| Dog eye diseases can be congenital
or acquired later in life. It may vary from a simple case
of dog conjunctivitis to conditions like dog cherry eye, dog
dry eye or even dog cataract. Dog conjunctivitis is quite
common and has multiple causes and the treatment of conjunctivitis
in dog varies accordingly. Dog cataract is also pretty common
and can lead to blindness. Surgery is suggested for the treatment
for dog cataract and dog cherry eye. A few dog eye diseases
are discussed in more detail here and more information is
constantly being added to this page.
Dog Cataract: In this condition, the crystalline lens of
the eye or its envelope becomes cloudy. Cataracts progress
slowly, causing cracks in the lens which if left untreated,
leads to blindness. The causes vary from nutritional deficiencies
if they occur close to the birth of the pup, eye injuries,
ultra-violet exposures, resultant effect of the diabetes disease
or advanced age. Cataracts can be hard or soft and can either
be partial or complete. Some breeds of dogs like Golden Retrievers,
Labradors, German Shepherds, Afghans and Old English Sheepdogs
are more prone to developing cataracts earlier than other
dogs.
Dog Conjunctivitis: The painful inflammation of the tissue
lining the eyelids and bordering the eyeball near the cornea
is called conjunctivitis. You will notice that there is redness
in the eye which is due to the increase in the size of blood
vessels and tearing up of the eye and your dog will continuously
try and rub his eyes. The conjunctiva can be inflamed due
to infections from viruses, fungi or bacteria or even due
to allergies. Infections lead to the discharge of sticky pus
which is yellow-green in color whereas allegies lead to the
discharge of a clear liquid. Allegens can be pollen or chemicals
present in shampoos, etc.
It is best to treat dog conjunctivitis as although it is
not fatal, it can lead to other eye diseases that cause partial
blindness. It can also be an indicator of other diseases like
canine distemper. The treatment is normally through administration
of eye drops depending upon the cause of conjunctivitis and
the effects will be seen within a couple of weeks but treatment
should be continued for a few days after the inflammation
seems to have gone away.
Dog Cherry Eye: When the tear gland which is on the underside
of the nictitating membrane prolapses and becomes visible
in the form of a red mass, it is called Cherry Eye or Prolapsed
Third Eyelid. Dog cherry eye makes the eye continually inflamed
and it begins to produce a discharge. This gland is responsible
for the production of 30% of the tears that lubricate the
eye. If this is allowed to continue, it can lead to keratoconjunctivitis
sicca or dry eye. Cherry Eye can be corrected through surgery
where the gland is repositioned to the correct location and
the best method suggested is to tack it to the orbital rim.
If one eye is affected by Cherry Eye, the other eye usually
follows so it is best to check the other eye too. Beagles,
Cocker Spaniels and Shih Tzus are dog breeds found to be more
prone to getting this ailment.
Dry Eye: Keratoconjunctivitis sicca, xerophthalmia and keratitis
sicca are a few of the other names of the dry eye syndrome.
Dog dry eye is normally due to other eye diseases like Cherry
Eye and chronic Conjunctivitis or due to diseases like canine
distemper and diabetes. It can also be congenital like in
some breeds of toy dogs like Chihuahua and Pekingese or induced
by certain drugs like trimethoprim-sulfonamide and sulfasalazine.
When tear production stops or decreases, the cornea and conjunctiva
are irritated as the necessary lubrication and cleansing effect
of tears is no longer available. This leads to corneal ulcers
which will eventually lead to corneal scars which easily aggravates
into blindness. Once diagnosed through the measurement of
tear production, it is imperative to treat this eye disease
which is done by the constant administration of tear stimulants
or tear replacers which will help control the Dry Eye. To
correct the condition, the transportation of the parotid salivary
gland to the eye whereby saliva takes the place of tears,
is the surgery performed. Some dog breeds found to be prone
to Dry Eye are West Highland White Terrier, Kerry Blue Terrier,
Yorkshire Terrier, English Bulldog, Bloodhound, Lhasa Apso,
Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Cocker Spaniel, Chinese Shar-Pei,
Shih Tzu, Pug, Pekingese, Boston Terrier, Samoyed and Miniature
Schanauzar.
Dog Glaucoma: When the fluid that is normally produced by
the eye to nourish and maintain the shape of the eye does
not drain out as required, the pressure in the eye increases
which causes the eye to increase in size. This causes injury
to the optic nerve and decrease of blood flow to the retina
which can later progress to degeneration of the retina leading
to loss of vision. Dog Glaucoma is also very painful causing
continuous headaches. You will therefore find your dog showing
signs of decreased activity and decreased food intake. This
condition could be inherited or caused due to other eye diseases.
The former is called primary glaucoma and is an inherited
condition that affects one eye which progresses to the other
eye getting affected. The latter is called secondary glaucoma
and is usually caused by cancer of the eye, advanced cataracts,
persistent retinal detachment and other eye conditions. Treatment
is usually to delay the onset of glaucoma in the other eye
as by the time it is discovered in the first eye it is too
late. The delay is by medication or surgery which either increases
drainage of the fluid or reduces production of the fluids.
This condition is more common in dog breeds like Samoyeds,
Beagles, Basset Hounds, Norwegian Elkhounds, English Cocker
Spaniels, American Cocker Spaniels, Labrador Retrievers and
Miniature Poodles.
Imperforate lacrimal punctum is a condition where there exists
no opening to the nasolcrimal duct in the conjunctiva either
in the superior or inferior lacrimal puncta or both. This
congenital condition leads to excessive staining and even
tearing of the hair around the eyes. American Cocker Spaniels,
Golden Retrievers, Poodles and Samoyeds are dog breeds more
prone to this disease.
Iris Cyst: Here the presence of a tiny hollow formation floating
in the anterior chamber or attached to the iris, causes no
symptoms except if in large numbers when they block the drainage
angle of the eye. This is normally secondary to inflammation
of the eye and other eye diseases. Iris cysts are treated
by collapsing these formations by a needle.
Synchysis scintillans: Here the degenerative state of the
eye results in accumulation of cholesterol particles and the
transformation of the vitreous humor gelatinous substance
into liquid.
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