I wondered if anyone has any experience with this please ? Sam saw our Vet not long ago for a mild eye irritation and was given drops , it seemed to clear but then recently, his eyes looked sore and he had a discharge so we have been back to the Vet who has now diagnosed Entropion . We have a really good Vet in whom we trust 100 % , his old partner was also fantastic but sadly she has retired and the replacement Vet is the one we saw who made the diagnosis , she gave us antibiotic oitment and wanted to book Sam in there and then for an operation to remove some of the excess skin from his lower eyelids but we said we needed to think about it . We then managed to speak to our Vet and he said to watch and wait and not to rush into surgery as Sam is not yet 11 months old and as such, he is still growing and that there was a chance that his facial bones may grow into the skin . I found it quite disturbing that the new junior partner wanted to book Sam in then and there to do a surgical proceedure that may not be necessary and then the senior partner said it was important to wait until Sam is an adult . I have also been speaking to a friend who was a senior Vet nurse for 15 years and she agreed that many dogs grow out of this condition as they mature and that it simply is wrong to rush into a surgical proceedure on what is a very delicate area . To be honest , we have never ever noticed that Sam has excess skin around his eyes , his whole face looks quite normal to us , has anyone else ever had experience of Entropion ? Thanks .
Re: Entropion How worrying for you Kate. I'm afraid I dont know much about the problem, but I think I would be inclined to go with the advice of the vet you know and trust. As long as the problem is not causing any damage to his eyes and can be treated by ointment etc, I would wait, if there is a good chance he will grow out of it.
Re: Entropion Hi Kate, sorry to hear Sam has eye trouble. I have never had a dog with entropion but might also be inclined to go with the older vet's watch and wait policy, provided there is no risk of permanent damage, and Sam is not too uncomfortable. Good luck and hope he does grow out of it. Pippa
Re: Entropion Thank you . I keep Sams eyes clean using cold tea , a tip given to me by a friend who is a Vet nurse , his eyes look fine at the moment and judging by his search and rescue of his beloved dummy , his eyesight is sharp and uncompromised It would seem to me that the watch and wait is the best policy for Sam , I hate the thought of un necessary surgery , especially around delicate areas like eyes , and he isnt acting like he has any pain whatsoever .
Re: Entropion Hi there, my old lab was diagnosed with entropion. Its very uncomfortable as the eyelashes are constantly rubbing on the eyeball. Max was referred to an specialist who lasered away the eyelashes. It was a quick procedure and Max recovered fine. It has never bothered him since. Hope that helps. xx
Re: Entropion [quote author=kateincornwall link=topic=526.msg2254#msg2254 date=1338442813] for an operation to remove some of the excess skin from his lower eyelids [/quote] Are you absolutely sure the vet said ENtropion and not ECtropion? Ectropion is where the bottom eyelids are a bit saggy/baggy....like a bloodhound's. Many young Labs start out with a bit of loose skin around the eyes and while it can mean they get dust and dirt in there, which can set up minor infections, as their heads grow, they sort of fill out their skin and it tightens around the eyes nicely. It is only if it is still a problem after they have stopped growing, they may need an op to remove excess skin. Entropion is very painful, as the eyelids roll inwards and the eyelashes scrape away at the surface of the eyeball every time the dog blinks or moves it's eyes. I wouldn't hesitate to have this corrected immediately if this is what the dog has, as once that sensitive coating on the eyeball is damaged, the dog can lose it's sight. Jules.
Re: Entropion Maybe I misheard then, but she definately said the bottom lids , but to be honest , they look fine to us, no irritation whatsoever, no redness, he doesnt try to scratch at them at all . I tend to think that because Sam had conjunctivitis when she saw him, his eyes sockets maybe looked a little shrunken which might have made the surrounding skin look lose , but since it cleared up , his eyes appear to look normal , no signs of any inward rolling of eyelids at all . As Sam is almost a year old , he still has some growing to do and filling out, so as long as he isnt showing signs of irritation , we will leave it at that . Incidentally , a friend who is a senior Vet nurse saw Sam socially the other week and said she had seen cases of both Entropian and Ectropian and was staggered that the Vet could diagnose either as his eyes are bright, clear and free of rolling eyelids .
Re: Entropion It sounds like a bit of an over reaction or inexperience perhaps by the first vet then. You'd know if he had Entropion, as he'd be squinting and his eyes would water a lot...just like us when we have something in our eye. So it doesn't sound as if he has that at all. If he seems fine now, I wouldn't worry about it any more. Jules.
