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Expert: - 1/30/2011


Question
Yesterday I got a chocolate Lab, Brindle Pitbull mixed puppie and she has a red sac looking thing in her right eye were the tear duct is. Honestly, it looks like her brains are coming out through her eye. She's only about 6/7 weeks old and was born under a house. I don't know if it's infected or if it will just go away. I've never seen anything like it before and I just need to know if there is a medicine or eye drop that I could put in her eye to make it go away.

Answer
No, most likely it will not just "go away." It sounds like she has a condition we call "cherry eye," which is when the lacrimal duct, or tear duct, is prolapsed out from under the third eyelid. It is more common than people know.

You have to have a vet turn the eyelid back the way it's supposed to be. A dog this age with one means that it will probably have to be sutured in place to prevent it from prolapsing again. And, the chances are good that the other one will do the same thing.

She is old enough for her first vet visit anyway for her shots, heartworm prevention and an exam. That is when the vet will tell you what it is exactly, but it sounds like a cherry eye.

Here is a picture of one:
http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/wysiwyg/image/cherry(12).jpg

Hers might not be as bad but you get the idea...
Here is an article on it as well:

http://www.peteducation.com/article_print.cfm?c=2+2092&aid=409

Good luck and have fun with her! Make sure you get her spayed before she is 5 months old as well. Very important.

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

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PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

Experience

I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

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Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

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Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

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Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

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