How Does a Dog See Differently From Humans?

Puppy eyes

• Puppies are born with their eyes closed; they will not open them until about three weeks old. First images are most likely extremely blurry and force puppies to rely on their senses of smell and hearing for several more weeks. Dogs have similar retinal development to humans, thus veterinarians can study the differences.
  
  

Dogs see motion more than details

• Cones that provide color perception and detailed sight, and rods which detect motion in dim light are present in both humans and dogs. Dogs have far more rods and only about one tenth of the cones of the human eye. A dog may see its owner as a blurry image, but can spot an object moving in the grass from fifty feet away. When dogs appear to be watching TV, they may actually be reacting to the sound or a sudden movement on the screen.
  
  

A dog's perspective

• The biggest difference between the sight of dogs and humans is perspective. Most dogs see the world from a height of only one to two feet off the ground. Everything appears much larger even to a big dog. Combine poor eyesight with a ground floor perspective and it is easy to understand why small dogs dislike a crowded walk.
  
  

Dog breeds with different types of eyesight

• Dogs have binocular vision, meaning their eyes are closer together, such as those of humans, with an overlap when looking straight ahead. This provides for three-dimensional sight and aids in jumping and hunting. A wider nose will cause the eyes to be further apart and reduce binocular vision while increasing peripheral vision. Long nosed breeds are better hunters. The Afghan leads the pack and is known as a sight hound, with a long slender nose and great peripheral vision. It can hold the sight line on its prey the best. Breeds such as the pug and Lhasa Apso have far shorter sight lines and tend to do less chasing of objects.
  
  

Dogs and color-blindness

• Dogs do not see in strictly black and white. Colors are muted tones to most dogs, with red being the hardest to see. This again is due to fewer cones forming in the retina of the eye. Like humans who have red-green color blindness, dogs have trouble distinguishing between hues of colors in the red and green group. It is supposed that these colors take on more blue and yellow tones.