Considering a dog with microphthalmia: Will future vet costs be high?

Oh my goodness, he is the cutest boy! I can see why you say he's the best boy. It could be that he does have microphthalmia, that one eye is much smaller than the other. The condition itself isn't painful, but it can lead to things such as glaucoma, which is painful. Cataracts can also be another complication of this genetic condition. I would recommend having him seen by a vet yearly to make sure there aren't any complications developing such as cataracts or glaucoma, but that shouldn't stop you from adopting him. He would be very lucky to have you! I hope this helps!

That's a good question. I would recommend making her adoption contingent on an exam and consultation with an oncologist (at your cost) to get this question adequately answered. Based on my knowledge, it's important to find an underlying cause for the uveitis and that process can be expensive, and then whatever is causing it could be expensive. It definitely not a no-big-deal thing. But if you're interested in her, and could afford it, getting her a specialist consultation would be wonderful

I think a full ocular exam would give you more information on whether one or both eyes need to come out. The small eye may be congenital or may have already ruptured and may not be painful any longer. The larger eye could be large just because it looks bigger as compared to the small eye or could have glaucoma. KCS can easily be diagnosed with a vet, but will likely need life-long medications to manage, and these can be expensive depending on the medication and formulation used. Many dogs with severe KCS have their eyes enucleated and become much more comfortable. My impression from reading her file is that she has very painful eyes, and that this is a chronic pain. Bilateral enucleation would easily resolve this pain and may improve her quality of life drastically. The cost for this surgery can vary depending on the vet clinic chosen, you may call around and ask for rough quotes for bilateral enucleation. It could range from $700 to $1500 or more. I would recommend that she have both eyes done at the same time (if the vet performing the ocular exam thinks they are both defective eyes) as this will decrease total time under anesthesia and make Lia only have to recover from a painful procedure once. If both eyes are removed, then she may not need significant medical care or follow-ups (cost-wise) after she is fully recovered. Her file tells me that she may be a great one to rescue if your group can cover the costs of surgery. I admire the work you do and appreciate your compassion more than you will ever know!

Cataracts are fairly common in dogs. There are some potential complications of cataracts, but if it is only in one eye, it may just be something that needs to be monitored. I have attached a handout below with a lot of information on cataracts including treatment and potential complications. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=659 I hope that was helpful and answered your questions. Thanks for using PetCoach.

It would certainly be very nice of you to adopt two special needs dogs. You should however be prepared to have some medical expenses in the future if you do intend on doing something like this. My suspicion is that the chihuahua's knee cap is not actually missing but simply sliding in and out of place which is known as a luxating patella, an extremely common condition in very small breeds of dog. Depending on the severity of the luxation it might just be left alone or could potentially require surgical procedure to fix it at some point. IN terms of bleeding from the ears I am not aware of any sort of genetic abnormality that would cause this sort of clinical sign but that is not to say that it's not possible. In general genetic abnormalities can certainly happen in multiples but there is no guarantee either way.

Skin problems can occur for a number of reasons other than mange including allergies, infections, fleas and autoimmune problems. I would try to talk to the staff at the shelter to see if they can give you a better idea of what the underlying cause is. Some problems such as allergies or autoimmune conditions can result in a lifetime of care that may be expensive well others may be managed relatively easily.

Hi there! This condition, called entropion, is easily surgically correctable. Depending on your surgeon's skill level and where you are located, surgical costs can vary from roughly 200.00-1,200. Most doctors will want to see your pet for a regular exam first and can give you an accurate estimate for their specific surgical costs. Hope this helps!