If you have had your pet for a while, you probably know its personality and how it's feeling. But do you know how well your companion sees its environment?
Veterinarian Hans Westermeyer, from the Peace Avenue Veterinary Clinic in Mong Kok, offers insights into your pet's eyesight and its perception of the world.
'There's a variation across the animal kingdom, with dogs and cats having poorer eyesight than humans,' says Westermeyer, a veterinary specialist in ophthalmology.
'If we were to talk in megapixels, dogs and cats have about five to 10 times less [than humans], with less variability to define details.'
He provides another analogy. If two dots were on a wall, canines and felines would have to be five to 10 times closer than the average person to see it. At the opposite end of the spectrum, birds have four to five times better eyesight in resolving details.
'Birds beat us hands down,' remarks Westermeyer, who holds a diploma from the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmology. Raptors such as hawks, falcons and owls, have superb eyesight, needed to hunt from the air, adds Westermeyer.