… Array would still be Queen.
We took her in today to the eye specialist because her right eye has filled with blood. The eye is permanently blind says the doctor. We’re giving medication to see if the pressure goes down. Otherwise, it’ll be surgery, eye removal, and eye patch time.
What happened? Who knows? Maybe a tumor (most likely benign)? Maybe cataract? Maybe a sport injury? If the meds don’t work and we remove the eye we’ll know more.
Here’s hoping for permanent ignorance.
Oh, yikes! Best wishes to you. Hasn’t been a good January, so far.
Ouch!
I have yet to understand why high pressure means the eye has to go. Tiny little Freeway Kitten (a patient at the clinic where I work) lost her eye for that reason as well, and heck, I think she still had some sight in it.
I hope the meds work.
If the pressure decreases with the drops, then the eye stays (but still will not see). If the pressure/blood in the eye doesn’t resolve, then the doctor believes the cause is a tumor (likely non-cancerous, but still a problem). If that happens, there is a laundry list of uncomfortable and expensive procedures which could be done. And, in the best case — after surgery and tests — the eye will “saved” although it still won’t work.
Or, if the medication does not fix the problem, we can have one procedure (eye removal) which fixes the problem and also lets us find out about the tumor without putting the dog through a bunch of nasty surgeries and tests. The doctor says the issue is cosmetic (no eye) since the dog will likely heal quickly without any trauma if the eye is removed. And, of course, even with the tests and procedures the eye might have to go if the sonograms and biopsies say it should.
We hope the drops do the job, and haven’t made any firm decision after that. But, we’re thinking Array would look pretty rakish with an eye patch.
Ah, so in Array’s case, continued high pressure would likely indicate a tumor. Gotcha. Freeway Kitten didn’t have that problem — it was all trauma — so I initially put together the surface similarity of high eye pressure and didn’t think of the differences.
If you do eventually opt for removal, be prepared for her to twitch her eyelid for a few days, not understanding why she can’t open it. She’ll adjust, but watching that can be emotionally a little rough for some of us humans.
I sympathize on many levels. I’ve recently been through traumatic pet illness, and my very own left eye has pressure problems from a stress-related chronic illness. It’s pretty likely that, sooner or later, I’ll lose sight in that eye, and the only reason it doesn’t get to the point that I might lose the eye altogether is because we humans are lucky that we can communicate clearly while the symptoms are still minor.
That was one of the hardest parts for me with Vanyel’s illness, knowing that he had been having problems for a while but couldn’t effectively communicate them to me.
{{{hugs}}}
Thanks for the good wishes.
Since Array is one of Syntax (the 17 year old)’s puppies and is 13, no matter what she has the vets keep saying how healthy she is for her age.
I feel the same way when I see the doctor.