# Cherry Eye...



## Sonic and Aries

Has anyone else heard of Havs with Cherry Eye? They are not listed as a common occurrence breed, but a lot of pictures I have looked up on it appear to be Havs. 

Sonic has had Cherry Eye in his left eye for about a month and just this morning I noticed cherry eye starting in his other eye.. He was on the drops but they just seemed to annoy him without helping his eye. We have put off the surgery because his eye hasn't appeared to bother him, but now I'm seriously considering it... Any advice?

~~~

Just thought I would provide you all an update. Sonic had the Cherry Eye Tucking Surgery done a little over 2 weeks ago. Man, did I feel horrible about it for the first few days. He was really groggy and not himself for several days, he had to wear the e-collar a lot and hated it, plus we had to put an ointment in his eyes twice daily for over a week (which he absolutely hated!). Well I will say after about the 3rd day, I could really tell a difference. He was his normal wonderful self and had stopped scratching at the eyes, which meant less time in the e-collar, but he still wasn't a fan of the ointment. His eyes look so much better, minus a little extra discharge that I have to clean out carefully a few times a day. I just thought I would post a "before" and "after" pictures. The before was the morning of the surgery and the after was about a week and a half later.


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## Pixiesmom

There have been havanese on here that have had it. I just did a search and there are quite a few threads on it. Many of them mention that you should let the breeder know. I hope everything works out for Sonic and that his eyes heal soon.


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## The Laughing Magpie

Cherry eye is common in many breeds, it is considered heriditary in many breeds, it is considered cosmetic, often you can push it back in to place, but generally it comes back. My lhasa has two, his are still soft after all these years but I manipulate them back in place on a frequent basis, so they have remained soft, with his latest problem I may not be able to do that and they will most probably become hard. I would not recomend doing this for years, my dog has other problems which made operating risky.

Most vets do this surgery, it is minor and I would suggest having it done, because even if you are able to put it back in place it will most likely come back. They can do this a number of ways I would suggest not allowing them to shave it off in any way, stitching back in place is better. I know there are others on the forum who have had this done, I hope they chime in.


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## SherryTeach

Abby just had her cherry eye surgery two weeks ago. She developed the prolapsed gland quite suddenly one day. My vet recommended having the surgery done by a specialist, who used the pocket technique, which has a higher success rate. She also taked down the other eye as most oga who prolapse one eye will have the other go as well.


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## Sheila

Hi,when My Tashi girl came into my life she already had cherry eye?I had used caffeine free-Chamomile herbal tea to help sooth her eye(not hot of-course)google it? until i could get her to my vet for her first visit? I choose to have her cherry eye tucked,it has been over a year now and would not ever be able to tell she even had it?oh she had it tucked same time she was spayed?I had seen a video on the internet some where on massaging around the eye,and some how it going back in?but i thinks that would have to be caught early?her other eye has never had cherry eye?so far her eyes are normal?


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## SherryTeach

That's good to know. I hope neither of our puppies ave any more problems. I, of course, have all kinds of problems with autocorrect on my iPad!


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## The Laughing Magpie

So happy someone who had it done, did chime in.


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## Sonic and Aries

Thanks everyone. I'll probably try to get Sonic into a specialist next week to discuss the tucking surgery. Our regular vet said he generally does not do this kind of surgery so I would feel better visiting the specialist. I'm glad to hear that the people who have had the surgery seem happy with it and that it has helped.


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## americ9597

My Molly has cherry eye and it came and went while she was a pup but as she got older it became permanent. If it doesn't bother either of you, why put her through surgery? Unless you're showing her. I know it doesn't look pretty, but when & if it becomes troublesome I will have it taken care of. She's 8 now and so far it has not changed at all. I think it has shown up enough in Havs that it should be listed as one of the things to look out for. Good luck with your pup!


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## SherryTeach

The vet told me that the longer she had the gland prolapsing out into her eye, the greater the likelihood that there would be permanent damage to her cornea from the eventual hardening of the gland and resulting scratching against the eye. Abby is 10 months old. I don't want her to start life out with the probability of eventual corneal abrasions and permanent damage.


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## SherryTeach

Abby is now almost a month post surgery. I still have to put drops in her eyes twice daily, but her eyes look great. She goes back for one more check up on Friday. The biggest issue now is that wearing the cone for two weeks created the most horrible mats around her ears and neck. I had to get the places behind her ears shaved. So besides the Mohawk, she is doing just fine.


