Why is my dog's eye surgery incision still itching after 6 weeks?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Butters. I do recommend that she sees her veterinarian again as her eye still sounds painful. Her veterinarian may prescribe an eye medication to help or even check the eye for a scratch across the surface. The sutures could have irritated her eye a bit. In the meantime, place an E-collar on her to prevent her from scratching and causing self trauma. I hope this information helps!

I am sorry to hear about Ellie but glad the itching has stopped! The skin around her eye looks a little red and I assume this is what you are speaking of. If her stitches were just removed in the past few days it is possible there was just some residual irritation from the sutures. We can also see inflammation around the eyes like this due to allergies. I would let your vet know about her eyelid and see if they feel a trial of an antihistamine such as diphenhydramine would be beneficial, or if they recommend a topical eye ointment on the lid to try to decrease irritation.

Poor Rocky! Those eyes do look irritated. He may have a distichia (a stray lash on the inside of the eyelid; as apposed the the eyelids rolling in--entropion which I think is what you are describing he had). Sometimes these cannot be found without magnification. Its also possible that he has another condition such as uveitis (inflammation inside the layer of eye that involves the retina), or he may have KCS, also known as dry eye. If a shermer tear test has not yet been done by your vet, you might ask about it; this is a simple test for dry eye. It may be very beneficial for Rocky to see a veterinary ophthalmologist since he's having some ongoing problems. Specialists can be extremely helpful in these cases. Find a veterinary ophthalmologist here: http://www.acvo.org/ophthalmologist-search I hope that helps you! Thank you for asking PetCoach!

I am afraid the itch is the wound trying to heal. Anything that would stop the itching would likely also hinder healing. I actually think the woulnd is irritating him and a natural reaction to that is to lick the wound. Of course we need to keep him from licking the wound and contaminating it with nasty mouth bacteria as well as opening the wound. So, Priat will need to be brave and plow through having a e-collar or wearing the doggy jacket. It will keep him from licking and so facilitates healing. The pain and itching should be gone in a few days (DO NOT take off the jacket until your vet says so). He will get used to it and be a good boy.

Typically I recommend an anti-histamine like Benadryl or a pet formulate NSAID (such as Rimadyl(Carprofen) or Meloxicam) to help with potential pain at the incision site. It isn't advised to place anything directly on the incision as this can seep through the incision lining and cause infection. I would also recommend keeping an e-collar (cone) on your pet to prevent licking and scratching at the area that can lead to opening of the incision and infection as well. If there are obvious bumps or open lesions on the skin then this should also be treated with an antibiotic (oral) prescribed by your vet.

Hi ! I think the itchiness is related to the wound itself rather than the discharge. Unless there is the beginning of an infection but from your brief description I gather the discharge is minimal and clear which I suspect is secondary to inflammation. Obviously correct me if I am wrong ! If it’s all correct, I would wipe away the oozing with some cotton wool and salty water and keep an eye on the wound. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach !

Disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths 2 times daily. Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any scratching (if any). If the wound seems deeper than shown on the picture or it is not healing in the next 4 days, a check up would be needed to evaluate a stitch up and possibly antibiotics.