Cherry eye in dogs - ivan`s story

Cherry eye in dogs is fairly common, and although it`s not a serious condition it is odd looking and uncomfortable for Fido.

Video: How to treat Cherry Eye in dogs

The classic symptom of cherry eye is a swollen, red lump at the inner corner of a dog`s eye.

To learn all about the causes and treatment of this problem, you can check out my `Does Your Dog Have Cherry Eye?` page... but don`t forget to come back here to read all about one dog`s personal experience with this condition.... and see the before-and-after photos!

Video: Cherry Eye in Dogs and Cats

I adopted an adorable Great Dane/Basset Hound mix (yes, the end result is as odd as it sounds, but totally irresistible), from the local City Pound - and he had cherry eye. Here`s a photo....

As you can see, Ivan had a pretty big `cherry` in his left eye, once I brought him home, our first road trip was to my vet!

After taking a good look at his eye, she determined that his cherry eye had been there for quite some time (possibly even a year or more).

We figure Ivan is somewhere between 3 and 4 years old, and he may have had this since he was a pup.

The swelling was large, and quite dry. Not a good candidate for the less invasive, surgical option (which is tacking the gland back into place).

So, I made an appointment for him to have the gland/eyelid removed the following week.

Here`s a look at how it all went:

Video: Cherry Eye in a Dog

Day of Surgery

• I dropped Ivan at the veterinarian`s office at 7am and filled out all the paperwork.

  Paid an extra $85 to have his blood drawn and tested for liver problems, clotting problems, blood sugar levels and a host of other things. This helps make sure that your dog is fit for surgery and that there are no unexpected surprises on the operating table.

• Then I drove back home second-guessing myself the whole way! Should I have insisted they try the less-invasive option first? Will he have a reaction to the anesthetic? Will he be in a lot of pain? Yadda, yadda, yadda.. you know, motherly worries!
• At 12:00 noon the vet`s office called me to say that Ivan had `done great` with the surgery and would be ready to come home anytime after 4pm. Whew! I breathed more easily for the first time all day.
• At around 5pm I arrived to pick up Ivan, and was greeted by a very happy and active dog, who was wiggling and waggling his back end all over the office.

  Oh, and his eye looked GREAT :)

  It was a little red and the tissue at the inner corner was a little swollen, but compared to the cherry he`d been suffering for so long it was amazing. Once out of the office, Ivan slept like a log all the way home (the result of the painkilling shot he had been given earlier that afternoon), and was pretty quiet, but his normal happy self, all evening. He didn`t seem to be in any pain at all though, which was a big relief for me.

• Even though he didn`t seem to be hurting, that night before bed, I gave Ivan the dose of painkiller that the vet had given me as per instructions, and he went out like a light! In hindsight, this was probably a mistake because... this kind of sleep is so deep that my poor boy woke me up at 3am because he was peeing uncontrollably!

  He`s fully house-trained, but the narcotic effect of the medication must have deadened all his nerves and sedated him so deeply that he had apparent woken up in a puddle (no, make that a lake) of urine and then wandered over to wake me up, peeing all the time.

   It was a mess. He hadn`t had much to drink that day, but I`m guessing he IV fluids - and a lot of them.
   
• I wasn`t upset with him at all, but made a note to myself.. after surgery, do not give pain meds unless pet actually seems to be in pain! The shot he had been given after the surgery would probably have been more than enough.

Cherry Eye before surgery

2 weeks after surgery

Close-up, 2 wks post surgery

1 month after surgery :)

Post Surgery

• Other than that small hiccup, my adorable boy was back to normal right away. On the day after his surgery he ate, drank, played and fooled around as though nothing had happened.
• I had to put an antibacterial eye-ointment in the affected eye twice a day for seven days, but that`s all. The stitches were the kind that dissolve, so no need for a second vet trip to have them removed. The white of his eye remains a little pinker, and the lower lid is a little lower, than on his right eye, but other than that he looks wonderful and is totally unconcerned by his whole experience.
• At this point, my veterinarian is not recommending eye drops to lubricate Ivan`s eye as everything seems to be working fine, with no problems. BUT, I will need to watch him closely in the future, and if at any time there are signs of irritation, inflammation or discharge he`ll need to be examined right away.
• As he ages, this will become even more important and I`ll probably use eye-drops proactively at that point - just to be safe.

Video: Cherry Eye Repair

Cost Of Cherry Eye Surgery For Dogs

This was not a horrendously expensive surgery (several of our family dogs have needed much more costly procedures for one thing or another), but it wasn`t really cheap either.

Depending on where you live, the size of your dog, your veterinarian`s pricing structure, and whether or not you elect to have the pre-op bloodwork done, and whether you need to take home medication, the average cost of dog cherry eye surgery is somewhere around $350 - $450 (per eye).

Ivan had the bloodwork done, and needed (!) painkillers and antibacterial eye ointment to go home with him, and my total bill was $472.00

Here`s a look at the breakdown:

• Pre-op blood testing - $86.72
• Surgically removing the gland - $163.51
• Anesthesia - $123.60
• Pain medication to take home - $58.06
• Antibacterial eye ointment to take home - $40.23

Obviously you could pay less than this if you don`t do the blood-testing - and if Fido has had a thorough physical recently, or had blood work done for an earlier surgery or investigation you might not need it.

That testing is optional, and the vet can tell you if your dog is high-risk or low-risk, but there are no guarantees (even with the testing done), but I figured it was worth the extra $$$`s to give him that extra `edge`.

The Ultimate Before-and-After Dog Cherry Eye Photos!

So, I hope this has helped you if you`re worried about your dog. 

I wish you lots of luck and hope that he (or she, of course) is looking and feeling as good as Ivan does, really soon.

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