrum: red, blue, and green.

Dog eyes, however, are dichromatic. This means that there are only two types of cones, one to see blues and the other to see a shade that falls somewhere between what a human would perceive as red and green. So, technically, dogs have what we would call a type of red-green color blindness.

How Does My Dog Perceive Color?

What does all of this mean in terms o how your dog actually sees the world? Fido’s eyes are best suited for picking up yellows and blues. Since your dog’s eyes take these colors in together, they see the world mostly in light and dark yellows, grayish yellow shades, and grayish browns, in addition to dark and light blue shades. This may explain why your pup likes yellow tennis balls so much—the ball probably shows up quite vibrantly against what your dog perceives as a dull background of green grass.

For more insights into your dog’s health and behavior, call your Las Vegas vet’s office today!