# eye injury & Entropion



## Geneva77 (May 20, 2011)

Hope this is the fix for her and that she will be good as new soon!


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

I am glad you vigorously pursued this matter. When I read about Rain's eye problem I was concerned because eyes can go so quickly downhill. Reading about how the muscle itself forms a "memory" that tends to keep the eyelid rolled inward it is clear that 
serious damage could have occurred without your prompt response. Rayah Quality Standards gave you excellent advice and hopefully it will pay off and Rain will fully recover soon. Rain is lucky to have you. You were really an advocate for her going through 3 vets till you found an opthalmologist who could help you.


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## cliffdweller (Jan 31, 2011)

CT Girl said:


> I am glad you vigorously pursued this matter. When I read about Rain's eye problem I was concerned because eyes can go so quickly downhill. Reading about how the muscle itself forms a "memory" that tends to keep the eyelid rolled inward it is clear that
> serious damage could have occurred without your prompt response. Rayah Quality Standards gave you excellent advice and hopefully it will pay off and Rain will fully recover soon. Rain is lucky to have you. You were really an advocate for her going through 3 vets till you found an opthalmologist who could help you.


Thank You for your support !

I am dismayed that one of the three Vets did not send me to an Opthalmologist forthwith. After all, these three inhabit the same office, and they had plenty of knowledge available concerning Rain and her condition. In fact, I am _angry_ (_big time_), that I had to break off their prescribed treatment and seek out information and a specialist on my own. It is _alot of money_, not to mention the suffering and risk to the dog's eye ! (Are times _so_ desparate !?) Or am I being too severe ?

To confuse matters more, Rain never paid the slightest attention to the injury aside from an occassional squint and the copious tearing (--- is she just _that_ tough ?). She was rough and wild and happy (the pic in my sig was taken in the midst of all this). Now, however, she is quite subdued with an enormous e-collar on her head that bumps into everything.


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## Geneva77 (May 20, 2011)

Just have to say Rain looks like a beautiful pony in your signature! Sorry you are going through all this.


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## cliffdweller (Jan 31, 2011)

Geneva77 said:


> Just have to say Rain looks like a beautiful pony in your signature! Sorry you are going through all this.


Yes, my sister thinks she looks like my horse drawings. I am sad she has to go through this and that I don't know more to help her (Weimaraner eyes are so different from her deep, dark, beautiful orbs !). I am looking forward to the happy days when she can chase the minnows once again !

Thank you !

Rain jumping out of the camera frame (I suppose I'll have to get better a photographing moving objects too !) :


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## schpeckie (Jun 29, 2010)

I love Rain's pictures! She seems to enjoy playing in the water! Hope her eye heals up fast.


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## spoofly (Jan 20, 2010)

Nu2Poodles,
I am dealing with the exact same thing in Fly's right eye right now. I actually just got back from the vet's office within the hour. I am treating her with some anti inflammatory eye drops right now, and hopefully that will make her more comfortable. I am waiting 2 weeks to see if she will need further treatment of if it can be taken care of by reducing the swelling. Keep us updated please!


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## cliffdweller (Jan 31, 2011)

spoofly said:


> Nu2Poodles,
> I am dealing with the exact same thing in Fly's right eye right now. I actually just got back from the vet's office within the hour. I am treating her with some anti inflammatory eye drops right now, and hopefully that will make her more comfortable. I am waiting 2 weeks to see if she will need further treatment of if it can be taken care of by reducing the swelling. Keep us updated please!


When the swelling in Rain's eye did not diminish after three weeks (3 Vets & 3 sets of meds/eyedrops), I sought the Opthalmologist.

I've been sending her photos of Rain's eyes every day to assure that all is progressing as expected. Rain, meanwhile, is returning to her normal behavior, so I'm facing a bit of a challenge keeping her from flying about ...

I have not been wiping close to her eye, but I queried the Doc on this, and she said I could clean it if Rain will tolerate the handling. So today I will begin a gentle cleaning of the area. Rain has been pretty good about not scratching or rubbing at it.

If all goes well, the sutures will be removed in 3-4 weeks. If her lid remains in the normal position, she will not require further surgery.

Here are the photos I sent to the Doc yesterday :


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

Rains story sounds exactly like Rileys did, but he had it in both eyes. Irritation, tacking, and he had to have the surgery after all. I hope she responds to the tacking. The opthomologist said the same thing to us, irriation and muscle memory were a problem.


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## cliffdweller (Jan 31, 2011)

bigpoodleperson said:


> Rains story sounds exactly like Rileys did, but he had it in both eyes. Irritation, tacking, and he had to have the surgery after all. I hope she responds to the tacking. The opthomologist said the same thing to us, irriation and muscle memory were a problem.


