My dog isn't eating after eye removal surgery. When should I worry?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Lily! I would expect a dog to be much better pain wise with in 3-5 days. As for back to normal, that depends. If Lily did see some light (hard for us to ever know) it could take her weeks to months to feel normal. I had a dog once who we thought was completely blind have both eyes removed and he was depressed for months. I think he saw more than we knew. If she is comfortable, eating, etc then give her time to adjust to a complete life of darkness. I wish you the best

If she has been like this for more than 24 hours, then it would be best to take her to the vet. She may be reacting negatively to her medication and need treatment to get better. If she is currently on medication, then it's best to stop it at this time until you are able to speak with your veterinarian, or have her seen by a veterinarian. If you have further questions or need further clarification, then you may consider having an online consult with one of our vets on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. This way, you can send unlimited pictures and have a text conversation with a vet. I hope that helps and Molly gets better soon.

It may be a combination of factors. Certainly as you mentioned the e collar may be bothering her, and she may just be recovering. I’m not that concerned about pain as it’s been several days since the surgery and she should no longer be in acute pain. I would take off the e collar when you are watching her, then play with her, brush her or interact with her with playing with toys etc. If she becomes more active she’ll get hungrier and will start back eating. As long as she’s drinking and eating treats you’re fine to give her another day or so to see if she returns to normal. If she still isn’t eating and is lethargic then please take her back for a recheck. She may have an infection from the surgery but that is unlikely. Be patient and I expect her to be better in a day or so. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Dewey.

Poor girl. I would definitely recommend taking her in for a recheck appt since she has gone more than 48 hrs without eating at least 1/2 of her food. They need to check her incision area thoroughly for any signs of infection and potentially get her on an appetite stimulant during her recovery process. Until you can get her seen, you can try mixing her food with some beef or chicken broth to try and entice her to eat. I hope that your fur baby Lupita feels better soon! Take care.

I am so sorry she's not doing well. I don't see what her age is; but if she's a senior citizen, there are a number of things that could be going on that are unrelated to the surgery. I don't know what all your vet has done in terms of diagnostics at this point, but if bloodwork has not yet been performed, talk to your vet about maybe doing some to further investigate. I'm concerned that she needs additional medical care, and I'm sorry there isn't more that I can offer for you to do at home-- offer her soft, easy to digest, yummy foods such as boiled chicken and white rice, warm it up a bit, put broth on it. Make sure she's got water to drink within reach of her. If your vet isn't able to see you on an emergency basis, you may have to drive to somewhere that offers an emergency facility. Again, sorry I don't have any solutions for you at home, but I'm concerned she needs significant medical care. thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I’m so sorry this happened to Nemi! I would say it’s not unreasonable for 4 days post-op but the swelling should be going down rapidly at this point. If it’s not improved by tomorrow, I’d pop in to see the vet who did the surgery to make sure there is not a complication such as seroma or hematoma (fluids or blood pocket). In the mean time, I recommend warm packing for 5-10 minutes 3-4 times daily. To do this, soak a wash cloth in warm water, wring it out, and put it in a plastic bag. Apply gently to the surgery site. Seepage of some clearish fluids may happen and this is just fine. Best wishes to you and Nemi!

Hi there! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sasha is gorgeous! Some dogs can develop lethargy and inappetence within 1-3 days post vaccination. Even if she has tolerated her vaccines well before, she can still develop side effects at any time. Her clinical signs are unlikely to be related to her mammary tumors. I would mention this to your veterinarian tomorrow when she is in for the surgery so that they can run some pre-operative bloodwork to make sure that everything looks right before anesthesia. Have your veterinarian submit the masses to the laboratory so that a diagnosis can be reached. If they turn out to be malignant (only about 50% of them are), feel free to set up a consultation with me for further information on that type of cancer. Good luck! Keeping my fingers crossed that it is something benign and nothing to worry about!