So my 15 year old mini weiner dog has had some problems with her right eye. Every morning it gets REALLY crusty to the point it's sealed shut when I take her out.

I took her to the vet and they did the eye stain, nothing. The vet suggested it may be allergies, and to give her benadryl, and that did nothing. I've tried changing her bedding every other day, nothing.

Anyone have similar issues with their dog?

1/4/2010 10:57:36 AM

wipe it's eye with a warm cloth.

1/4/2010 11:02:58 AM

I wipe her eye. My bigger worry is that it could be something else other than physical damage to her eye. Is this an early sign of anything worse? It's been going on for 3 months now

1/4/2010 11:04:50 AM

I assume they checked for an eye infection? Did they run any tests?

1/4/2010 11:07:50 AM

The vet didn't seem too concerened. She did the eye stain to see if she maybe had a scratch or a tear, but she thought it was most likely allergies...and my dog is also old as hell, so I'm kinda expecting her health to start going down a little.

1/4/2010 11:09:38 AM

Yeah it sounds like its just an issue with debris in the eye (dust or something) or an allergic reaction. Any recent changes around the house or changes to the dog's bedding/food/treats?

1/4/2010 11:21:49 AM

Nope. Everything is consistant. Even down to my detergents. I wash out her kennel 1x a week, she sleeps in a dog bed with towels. She's so old I hate to mess things up too much. Same food (Blue buffalo).

Can I put saline in her eye?

1/4/2010 11:25:23 AM

My cat had the same problem. It would get incredibly swollen, and the vet did a few of the dye tests on him too. Finally, they prescribed a steroid and that helped a lot to reduce the swelling. He only flares up when he gets nervous, or there are a lot of changes (weather or people visiting, etc). If it doesn't fix itself with the warm cleanings, you can ask your vet about a steroid cream.

1/4/2010 11:31:01 AM

Saline is fine..and the steroid cream is a good suggestion. I remember putting it in dogs eyes when I worked at a vet clinic and it usually takes care of the problem.

1/4/2010 12:14:59 PM

Quote :

"He only flares up when he gets nervous"

Along the same lines, maybe your little dachsund is stressed because it's so cold outside! Do you leave any fans on when the pup is sleeping? Is it getting progressively worse?

1/4/2010 12:36:14 PM

It's been about the same. It's just this nasty, yellow discharge, and I usually have to really wipe and there is usually still gunk floating on the eye itself (hence why I wanted to use saline solution if possible to flush it out.)

She sleeps in 3 blankets and a bed, no fan, in a kennel.

She's going to the vet next month for her annual. I guess I"ll ask for some steroid creme if it doesn't heal up.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

1/4/2010 1:00:16 PM

steroid cream is a really bad idea if there is any sort of infection. I'd try abx creme first and if that doesn't clear it up move to steroids.

Also, try giving the dog benadryl and see if that helps.

1/4/2010 4:04:08 PM

^ did you even read what he wrote? there is no infection..he already tried benadryl

[Edited on January 4, 2010 at 7:20 PM. Reason : ?!]

1/4/2010 7:19:33 PM

do you know if they did a schirmer tear test to see if she is producing normal amounts of tear film?

1/4/2010 7:53:33 PM

^^ Benadryl is an antihistamine...not an antibiotic. It wouldn't fix the infection...

[Edited on January 4, 2010 at 7:57 PM. Reason : .]

1/4/2010 7:56:54 PM

Benadryl is to test to see if it's allergies. Try giving it for a week, since a single day might not be long enough for the eye to clear all the gunk out.

1/4/2010 11:21:43 PM

Quote :

"^^ Benadryl is an antihistamine...not an antibiotic. It wouldn't fix the infection..."

Yeah no shit Sherlock.....the vet already determined it wasnt an infection per the OP in the first few posts.

Quote :

"Benadryl is to test to see if it's allergies. Try giving it for a week, since a single day might not be long enough for the eye to clear all the gunk out."

Im going to go ahead and assume that the OP gave Benadryl more than once...but in case he didnt this is important.

1/5/2010 2:00:05 AM

I tried the benadryl for a week and it didn't do anything except make her more sleepy.

This morning was rough. I let her out of her kennel and she ran into the couch. Her right eye was sealed shut and the left had so much goop in it, she may as well have had that one shut too.

1/5/2010 9:23:10 AM

Take her to a different vet. It never hurts to get two different professional opinions. Even if they just do the same thing (eye stain and recommend benadryl), at least you'll have a second opinion.

1/5/2010 9:50:11 AM

in my experience (no, i'm not a vet...i was a tech for 6 years, though), yellow discharge USUALLY means infection, especially if you haven't moved recently (and so she hasn't encountered any new allergen sources)...discharge from allergies is USUALLY clear, anyway

could be conjunctivitis, but that doesn't really help that much unless you know the cause

best of luck

1/5/2010 9:53:31 AM