Watery Eyes in Dogs

Spent my Saturday just like any other typical teens. Woke up when the sun is going to balik kampong already. Hihihi. I was once asked, "Can a person sleep 12 hours straight ah?" Well, I don't have the ability to sleep 12 hours straight since I'm a light sleeper. That is why I hate morning phone calls so much. I can't really go back to sleep after the idiot woke me up. And apparently, there's this one idiot that decided to disturb me this morning. -.- Bloody new keling housemate called at 10 am just becoz she can't passed the guard house down below. Stupid girl left her whatever documents that allowed her to pass the guard house in her room here and expect me to give kiss her feet and go down to sambut her. Need to lay the red carpet ma?? Why must I be disturb for something that clearly because of your stupidity??! Sipek annoying lo. Yesterday I have to purposely do gown just to pass her the keys and documents so she can enter the condo but then she left the documents here. I'm asking myself, if that's the case, why the trouble of me going down to give you the things to have you leave it here. IDIOT!! Really beh tahan. And after the call, thou I refused to be separated from my bed, my conscience is eating me. Took me almost 2 hours to find another distraction to sleep back. Urghh.. And now I'm still feeling bad about it. Keep telling myself, it's not my fault that she left her documents here. I don't owe her anything!! Go figure out yourself how to enter the condo or called me at times that I don't sleep!

Enough of that keling story. Because of her, my timetable for the day all disrupted. I was suppose to wake up at 12 and cook my lunch and dinner and continue my Physic revision at 3. But then I ended waking up at 4 and barely managed to do my revision. I hate when my plans fails. Lets just say that I a person who plans ahead. I hate the clueless feeling. So I always make sure I plan my activities. Well, the only thing I fail to plan is my sleeping time. I can never plan what time to sleep at night. I think I'm having insomnia lo. Every night after hours of tossing on the bed, I managed to get roughly 3 hours of sleep before waking up to lectures. The feeling of not able to sleep is really stressing. I even used to cry becoz I can't sleep when I have school the next day.

Why am I talking about my sleeping habit when I'm suppose to note down my extra info on watery eyes in dogs?

Still remember Xiao Ai? My darling boy?

 

Well, if there is one tiny thing that I dislike about him would be his watery eyes. Not me only, Tigress too find it super hard to clean his watery discharge. The fact that he has long furs make things much difficult coz they often stuck at his fur around his eyes area. I hate the fact that I have to pull the discharge out, knowing that I would hurt him. If the discharge is left unattended, it would become hard and is super difficult to pull out. Our vet do tell us that it is infection and that the watery discharge needs to clean daily. But then again, what cause the watery discharge as none of the other dogs have it as badly as Xiao Ai? Perhaps Kiko and Tiger have but I've never seen watery discharge on Jacky, our old lab or even Lucky, our obese Golden.

 

While I was finding some answers on something, I stumbled upon this fact. "Epiphora is a condition that causes an abnormal overflow of tears." It is due to the eyes shape in some particular breeds. The most commonly affected are the young shelties, shih tzus, Lhasa apos (had no idea what kind of breed this is), cocker spaniels, Pekingese, bulldogs, dachunds (the hotdog dog) and miniature poodles. Well, the overproduction of the tears can be congenital (abnormality since birth) due to distichiasis (a condition where the eyelashes arise from an abnormal spot on the eyelid. It is a type of mutation).

 

It is obvious with overflow of tears, tear drainage and/or staining on face. Other signs include:

 

1. Squinting

 

2. Redness and irritation

 

3. Inflammation

 

4. Discharge from the eyes

 

5. Ulcers of the cornea

 

6. Skin around eyes are loose/ sagging

 

Conditions acquired by a dog can lead to epiphora. These conditions include rhinitis/sinusitis, which causes swelling adjacent to the tear drainage system; trauma or fractures of the bones in the face; foreign bodies in the eyes (e.g., grass, seeds, sand, parasites). Tumors of the third eyelid, the conjunctiva of the eye, eyelids, nasal cavity, maxillary bone in the face, or in the sinuses located around the eyes will also be considered. A condition which causes the nasolacrimal duct (tear duct) to be obstructed, whether through inflammation due to an acquired condition, or because of a congenital abnormality, may also cause an overflow of tears.

Blockage of the nasolacrimal drainage system can be caused by congenital lack of normal openings on the eyelids into the tear drainage system, as seen in cocker spaniels, bulldogs, and poodles. Extra openings can also form into the tear drainage system in abnormal positions, such as openings along the side of the face below the corner of the eye, closest to the nose. Other possibilities include lack of openings from the tear drainage system into the nose.

Acquired conditions involving corneal or conjunctival foreign bodies are seen usually in young, active, large-breed dogs. Inflammation of the eyelids and conjunctiva can be due to infectious or immune-mediated causes. Disorders of the cornea are characterized by the presence of scratches/ulcers with or without inflammation. Inflammation of the front part of the eye, including the iris, can be present. Glaucoma is a condition in which the pressure within the eye is increased. Eyelid tumors are typically seen in older dogs of all breeds.

 

Unfortunately, there is no treatment for Epiphora. The best solution being stated is surgery where the eyelids are tacked into a normal position and allowed to readjust.

 

You know ther's a possibility of your fido having Epiphora when your fido's eyes are like this,

 

 

 

 

 

(Xiao Ai's one not that bad la compare to the ones in the pictures)

 

But then, some breeds of dogs naturally have hair in their eyes which occasionally causes irritation. Hairs from the face can angle into the eyes. Keep eyelashes in check too coz they can grow in odd places like the corner of the eye or under the eyelid, or they can curve into the eye rather than away from it. In long haired breeds, fur can actually 'wick' or pull tears from the eyes to the skin. This is especially prevalent in breeds that grow hair on the caruncle of the eye (the moist, pink area, easily seen in the inner corner of the eyelid) closet to the nose.

 

Well, I guess, in Xiao Ai's case, it is the fur that is poking his eyes which causes irritation becox I noticed that after grooming which include trimming the fur around the eye areas, the watery discharge is less. That keeps me relieved for a moment. Huhuhu.. At least, I know more about this watery discharge thing to help me keep in check of my dogs in future.

 

For the love of our furkids!

XOXO~