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Expert: - 3/31/2011


Question

redeye
Hi. Firstly, thank you for taking the time to answer my question.

I have a healthy one year old chihuahua with one minor issue. I take him to the dog park a few times a week and he loves to wrestle with other dogs. The problem is he never closes his eyes while he's doing this, and often we leave the park with pink, irritated eyes. Sometimes he scratches them and I have to put the elizabethan collar on him. The symptoms are redness, puffiness, and watery discharge. It almost always goes away within a day, but sometimes they are so red it is painful to look at.

I am doing the best I can to stop the wrestling behavior, but my question is are there any over-the-counter treatments I can give to him to reduce the symptoms and discomfort this is causing my dog?

I attached an image to give a better idea of what it looks like.

Thanks again.

Answer
I'm not sure this is from wrestling as much as the grasses are probably irritating it. Some people use a tube of sterile Neosporin for this but you really should get something from the vets.

If he continues doing this he can really damage his eye and then he could lose it or both of them. Eye injuries are pretty serious stuff.

You might want to put some ointment in his eyes before he goes to the park to help protect them. Maybe your vet can make him some goggles for playtime. :-)
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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

Expertise

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!

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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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