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## The Laughing Magpie

Sherry, Getting the gland put back in position is the right thing to do, that is the gland that produces tears, and yes a dog with cherry eye can have all those things happen.


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## krandall

SherryTeach said:


> The vet told me that the longer she had the gland prolapsing out into her eye, the greater the likelihood that there would be permanent damage to her cornea from the eventual hardening of the gland and resulting scratching against the eye. Abby is 10 months old. I don't want her to start life out with the probability of eventual corneal abrasions and permanent damage.


I agree. I'd get it fixed. My understanding is that it is very minor surgery.


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## SherryTeach

Minor surgery and easy recovery, but I'll have the say the surgery cost more than the dog. Not that I even considered not doing it for her welfare. I'm really hoping that the next 15 years are free of any more eye problems.


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## The Laughing Magpie

Sherry, That was money well spent, chances are there will be no more eye problems. I can tell you eye problems are scary and heart breaking and no matter how many resources you have, you can not replace the eyes. Abby's hair will grow back, its so great when you look into your pup's eyes and see their love looking back.


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## krandall

SherryTeach said:


> Minor surgery and easy recovery, but I'll have the say the surgery cost more than the dog. Not that I even considered not doing it for her welfare. I'm really hoping that the next 15 years are free of any more eye problems.


All vet stuff is SO expensive. When Kodi swallowed the Greenie last year, the total bill ended up over $1600... Not QUITE the price of a Havanese puppy, but there was no surgery involved either. I've spent $500 on him this week with just two office visits some lab work and some relatively inexpensive meds.


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## azogal

Maggie had surgery for cherry eye some years ago. The vet used a "newer" method ... and wouldn't you know, it popped back out some months later. For the second surgery, she used the "traditional method" and it has stayed in place for many years now. Maggie had awful discharge between the two surgeries -- evidently it was quite irritating to the eye. No problems since then. Good luck!


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## SherryTeach

I really hope this surgery fixes. I don't know about older vs. newer methods, but from what I have read, the pocket method has the best success rate. My vet said 91%. I really don't want to do this again. Thanks for the luck. I think luck is a big issue with this condition.


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## Laurief

Lexi, (my black and white girl) had a cherry eye at about age 2 1/2- 3 years. We had the surgery (done by our vet - not a specialist), and she has been fine ever since. She is now 7 1/2 years old!!!! Our vet had done many of these surgeries (tucking in) so I felt comfortable and she said that if the "specialist" did it they would charge 3x more and still not guarantee that it would not come back. So, since my vet had done it a lot, I let her do the surgery. Lexi has never had a problem since! I would go with the person that has done, more surgeries, without it coming back. Ask them about it!! But I was so happy that we did it for her. She has moved on to become a fabulous therapy dog visiting lots of elderly people who think that she is just the best! It really bothered me personally to see her with it - so I was happy to have it done.


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## ShirleyH

Linda, Keeper had cherry eye in one eye and it was quickly taken care of by our regular vet who is a very capable surgeon. One stitch was all that was required to stitch the gland back in place. It is highly recommended that the procedure be done this way since the gland may be necessary later in your dog's life. I think it will be just fine.

Keeper's Mom


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## SherryTeach

Definitely, you don't want to remove the gland unless absolutely necessary. It is needed for tear production.


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## The Laughing Magpie

Yes, the gland is important! Many Vets do this operation, as this is becoming more common place. This is not a operation that you need to seek out a specialist for, unless your Vet has not done many. My Lhasa was not able to have this operation, it was not a matter of cost, unless you consider the cost of his life in the balance, his cherry eye after 12 years is still soft, but he had dry eye before the cherry eye. I am able to tuck them back in, so if you meet him you would not know, I was very worried of late that the eye with glacuoma would harden it, it has not...One must always consider the long term health of their pet. 

I have had two dog with serious eye problems, I would not wish them on anyone.


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## americ9597

Sherry, I'm no expert AT ALL but I never heard or read that. I was told it COULD become problematic. But doesn't seem to have. I've read up on it and this is what my vet said. Interesting. I think I will do some more reading. Maybe the more experienced breeders here could advise both of us! Molly is 8, as far as I know, she has no issues with her sight.


