SEEING IS BELOVING CAMARILLO CLINIC SPECIALIZES IN TREATING ANIMAL EYES.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Staff Writer

CAMARILLO - Jaco's diabetes had been making things rough for the lovable Belgian sheep dog, who suffered cataracts and had trouble finding his way around.

So his mistress, Jennifer Batten, tracked down one of the few animal eye specialists in Southern California, traveling from her home in Sylmar to veterinarian Jeanette da Silva Curiel's Animal Eye Clinic in Camarillo.

``I wanted him to get his vision back to stop him from bumping into things,'' Batten said. ``He's had a tough year.''

Jaco was in good hands. For eight years, da Silva Curiel has treated dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, sea lions, a horse - and even a rhinoceros - at her clinic and in the field. Her passion is in restoring or repairing vision for animals - work that helps her patients hunt down that mouse or find that bone.

``Some of our new patients are surprised to learn that there is such a thing as a doggie eye specialist,'' Dr. Kristi Schmidt, who is completing her veterinary residency at da Silva Curiel's clinic.

The center is a rare place, where animals' eyes are tested and surgeries conducted to restore vision.

``I've always been fascinated with eyes,'' da Silva Curiel said, adding that when she was younger she would make models of eyes and play with them.

Eye examinations and surgeries are much the same as those conducted on humans - except for one staple.

``We obviously can't make them read an eye chart,'' Schmidt said. ``We wish we could. That would make our life so much easier.''

So da Silva Curiel and her resident conduct basic tests - animals travel through an obstacle course in a check for vision obstructions. The vets work in the light and the dark, as they measure the pupillary light reflexes.

Schmidt said dogs see things differently than humans.

``They see better in the dark and have better responses to movement and tracking,'' she said, referring to canines.

For more comprehensive examinations, doctors use a high-powered flashlight and hand-held microscope to check animals' eyes for scars, residue and other conditions that could obstruct vision or cause pain.

The clinic specializes in cataract surgery, but the doctors also perform operations for inverted eyelids, glaucoma and to repair damaged corneas.

There isn't much difference in operating on the human eye or performing eye surgery on an animal, da Silva Curiel said. The animal is put under anesthesia, hooked up to a heart monitor, covered in blankets and monitored by a nurse who checks fluids, breathing tubes, heart and pulse rates, anesthesia, blood sugar and temperature.

For da Silva Curiel, her 15 years in the field have been rewarding. ``I enjoy the fine detail work,'' she said.

One of her most unusual cases involved a rhinoceros at the Los Angeles Zoo. Unable to get close because the enormous animal could not be sedated, da Silva Curiel examined the patient through binoculars.

``Sometimes we just have to give it our best guess,'' she said.

The Canadian-born da Silva Curiel said her mother, who worked with the blind, was her inspiration.

Now the clinic sees about 15 patients a day, referred from other veterinarians. Pet owners travel from as far as Bakersfield, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and throughout the San Fernando Valley, Simi Valley and the Conejo Valley to have their animals specially treated.

There are 200 board-certified animal ophthalmologists in the U.S., and just 34 in California, Schmidt said.

``They're just aren't enough to train veterinarians to do just eyes,'' she said.

Veterinary specialties aren't new, just a bit rare. Other fields include oncology, dermatology, cardiology, nutrition, neurology and others.

Schmidt said that she chose ophthalmology after spending a frustrating year in an emergency clinic. ``I love the challenge of the emergency but it's a frustrating field. Often death is happening. It's a sad field to work in.''

To be certified, Schmidt must complete three years of residency. She has already completed eight years of undergraduate and graduate work and a one-year internship.

``This is more enlightening,'' Schmidt added. ``I get to restore vision and take away the pain. I never have to see an animal die.''

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) Veterinarian Dr. Jeannette da Silva Curiel holds Parker, an 8-year-old black Lab with cataracts, while resident Dr. Kristi Schmidt, examines his eyes. The clinic is one of the few facilities in Southern California specializing in ophthalmology.

(2 -- ran in Bulldog edition only) Chris Cavarozzi of Malibu pets his pal Parker before the diabetic Lab goes in for cataract surgery at the Animal Eye Clinic in Camarillo, one of the few facilities in Southern California specializing in veterinary ophthalmology.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer