Well last week we took our dog, an 11 year old Jack Russell cross, to a veterinary ophthalmologist after being referred by our local vet.
As background about 2 years ago Spotty became suddenly “blind”. He seemed happy enough and so we didn’t take any action other than keeping things in the same place and helping guide him on his daily walks.
About 6 weeks ago I noticed a stain under his eye. Like it had been weeping. I looked but couldn’t see anything and he seemed fine. Three weeks ago I noticed him rubbing his eye and when I looked I could see it was weeping with some sort of infection.
Anyhow the specialist checked and said both eyes need to be removed as 1 eye is infected and both have glaucoma with pressure readings of high 30s…. after a week of drops. I asked her if she was certain he was blind as he sometimes seems to know something is in front of him. She is saying that he is totally blind. I am not 100% sure on that but she is the expert.
Anyway Wednesday Spotty is booked in to have both eyes removed. Yes wow!!
I just want to share this with you in case others are going through something similar and will try to keep you updated on how Spotty goes.
Well it’s 4 days now since Spotty had both eyes removed. What a big thing. I wasn’t so concerned as the specialist said he was blind although I really thought that he had some eyesight.
So after surgery the poor little guy was pretty out of it. We kept him warm and as comfortable as possible. The vet said don’t feed him till he drinks as his swallowing reflex may not be working that well. He wouldn’t drink no matter what we tried so eventually we gave him a little food. Yes he had a little trouble swallowing but was ok.
So the next morning I took him for a walk which was very slow but ok. The worst thing was that it seemed to indicate he could see before so we had now removed his eyesight. He was now totally blind.
Four days later he is on antibiotics and pain killers although I may stop those pain killers tomorrow. He is wearing a protective collar to stop him scratching but it also stops him bumping his eye area which is still a bit swollen.
He is bumping into things but can find his water his food and bed and is generally starting to find his way around. He seems happy enough and is loving his walks while we learn commands that help him.
But what a shocker..I would not have chosen to make him blind if I knew he had sight. The vet either didn’t know he could see or lied to us as she probably thought that eye removal was the best thing for Spotty. I probably would have said work out which is the best eye and let’s keep that. Not happy about this at all as I see him bumping into things as getting knocks from that.
Anyway that’s Spotty’s story over the past month.
I know it’s no small comfort but eventually both eyes would have had to be removed regardless. At the very least, you were saving your dog the pain it would have experienced by keeping the one eye in. If it was having a pressure of 30 despite the drops then your dog would have been in pain.
Thanks Paula
Appreciate your advice and the effort with this website.
Wasn’t sure where the best place was to provide an update on Spotty.
Well it’s just over 3 weeks since Spotty had both eyes removed. After us being so distressed by the way he was bumping into things and seeming to be struggling with the total blindness he has really recovered well.
Spotty had his stitches removed about 2 weeks post surgery and he is so much better. He almost seems like a new dog. Running around, barking at the occasional passing dog, enjoying walks and being spoilt. Sure he bumps into things but less so now and his ability to work out where he is has been fantastic. Amazing.
So, while every situation may be different ,for those who may be torn by the decision I would say that our dog must have been in pain, the pain has gone and the dog seems really happy. So be confident your furry friend will recover and adapt quickly.
That is awesome Ron. I’m so pleased that he is doing so well. I really appreciate you leaving an update.
I have been running this site since 2012 and have seen a lot of people come through and they all have a similar story. They don’t realise the pain their dog is in until after the operation.