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## GrannyMouse

We are scheduled to have the Cherry Eye surgery on Friday on our puppy. She is almost 5 months. The doctor tried pushing it back in but that only lasted for part of a day. Hate to put her thru the surgery but sounds like the best thing in the long run for her.


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## The Laughing Magpie

Sorry to read about your little girl pup. The surgery does not take long, the different anesthesia choices are so much safer today. When we were worried if my Lhasa would have to lose his eye from secondary Glacucoma, the vet discussed todays anesthesia, as Boo Boo had a very hard time during his neuter all those years ago and a very long recovery from the event, today he has many medical issues, so my Vet said the best drug to use on him would be PropoFlo; it is Propofal after telling me about how great it is. I said "it did not seem so great for Michael Jackson", he look at me and in a very serious voice said "Unlike Jackson's doctor Boo Boo's doctor will be there montoring every minute." Made me laugh at a very serious time. We were able to control the pressure with drugs so things are good. Best of luck that your pup will have a good out come and uneventful recovery.


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## GrannyMouse

The Laughing Magpie said:


> Sorry to read about your little girl pup. The surgery does not take long, the different anesthesia choices are so much safer today. When we were worried if my Lhasa would have to lose his eye from secondary Glacucoma, the vet discussed todays anesthesia, as Boo Boo had a very hard time during his neuter all those years ago and a very long recovery from the event, today he has many medical issues, so my Vet said the best drug to use on him would be PropoFlo; it is Propofal after telling me about how great it is. I said "it did not seem so great for Michael Jackson", he look at me and in a very serious voice said "Unlike Jackson's doctor Boo Boo's doctor will be there montoring every minute." Made me laugh at a very serious time. We were able to control the pressure with drugs so things are good. Best of luck that your pup will have a good out come and uneventful recovery.


Thanks for the well wishes!!


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## viviassam

Hi, my 6 month old puppy just got surgery to remove the prolapse. He made a quick recovery. Post-surgery care simply consisted of applying eye drops three times a day for 8 days. Two days after the surgery, he was as good as new. My vet strongly recommended to have the surgery done, since the eye could get ulcerated after a while if the prolapse didn´t get removed. 
Since I am new to the forum, and I am not allowed to start new threads, I was wondering if you could help me with this one issue I´ve been having with Fred (my puppy).
I was buying some products for my kitten at a pet store, when I noticed the poor little havanese with cherry eye. I asked the manager what was wrong with him and she told me soap had gotten into his eye while they were giving him a bath. Right away, I new she was lying, since that particular chain of pet stores has a horrible reputation of mistreating and neglecting the animals they sell. I immediately called my vet and described what I saw. She told me it was probably cherry eye, and that surgery was necessary. The puppy was 5 months old at the time, and had been in the store for three months. It had 20 % discount, since it is the pet store´s policy to put the puppies that haven´t been sold on sale. This made me worried they would have the puppy put down, because, on top of not being able to sell it, it now required surgery. and I doubt they would bother on giving this poor puppy propper care, so I went ahead and bought it from these horrible people. Keep in mind, I live in Mexico, where animal rights are practically non existant, and I couldn´t bare leaving him there if complaints would get me nowhere. 
When I took Fred home, he was in horrible conditions. Besides recovering from the surgery he just had to remove the cherry eye, he had diarrhea with blood in it. I got it tested, and it turned out to be a bacterial infection. I gave him the medicine the vet prescribed for a week, and now he is perfectly healthy, but he is VERY low energy, and doesn´t seem to warm up to me. When the trainer comes, he practically has to drag Fred out of its crate (which he voluntarily enters and stays in) to get him to walk.
I´ve read quite a lot about this breed, and my puppy´s behaviour seems abnormal for a havanese. Do you have any suggestions as to what might be wrong with him? I´ve taken him numerous times to the vet, and she says he is perfectly healthy. My trainer says its probably the trauma of being in the pet store for three months, and that he will get over it eventually.
Thank You


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## The Laughing Magpie

Viviassam, Your puppy will get better, he just needs to take it slowly and his crate is his safe place, he has been through a lot, and does not know the rules. The Havanese really wants to please, my suggestion is when your just home you set your dog up for success through positive experiences. Try very simple things if you can coax him out of his crate on his own reward him, at first he may not be that food motivate, that will change when his fear level goes down. Remember he has never been in a home and really everything is new, you must take baby steps at first, after you gain his trust things will go faster. Welcome!!!!! We will need pictures.


