Ulcers on Eyes-Not a doodle but looking for info

[Diana Erhart]

Although not a doodle, my daughter's dog (a 2 year old maltese named Portia) was at her yearly check-up this afternoon and was diagnosed with ulcers in both of her eyes.  The vet told my daughter that she has lost alot of sight in one eye and a little in the other.  If they cannot get these ulcers stopped then Portia will go blind.  This is my daughter's version.  Not sure yet how much is exactly what the vet said and how much is my daughter in a panic over the news and her dramatization.  The vet gave her an eye drop (tobramycin ophthalmic solution) to use every 2 hours and will see Portia again next Saturday morning.  Luckily I will be in Dallas with her next Saturday to go along.  In the mean time I am looking for information/advice from anyone who knows about these ulcers, and to see if anyone knows of an opthomologist veterinarian in the Dallas/Ft. Worth, North Texas or Central Texas area that they can recommend.  

[F, Calla & Luca]

I am sorry to hear this. This article is straightforward and I thought helpful.
http://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/eyes/c_dg_Keratitis_Ulcerative#...
I guess figuring out why the dog got the ulcers and how to heal and prevent them is vital.

[Diana Erhart]

Thanks for the link.  She had an eye infection quite awhile ago but it appeared to the vet to have cleared up.  Since this is both eyes I am thinking it may be some disease type of problem.  I am going to insist on a referral to a opthamologist vet next Saturday even if it is looking a little better.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Sorry to hear this, Diana. Here's a link to the Amer. College of Veterinary Opthalmology's listings by state. Scroll down and you'll find quite a few in Texas.  http://member.acvo.org/location_search_state_public

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I am so sorry.  I am glad you can help her find the best treatment.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I had a dog that had corneal ulcers two times. It happened once when I was gone on vacation and he was under the care of a friend. By the time I got home it was very bad and required surgery. But his eye seemed to be fine after it healed from the surgery and he didn't have any further problems. I don't know if he sustained an injury or exactly what caused it either time but it wasn't an ongoing problem for him.

[Diana Erhart]

Update: My daughter took her dog to the veterinarian opthomologist this afternoon and her eyes do not have corneal ulcers but something genetic/hereditary called corneal lipidosis.  It is a buildup of cholesterol in her eyes.  As long as it doesn't get a large amount of build-up there won't be any affect at all from it.  However, to keep it from building up she needs to be on a very low-fat diet.  Karen....here is where I can use your advice.  We need to find a very lower fat food that does not have chicken in it.  I have done some searching in the food group but haven't found any discussions this specific.  Do you have any advice on what would be some good options to try?  She had been on the Fromm's Salmon-a-la-Veg and she loves the fish flavors but I am not sure I can find anything fishy (especially salmon) that would be low in fat.  So may need to change to a different protein source.  Any suggestions you or anyone else can make would be greatly appreciated!

[F, Calla & Luca]

This is good news of a sort. But I find the diet interesting. Humans have a hard time controlling cholesterol by diet alone because the body both makes, recycles and excretes cholesterol. Until the statins came along it was a real problem for some people. I don't know how much of this pertains to dogs but I wonder if there is a medication to help with his problem.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I really need to know what would be considered "low fat" in this case. If 10-12% is acceptable, there are a good number of choices. One would be Wellness Simple Solutions, which has 4 formulas: turkey, duck, salmon, and lamb. No chicken, and the fat percentage is 12% across the board except for the duck which has 11% fat. Fromm's Salmon a la veg contains 16% fat.

Also, "fat" is not synonymous with "cholesterol". Fats from plant sources contain virtually no cholesterol at all, but the type of fats are not broken down on pet food labels. All fats are simply lumped together in the total fat percentage. 

I also agree with F. Lowering dietary cholesterol doesn't have much of an effect on serum cholesterol levels in my experience.

[F, Calla & Luca]

From what I read 10% is OK. But I doubt a percent or two will make any difference.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

A month ago I would have recommended Natural Balance, their LID formulas contain 10% fat. But even now, N. B.  is still better than some Hill's Rx food from the vet, and cheaper too. 

[Diana Erhart]

Thanks F.  I will try to keep this in mind while evaluating all of the foods recommended in the food group.

[Diana Erhart]

Thanks Karen. Actually after getting the e-mail instructions from the Opthomologist veterniarian he did say it is fat (lipids) that are building up in her eye. Portia was on the Alpha Dog line of the Natural Balance.  Then when my daughter heard about them being bought, she switched her to the Fromms.  The Opthomologist did not mention a specific percentage of fat to stay under.  He just said to discuss what food would be best with her regular vet.  And we all know how much they know about nutrition.  I think I am going to have to go through all the foods on the recommended list and compare the percentage of fat and ingredients in each.