Cherry eye British Bulldog, Male, 4 months

"The seller said to wait till the other eye develops a cherry eye before seeking vet treatment," the gentleman owner told me. "The cherry eye gets bigger over last 2 days." The conjunctiva of upper and lower eyelids was much swollen as well.
This was a referral case from a breeder in Pasir Ris.


ANAESTHESIA
Short nosed breed - need to be careful.
Isoflurane gas by mask worked very well.

SURGERY
1. Under general anaesthesia, wash all pus off the left eye.
2. I injected 0.1 ml gentamycin and pred into swollen subconjunctiva
3. Clamped the everted gland.
4. Incise above clamp.
5. Release clamp.
6. Profuse bleeding for a few seconds. Bleeding will stop.
7. A vet ligates a central blood vessel below clamp so that there will be no bleeding after excision of the gland. I have not tried it. In any case, the bleeding soon stops.
8. Eye drops, antibiotic and painkiller injection. Goes home.

ALTERNATIVE SURGERY
Some vets claim that tacking back the swollen nictitans gland will prevent dry eye later in life as the gland is not excised. However, there is a high failure rate and the owner will not be happy to pay for recurrence. As you can see from the picture, it is good in theory to save the cherry eye but in reality, this alternative surgery is not so simple and effective. As for dogs getting dry eyes in old age when the cherry eye is removed, this is said to be a possibility. How many dog owners are patient enough to come back again for reviews and to pay again and again for a cherry eye treatment? Not many.