An inherited condition found in Rough and Smooth Collies but also in Shetland Sheepdogs and Border Collies, there are  instances of this condition being now found  in the Lancashire Heeler. Both eyes are affected but not always to the same extent.

It is inherited as a simple recessive gene and is non-progressive.

This condition has a number of clinical signs most of which involve faults in the structure of the retina (the area in the back of the eye which receives the light images) they are therefore only visible by examination with an opthalmoscope.

 They include chorioretinal dysplasia ( areas of the retina without the necessary colouration),

colobomata (bulges in the lining of the back of they eye), retinal detachment (retina breaks away inside they eye), bleeding within the eye and corneal edema (clouding on the surface of the eye).

The outcome of Collie Eye Anomoly depends on the cause and ranges from mildly reduced vision to blindness.

There is no effective treatment for this disease. Based on the finding of the eye examination some dogs may need to be monitored regularly until 1 year of age for complications secondary to Collie Eye Anomoly.

As this is an inherited condition it is strongly advisable not to breed with affected animals. An examination at 6 weeks of age is used to screen for effected dogs.

 Because of the type of inheritance of this condition some dogs will carry the genes for Collie Eye Anomoly without showing any clinical signs.