Your dog might do this by rubbing the affected side of the face along the ground or rubbing at the eye with a paw. [1] X Research source To figure out if your dog is squinting, look at the dog’s face. If one eye looks smaller than the other, then the dog may be squinting. If you suspect your dog has a corneal ulcer, put an Elizabethan collar on it so it can’t scratch its eye anymore. [2] X Expert Source Ray Spragley, DVMVeterinarian Expert Interview. 31 March 2021.
Sometimes the area beneath the affected eye may be wet or damp.
Your dog may also keep the affected eye closed. [4] X Research source Your dog may also flinch if he goes from a darker inside to bright sunshine outside.
As well as treating the ulcer, it is important to correct any underlying health problems, such as dry eye or underactive thyroid glands, to prevent the problem recurring. Your vet may perform a full examination to determine if your dog has any other problems related to the ulcer.
For ulcers affecting the stroma, an antibiotic drop is prescribed to prevent infection and keep the eye moist. [7] X Expert Source Ray Spragley, DVMVeterinarian Expert Interview. 31 March 2021. However the antibiotic is only effective for a few hours at a time and so needs to be reapplied every four to six hours, or as advised by your veterinarian. #*Most ulcers heal within five to seven days, and slower healing than this can be indicative of a problem. Sometimes the vet fits a special ‘bandage’ contact lens in the affected eye. This aids healing as it keeps moisture in and dust out, and can speed up the recovery time.
On some occasions, ulcers can be problematic to heal, especially those in Boxers where there is an underlying anatomical problem with the glue holding the layers together. In these cases, the vet may put drops of local anesthetic into the eye and then perform a minor procedure call a grid keratotomy. This involves making tiny partial thickness puncture holes with a hypodermic needle, through the layers of the cornea. This then provides a key for the healing cells to cling onto to allow healing to take place. On rare occasions, the ulcer is so deep that Descemet’s membrane is the last line of defence and it bulges outward. This is potentially very serious because if the membrane ruptures the eye will perforate. This requires a specialist procedure whereby a surgeon grafts a flap of cornea from another part of the eye to cover and repair the hole.
A superficial scratch or abrasion only affects the epithelial layer and often heals quickly. An ulcer is deeper and typically erodes down through the epithelia and into the stroma, which is the main structural layer. If the ulcer eats deeper still through the complete thickness of the stroma, then only the thin Descemet’s membrane is left to stop the eye from perforating, which is potentially very serious. [10] X Research source It is not possible to tell with the naked eye which layers of the eye are affected. It requires special stains and magnification, and therefore if you suspect damage on the surface of your dog’s eye, a vet trip is essential.
Some dogs suffer from a condition called dry eye where they are unable to produce adequate tear fluid to moisturize the cornea, which leads to it drying out and ulcer formation. [11] X Research source Some breeds, such as the Boxer, suffer from a lack of cohesiveness between the cells of the cornea, which leads to them flaking away and ulcer formation.
These dogs also get in-turned eyelashes due to the shape of their eyes. This can scour the surface each time the animal blinks, leading to ulcer formation.
