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Glass Eyes For Dogs


Leah82
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Ok maybe not glass eyes but does anyone have experience with prosthetic eyes for dogs?

Cost difference in just removing the eye vs removing the eye and replacing it with a prosthetic?

Difference in healing time?

Any long term side effects, infections etc?

Collie has developed quite a sudden cataract in one eye which is starting to swell, it doesn't appear to be uncomfortable for him yet but I guess it's only a matter of time. As he doesn't have any sight anyway we'd probably just remove both in one go.

I know it's vain to be thinking about prosthetics I just think a dog with no eyes can be quite confronting and our lives in the next few years will include lots of curious small children as well as grooming customers.

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No idea but if its any help we have a one eyed shih tzu and if anything else its worked in her favour, she gets a looot of treats in pet stores etc.

Kids are generally curious but move on quick, I don't think anyone's been scared of her but people do always ask how it happened, she just gets a little combover groomed in to cover it, haha.

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Hi, I work at an animal eye specialist so I can help. :)

Cost wise, eye removal at a local vet will cost anywhere from $600-$1200. A prosthetic will cost around $1700.

Recovery wise, eye removal sites generally heal in 10-14 days. We always recommend strong pain killers for at least a week (we use a non-steroidal PLUS tramadol). There will be external sutures that need to be removed after two weeks. There are generally very very few concerns post-operatively and no ongoing concerns.

With a prosthetic, healing time is longer (3-6 weeks). The only suture that will need to be removed is the temporary one holding the eye partly closed while the prosthetic heals. The procedure is thought to be less painful because the optic nerve is not cut. We still put them on nsaids and tramadol post-op though. Risk of complications is extremely low post-operatively. Long term, the eye is pretty much like a normal eye. They still have a cornea so can still get ulcers but again, very low risk.

We do these prosthetics every week and we very rarely see issues. It is a great option for dogs that may need both eyes removed.

Can I just ask - does Collie have PRA? If so, is he on any eye drops?

Edited by *kirty*
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Thanks for all of that Kirty

he does have PRA, we were told 2.5 years ago when he got his initial diagnosis from the specialist that he will probably need eye drops. Every time we've been to the vet since (for either him or Sarah) we get them to check his eyes and he's been fine, it's only in the last 6 weeks he's gone from practically no cataract with still some sight to one full blown white eye and only very very slight vision in his other eye and now we're noticing some slight swelling.

With a baby on the way I'd rather get any large medical expenses out of the way rather than persist with drops when he'll need to have the surgery in the future anyway.

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Do you mean check ups with the specialist or the local vet? Local vets rarely prescribe drops for PRA however we ALWAYS recommend them! They will not fix the PRA or help the vision, however the idea is to delay or prevent the onset of inflammation which then leads to cataracts, glaucoma, etc. I would be starting the drops ASAP on the good eye at least.

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Just the local vet, I'm pretty sure the specialist said that drops weren't necessary until the cataracts were more advanced but it was awhile ago

Probably should book in with the specialist and go from there.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

the OH has been putting this one off for awhile which is understandable because Collie is his baby and he's not in any immediate discomfort

I managed to convince him to finally make an appointment by suggesting maybe we get the vet's opinion on removing his cataracts, which is not as crazy as it sounds as his eye sight hadn't deteriorated in a very long time before the cataracts. So we'll be seeing the specialist on the 22nd.

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  • 3 weeks later...

So back from the specialist last night and I guess we got the best news we could. Eyes aren't swelling up yet, just a little bit red so we have a high dose of the eye drops for a couple of weeks (2-3 times a day) and then hopefully after that we can cut back to once a day.

So no need for drastic measures just yet, although I do wonder whether or not the ongoing costs of the drops are worth it when the end result will probably be the same.

Either way with a baby on the way and an move to WA soon after we can't really afford surgery so this will have to be the road we take for the mean time.

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