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My dog has glaucoma. Are there alternatives to eye removal surgery?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Cocker Spaniel | Male | 8 years and 4 months old | 43 lbs

My crocker spaniel has glaucoma with eye pressure us high.... The ophthalmologist wants to take the eye out I was just wondering if there's another alternative. I really don't want to have the eye taken out if it doesn't have to be

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

Published on January 12th, 2018

I'm sorry to hear that Danny has glaucoma! If the ophthalmologist is recommending removing the eye, I'm assuming that Danny is already blind in the affected eye. If this is the case, then I'm afraid there really aren't any better options - there is no treatment that can reverse the blindness, and the eye is a constant source of pain for him. Removing it will improve his quality of life dramatically, since he'll no longer be in pain.

If he does still have some vision in the affected eye, then you can certainly ask the ophthalmologist to discuss other possible treatment options with you. Glaucoma can sometimes be medically managed for a while with prescription eye drops, although this will eventually stop working as the disease progresses. Some dogs may also be good candidates for laser surgery to help improve the glaucoma - you can certainly ask the ophthalmologist about this to see if it might be an option for Danny, if you haven't discussed it already.

3Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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