Specs for pets

Partially sighted dogs are now able to keep up with their more visually able colleagues with the help of dog goggles.

10:56 08 November 2004

Partially sighted dogs are now able to keep up with their more visually able colleagues with the help of dog goggles.

A Californian company has developed a range of prescription goggles for dogs, known as Doggles, which could help frustrated dog-owners across the world.

Costing 40 per pair, the glasses come in a range of colours and are fixed to the dogs' heads using straps similar to that seen on human swimming goggles.

Although many pets may be unhappy about wearing them, creators MidKnight Creation believe they have hit on a product that has been missing from the market for too long.

"We've been doing research on this for about a year now," Ken DiLullo, the owner of Midknight Creation, told the Telegraph newspaper.

"We've spent a lot of money, but we think it was all worth it. People love their dogs and would do anything for them - they are really going to go for this."

The goggles are particularly useful for those more senior members of the canine world whose sight has diminished as they have got older, or those who suffer from far-sightedness as a result of cataract surgery.

Dr Michael Brinkman, a Las Vegas-based veterinary surgeon who worked on the project, added in the Daily Mail newspaper: "A dog that has undergone cataract surgery without receiving a lens implant will be able to spot a cat across the street but perhaps not see a biscuit in front of its food dish."

A full range of products can be ordered online at the Doggles website.