My dog has an eye infection. Should I treat it myself or see a vet?

Oh that does look really bad. Unfortunately this cannot be treated at home and leaving this untreated can lead to vision loss. This is an emergency, and Ziggy has to see a vet now. Please take him into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website. Best of luck.

I would take Shay into a vet now. Any eye infection should be considered an emergency, as leaving it untreated can lead to vision loss. The vet can prescribe an antibiotic eye ointment to treat the infection.

I'm assuming that the enterobacter bacteria was cultured from something like a corneal ulcer. This seems like an unusual bacteria for this location - enterobacter is most commonly found in urinary tract infections and occasionally skin infections. Since you know what type of bacteria is present I'm assuming your vet was also able to tailor antibiotic therapy to this specific bacteria as well and if so hopefully the infection will resolve. Sometimes there is irreversible damage done to the eyes and vision cannot return, and other times an infection heals and the eye recovers completely. I would recommend talking to your veterinarian about your concerns, or you could request a consultation with an expert if you have more details about Kitta's diagnosis.

I am so sorry to hear that Kaimana is experiencing these problems with her eye. Start by placing an e-collar or cone on Kaimana to prevent scratching or rubbing. If the eye is injured, inflamed or infected it is likely painful, this will prompt Her to scratch or rub her eye. However, this could inflict further damage, infection or even an ulceration. An rlceration is a tear in the top layer of the eye and is a serious condition. Because eye concerns with dogs, such as infections, corneal ulcerations, cataracts and glaucoma, can progress rapidly I would have her examined by your veterinarian to diagnose the issue immediately. The precise medication can then be dispensed by your veterinarian. Your vet will use a special tear stain drop to visualise the eye and the top layer to make are there are no ulcerations, and check for other conditions before prescribing medications. Please do not attempt to treat an eye infection at home with any over the counter medications, drops or ointments. This can lead to permanent damage and unnecessary pain or discomfort. I hope this answer was helpful and that Kaimana feels better soon. Warmest regards to you both!

Although a picture would be essential to determine clinical development, if you think there is no improvement at all, I would recommend to have it checked again immediately. Certain type of corneal ulcers can actually start melting and get worse very rapidly. Different type of antibiotics or treatment may be needed. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

It looks as Sarais suffering from an eye infection, it is relatively common in dogs. you will need to take her to the vet the first chance you get, the vet will check the eyes, if it is indeed a simple eye infection your vet will prescribe an antibiotic eye drops that will probably solve the problem in no time.

With the eyes squinting I worry that they are painful. I would encourage you to have him evaluated by your veterinarian as soon as possible. In the meantime using a warm water compress to clean the crusts from around the eyes may be helpful and provide some comfort. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.