My dog's eyelid is swollen with pus. Is lancing necessary for healing?
When there is pus, and it does look like it, it needs to come out. Pus is usually made up of a lot of bacteria, dead cells and cell debris and inflammatory debris. This is one way of the body to get rid of detrimental material. Unfortunately the body cannot always get rid of this pus by itself, so lancing can speed up the evacuation process and healing time. So, believe your vet and let him help your dog, Antibacterial flushes and ointments will likely not help and can damage the eye. Oral antibiotics may help, however it will take a long time until the body has transported off all the pus. It it much better just to evacuate it. Also an abscess like this is very painful and lancing it is immediate relief from pain.
Updated on September 23rd, 2025