# Watery, runny eye



## susieg (Aug 28, 2009)

I noticed Lola's eye getting watery/goopy on Saturday. It looked worse on Sunday & I was going to take her to the vet today, but seems better this morning....not totally better, but a slight improvement. She always has a little tear staining, but this is different. Its just one eye and its more goopy than her usual tearing, she seems to want to close it and blink more on that side when I try to look at it or when she's tired. I don't notice her trying to close it all the time, but its hard to tell with all her fur and that she moves around so much. I did a search for a thread on watery eyes and saw that Sheri's Tucker and Marj's Ricky had the same problem awhile ago. Did you take them to the vet, did it turn out to be nothing? Anyone else experience this?

I suppose it could be anything from a small irritation [maybe she got scratched at the dog park], or something got in her eye or even just allergies. But if its an infection, I'd prob need some eye drops from the vet. I'm a big worry wart, so of course starting thinking of all the things that could be wrong.....like eyelid distichiasis.

I hate to run off to the vet for every little thing. After reading Sheri's thread on the same issue, it seems like Tucker & Ricky were fine without a vet trip. My vet's office probably already thinks I'm crazy for taking her in when she was sneezing a few weeks ago [which ending up going away on its own].


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## pacehavi (Oct 20, 2008)

I just had this happen with my guy over the weekend--though his eye was very very teary and he could barely open it, so it sounds like his eye was more severe than what you are describing. He went to the vet and they found a scratch so they put him on an anti-biotic and an anti-inflammatory. Within 24 hours it had healed about 75%--but the vet did warn that without care a scratch it can get bad quickly if bacteria gets trapped. I'm a worrier too--so I always like to get things checked out.

Here's the thread:
http://www.havaneseforum.com/showthread.php?t=11548


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## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

Tucker's resolved itself, but he wasn't so bad he was blinking or squinting... If Lola is doing that I'd be more tempted to get her in to the vet. Hope she turns out fine. We do worry about our little ones a lot, don't we? It is so much harder that they can't tell us what they are feeling.


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

'Tis spring. Could easily be allergies.

If you are worried though, you should seek out a canine ophthalmologist , which is probably where your vet will refer you. You can get a CERF done and they will tell you if there is an eyelash growing into the eye or any scratches. The fee around here is anywhere from $28 to $65. Your vet exam will probably be $35-50 just for them to give you a referral anyway.


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## susieg (Aug 28, 2009)

You read my mind, Kimberly! My next post was going to be whether or not I should take her to my regular vet or an eye specialist. There is a big vet center with an ophthalmology department near me. I dread going there b/c its where I had to put my previous dog Sasha down and haven't been there since. They have a big cancer dept there, its such a sad place to go and see all the sick animals  

I thought the CERF reading isn't accurate until they were a year old? Or maybe it just can't be registered until they're a year old...

Hopefully its nothing serious and they won't have to sedate her to examine it. Poor Lola, she gets so scared at the vet.


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## susieg (Aug 28, 2009)

I couldn't get into the specialist until Wednesday. Is that too long to wait? Guess I'll just monitor it and take her to my regular vet if it gets worse. Boo, I hate it when they have health issues 

Office visit is between $ 109 - $250 depending on the tests they do. And CERF is $ 79. Guess you pay more for a fancy schmancy vet center in Los Angeles!


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

Susie, I have three eye specialists in a short driving range. Did you look to see if there are others near you? Wednesday probably isn't a problem, but you can always price shop among them.


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## pacehavi (Oct 20, 2008)

My regular vet was able to diagnose the scratch. They stain the eye with something fluorescent then look at the eye with a black light in a darkened room to see if any of the stain was taken up by the eye itself. However, if it's not something common like a scratch or minor infection you would certainly have to see a specialist.

Hope Lola gets well soon!


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## susieg (Aug 28, 2009)

I'm taking her to my regular vet's office later this afternoon [but seeing a different dr. b/c my regular vet isn't in today]. When I got back from yoga, her eye looked worse so I don't want to wait until Wednesday. She also started trying to scratch it with her paw and rub her face on the ground so it must be bothering her. Bummer, I was so happy that it looked better this morning.

I called three other eye clinics near me, one was $150 for a new patient exam in addition to the cost of any tests, the other $180 plus test costs, and the other couldn't see me until thurs. I totally don't mind spending the money....but maybe its something simple that could be fixed with a $52 vet visit instead of a $200 specialist visit.

Hopefully the vet can diagnosis it today, if not, I still have that appt on wed with the specialist.


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## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

Good luck! I, too, hope it is something simple that your regular vet office can take care of. Things are so expensive, aren't they?!


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

susieg said:


> I thought the CERF reading isn't accurate until they were a year old? Or maybe it just can't be registered until they're a year old...


There is no minimum age requirements for CERF. It is up to the examining vet. Additionally, the CERF registry will gladly take your money no matter how old the dog is. LOL


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## susieg (Aug 28, 2009)

Thanks for the advice and good wishes!

I'm glad I took Lola to the vet today. The dr. said even a slight eye infection can turn into a major issue or even eye loss if left untreated. Oy!

So the vet thinks Lola has a small infection [corneal conjunctivitis] that could be caused by a scratch, bacteria, debris, allergies, etc. She gave me some triple antibiotic ointment to use twice a day until her symptoms are gone. I told the vet it will be hard to tell if her eye is better b/c the ointment makes her eye look so goopy. So she said to watch for Lola to stop squinting as much.

I asked the dr. about eyelid distichiasis because I've heard it could be common in havs so she looked for inverted eyelashes when she examined Lola. She thought she saw some eyelashes turned the wrong direction, but thought it could just be from Lola's eye being so goopy/watery. She wants to re-examine her in a week to see if she has distichiasis. If so, it would require surgery by a specialist to remove the eyelashes causing the problem. Supposedly its a very routine surgery, but my fingers are crossed that Lola doesn't have it  Now I have to worry about her all week until I meet with the dr. again.

The dr. also sent me home with a cone and instructions for no playing for 3-4 days. Lola freaked out trying to get the cone off, so I have just been monitoring her closely to make sure she doesn't scratch. I might have to get one of those inflatable doughnut cones. Too bad I returned the one I got for her spay b/c I ended up using a onesie.

Oh and one more thing... it will be a little ironic if she does have distichiasis because when I was looking for a puppy, I passed on a litter that had a parent and other relatives showing that condition in their CERF tests.


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## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

Well, it sounds like you made the right call in getting her in sooner! Glad she's on meds and you've got a plan. Hope she gets better fast.


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