How old was Riley when this occurred ? 

I have been unable to determine whether this is a genetic problem, or the result of injury/irritation to the eye, or a combination of these.

I am interested to know this, because it has occurred to me that perhaps I should be more careful about introducing Rain to the "great outdoors". I suppose it's possible that her reflexes and defenses are not what they would be if she had been allowed to run in heavy cover as a pup. Too much, too soon ?

Also, did Riley's eyes look like this when they were tacked ? (It's scary, isn't it !)


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

I dont know if his was genetic or not. A few months before he developed the entropion he got dry eye. He was on daily drops that seemed to irritate him for a few seconds. I doubt those few seconds a day of irritation would cause that though. I dont know, but he is on PHR for entropion for it anyways. The opthomologist we saw said she saw a fair number of "older" standards with it. They tend to loose muscle mass/fat in their face as they age, and then the extra skin rolls into entropion. IDK. Riley was 6-7 when he developed it. I feel bad as we waited awhile to do the surgery, and looking back at pictures when he had it, he was clearly uncomfortable. First we switched eye drops that didnt irritate him and gave that awhile to work. Then we tried adding other drops to stop it. Then we tried others. Then we finally tacked, and after it clearly came back we finally did the surgery. 

Here are pictures from the tacking (I dont have good ones like yours, but his eyelids were pulled down and out like yours). Then a picture before the surgery (you can see a dark stain spot on the bottom of the third picture, its from when i pull his lid down to where it should be, the spot is how far it rolled as that part rubbed on his eye).


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

See that brown glop stained fur directly under his eye.










See that brown glob of stained fur at the bottom of the picture? That was the same spot in the above picture that was right at his eye. That is how far his rolled.


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## cliffdweller (Jan 31, 2011)

bigpoodleperson said:


> I dont know if his was genetic or not. A few months before he developed the entropion he got dry eye. He was on daily drops that seemed to irritate him for a few seconds. I doubt those few seconds a day of irritation would cause that though. I dont know, but he is on PHR for entropion for it anyways. The opthomologist we saw said she saw a fair number of "older" standards with it. They tend to loose muscle mass/fat in their face as they age, and then the extra skin rolls into entropion. IDK. Riley was 6-7 when he developed it. I feel bad as we waited awhile to do the surgery, and looking back at pictures when he had it, he was clearly uncomfortable. First we switched eye drops that didnt irritate him and gave that awhile to work. Then we tried adding other drops to stop it. Then we tried others. Then we finally tacked, and after it clearly came back we finally did the surgery.
> 
> Here are pictures from the tacking (I dont have good ones like yours, but his eyelids were pulled down and out like yours). Then a picture before the surgery (you can see a dark stain spot on the bottom of the third picture, its from when i pull his lid down to where it should be, the spot is how far it rolled as that part rubbed on his eye).


Oh my, you are correct, Riley's condition and your experience is very similar to what we are experiencing. I don't know how far Rain's lid rolled; it was not so easy to see with her dark skin. 

Thank you so much for posting your pictures and explanations.

How has Riley been since the surgery ?


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

Riley has been really good since the surgery. He tears really bad now though. He never was a tear-er. He had to have surgery last week to remove a skin tag from the corner of his right eye. It had fused to the upper lid and created a hole that trapped hair against his eye. He did fine. I am not happy about the tearing, but he doesnt seem to be in pain at all. The dry eye resolved a few months after the surgery even! All in all, pretty good. How is your girl doing?


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## cliffdweller (Jan 31, 2011)

Rain has been off of the antibiotic drops for a couple days and is looking well, though there is still what appears to me to be swelling of the lower lid. Tearing is greatly diminished, but still present. This is how she looks first thing this morning (see attachments below). 

Coincidentally, My Father developed a severe eye irritation, accompanied by swelling and pain, several weeks ago. A trip to the Opthalmologist revealed that he had gotten a toxin in his eye. We suspect that it was Milkweed sap. Since I had also been cutting this with Rain by my side around the time Rain began having eye problems, I thought Milkweed sap might be the culprit in _her_ case. But Rain does not show the, apparently characteristic, burns (abraisions) this toxin produces when it gets in the eye (--- it is also toxic when ingested). It is worth noting that this plant can be dangerous to you and your animals, so if you have it in your butterfly garden, beware and take precautions.

I do suspect that Rain could have an allergy to something in our environment and am doing alot of searching concerning this possibility. "Paradise" can also be rather harsh in certain respects. Rain likes to get right _in there,_ so, if I am pulling weeds, e.g., she wants to pull them too &, of course, she uses her _mouth _...


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