Blepharitis in dogs: home treatment, types and causes

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

The eyes of our faithful four-legged friends can be called without exaggeration the "mirror of the dog's soul" - they express love and boundless devotion to the owner, surprise, the desire to play pranks, sadness. That is why the anxiety of pet owners is understandable when the eyes of their pets are exposed to any disease. This does not happen as rarely as we would like, so it is important to know the signs of an incipient disease. This will help you start treatment on time and prevent complications, which can be very serious.

Today we will talk about one of the most common inflammatory diseases of the eyelids - blepharitis in dogs. Symptoms, causes and treatment of pathology will be considered in this material. We hope that the advice of experienced ophthalmologists will be useful to you.

General characteristics of the disease

Blepharitis is an inflammatory disease of the eyelids, which is most oftenlocalized on their outer side. The eyelid thickens and swells, with severe edema, it turns inside out. The animal experiences severe itching and pain in the eyes. Often, the conjunctiva is also included in this process.

Quite quickly, pathology without proper treatment is aggravated by complications in one form or another.

Symptoms of disease

This ailment is dangerous primarily because symptoms are not always detected in a timely manner. Treatment of blepharitis in dogs, respectively, is not carried out, and the disease progresses. Many novice dog breeders think that watery eyes and inflammation of the animal's eye is caused by a minor injury, or it is conjunctivitis, which can be cured by washing with medicated solutions.

The inflammatory process can cover both one and two centuries at once. The edema increases, the eyelid swells, hangs over the eye. In advanced cases, it closes the eye completely. The edge of the affected eyelid thickens and becomes painful.

Inversion of the century

A very important, aggravating symptom of blepharitis in dogs (photo posted below) is torsion of the eyelid.

If the eyelashes are wrapped under the eyelid, they rub against the cornea and conjunctiva of the eye. An animal left untreated for a long time can lose its sight completely. Sometimes the eyelid becomes so inflamed that the dog cannot close the eye. The cornea dries up, the animal experiences severe itching and, when scratched, scratches the affected eyelid. As a result, wounds, crusts, purulent discharge appear in the corners of the eyes. ulcersare a breeding ground for infections, through which pathogenic microorganisms penetrate the animal's body, aggravating the course of the disease. Without treatment, blepharitis in dogs is complicated by keratitis and conjunctivitis.

Types of diseases

Specialists distinguish between several types of blepharitis in dogs. The treatment of each of them depends on the timely diagnosis and the condition of the animal.

Scaly (simple) blepharitis

This form is often confused with conjunctivitis - the edges of the affected eyelid thicken, gray-white scales appear on them. As a rule, this type of disease accompanies inflammation of the conjunctiva.

Ulcerative blepharitis

The animal's eyelids swell and become covered with crusts, under which pus accumulates, the wounds bleed. The disease affects the hair follicles, so the eyelashes fall out and no longer grow. Often, even in the absence of treatment, the tissue is scarred at the site of the lesion. This results in eversion or inversion of the eyelid.

Meibomian blepharitis

This type of blepharitis is caused by dysfunction of the meibomian glands, which begin to produce an excessive amount of secretion. Excesses of this fluid enter the conjunctival sac and provoke the development of the inflammatory process. With this form of pathology, the edges of the eyelids are greatly thickened. When the causative agent of a purulent infection is located in the meibomian gland, the risk of developing purulent blepharitis is high.

Furunculosis blepharitis

People call this pathology barley. Animals also suffer. Inflammation in this case is localized on the edge of the eyelids, whereeyelashes grow. Abundant suppuration is formed, which, without treatment, spreads to the hair and sebaceous ducts of the eyelashes.

Causes causing disease

The main reasons for the development of this disease are various effects on the eyelids. These can be mechanical injuries, chemical, genetic complications, allergic reactions.

Allergy

Allergic reactions are more likely to cause conjunctivitis in an animal, although blepharitis is not uncommon. In addition to blepharitis, other clinical signs can be observed with allergies: itching, dermatitis, swelling, hair loss, reddening of the skin, watery eyes, coughing or sneezing. Allergic blepharitis can be caused by an insect bite on the eyelid.

Bacterial infections

The most common is coccal infections. Local abscesses (pustules, pimples) form on the eyelids of the animal.

• Demodicosis (subcutaneous mites) is a disease that is difficult to treat.
• Diabetes mellitus.
• Dermatitis is an inflammation of the skin.
• Diseases of the endocrine system (most often problems with the thyroid gland).

Do dog breeds have a predisposition to blepharitis?

Unfortunately yes. In dogs with a short muzzle, numerous folds of skin, inflammation of the eyelid occurs much more often than in their counterparts. Animals with narrow elongated muzzles and large bulging muzzles are also susceptible to this disease - bulldog, shih tzu, labrador, chow chow, pekingese, golden retriever, poodle.

Blepharitis in dogs: treatment

There are general treatment recommendationsall forms of this disease. However, it should be understood that the treatment of blepharitis in dogs at home is possible only after a thorough examination and diagnosis in a clinical setting.

General treatment recommendations include:

• Remove all secretions from the eyes. To do this, use boiled water cooled to room temperature, decoctions of medicinal herbs filtered through several layers of gauze - chamomile, calendula.
• Frequent compresses to relieve inflammation.
• Saline compresses that "pull out" pus. In this case, you should be extremely careful that the saline solution does not get into the dog's eye. After such compresses, the crusts on the eyelids get wet. They should be removed very carefully, and the resulting wounds should be cauterized with iodine.

Pet owners should understand that the treatment of blepharitis in dogs is impossible only with traditional methods.

If the disease was provoked by bacteria, then antibiotic treatment is indispensable. But a veterinarian-ophthalmologist should prescribe the drugs. Antimicrobial drugs ("Trimetin") are used for course treatment to get a positive result.

With congenital pathologies of the eyelids or the growth of cilia inward (distichiasis, trichiasis), surgical intervention is indispensable. The veterinarian carefully trims the eyelid to avoid torsion.

For the treatment of allergic blepharitisnature, it is necessary first of all to detect and eliminate the allergen. To improve well-being, antihistamines are prescribed. In addition, in severe cases, the veterinarian prescribes hormonal ointments (corticosteroids), Sofradex drops.

When demodicosis is the cause of blepharitis in dogs, treatment will be lengthy, as it is not easy to deal with this amazingly tenacious tick. Treatment can take up to six months. In this case, simple anthelmintics will not help. The drug "Ivomek", which is administered subcutaneously, is considered effective. The dosage is determined by the doctor. It depends on the weight of the animal.

Demodex parasitizes the skin, causing severe itching. The skin becomes inflamed. The treatment of this type of disease should be special. The owner of the animal should strictly follow the treatment regimen prescribed by the veterinarian. Even if signs of recovery are visually visible, therapy should not be stopped. Only after the doctor, based on laboratory tests, confirms that all ticks have died, it will be possible to confirm that your pet is he althy.