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## TilliesMom

I agree it IS the trauma of being in the pet store for 3 months, 3 of the MOST important months for a puppy!! God bless you for saving and taking care of this sweet, scared angel!! be patient, loving and PATIENT... sounds like your sweet puppy has been through more trauma than we can imagine, seperated from people, forced to live in a cage... just be patient and let your puppy come to you on HIS terms... in HIS time...


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## viviassam

Thank You for your replies! Fred has been doing much better! His favorite activity is to drag his bed around the house, as well as the kittens bed! 
He seems happy, and much more energetic!


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## The Laughing Magpie

You will notice as time goes on he will settle in more and more, one day it will seem as he has always been there. Funny they reveal themselves slowly over time as they become more and more confortable. Happy to hear he is coming along.


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## mom2pets

This is good information. Desi had a bit of a prolapsed third eyelid that they were able to tuck back in by manipulation. I thought I remembered them saying if he had surgery, he would need eye drops for the rest of his life as his eye would be dry. Has anyone else heard this?


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## krandall

mom2pets said:


> This is good information. Desi had a bit of a prolapsed third eyelid that they were able to tuck back in by manipulation. I thought I remembered them saying if he had surgery, he would need eye drops for the rest of his life as his eye would be dry. Has anyone else heard this?


No, absolutely not. If the surgery is done by an experienced canine opthamologist, there is absolutely no long term side effect, either from the prolapse OR the surgery. If people put off the surgery for too long, however, THAT can lead to dry eye, and possible loss of vision down the road.

Sometimes manipulation can get the prolapse back in, and VERY OCCASIONALLY it will stay put. But I've been told by a board certified vet opthamologist that over 70% will eventually prolapse again. If it does prolapse again, surgery is indicated, as it is only a matter of time before it happens again, and the longer/more times it is out, the harder it is to fix.

The surgery is not difficult for an experienced surgeon, and the recovery is quick and easy. This is something easy to fix, but has long-term health consequences if it is not fixed and the gland remains exposed.


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## krandall

Wanted to add that this is most often a problem with brachycephalic breeds, and (for reasons I don't understand) Beagles. It is not uncommon in toy breeds in general, though, and certainly is seen from time to time in Havanese.


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## davetgabby

here's a good article How to Recognize and Treat Cherry Eye in Your Dog


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## seesawhavanese

mom2pets said:


> This is good information. Desi had a bit of a prolapsed third eyelid that they were able to tuck back in by manipulation. I thought I remembered them saying if he had surgery, he would need eye drops for the rest of his life as his eye would be dry. Has anyone else heard this?


I believe if the tuck method is used, there should be no long term effects. I heard that if they do any cutting, the tear production is affected. Don't use that method.

This is a very old thread? I don't know if I've responded, but check my blog for Mochi's experience with Cherry Eye. She had it in one eye at 38 weeks. 14 days recovery time. She's now 1.5 years old, no eye problems. She only had one Cherry eye and surgery was a success. Vet said the Cherry Eye may come back after the tuck, but for Mochi, it didn't.


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## krandall

seesawhavanese said:


> I believe if the tuck method is used, there should be no long term effects. I heard that if they do any cutting, the tear production is affected. Don't use that method.
> 
> This is a very old thread? I don't know if I've responded, but check my blog for Mochi's experience with Cherry Eye. She had it in one eye at 38 weeks. 14 days recovery time. She's now 1.5 years old, no eye problems. She only had one Cherry eye and surgery was a success. Vet said the Cherry Eye may come back after the tuck, but for Mochi, it didn't.


Do you mean the pocket technique? This seems to be the most up to date surgery for Cherry eye. There is some cutting, to create the pocket. The key is that the GLAND is not cut or removed. It is tucked down into the newly created pocket, and then sutures close the opening, which hold the gland down inside. While complications can happen with any surgery, if it is done by an experienced opthamologist, the surgery is very reliable.


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## mom2pets

Thanks for the responses. I'll find a local experienced doggy ophthalmologist and be ready to schedule surgery if (or when?) it prolapses again.


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## krandall

mom2pets said:


> Thanks for the responses. I'll find a local experienced doggy ophthalmologist and be ready to schedule surgery if (or when?) it prolapses again.


We'll cross our fingers that you are one of the lucky ones, and it DOESN'T prolapse again!


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