My old dog has an eye ulcer. Is surgery safe for senior pets?

I'm very sorry this is happening to Roxi! It sounds like this tumor has gotten quite large, and is likely very irritating to her eye. In my opinion, surgery can be done on old dogs as long as blood work is done first that shows their organs are in good enough health to handle the anesthesia. Any surgery is a risk, and the anesthetic risk should be evaluated before making the decision to go or not. Given that the tumor is so large that you cannot see her eye anymore, her quality of life is affected, and it would be worth seeing if the tumor can be removed. If your vet does not want to do it, I would recommend seeking a second opinion from another vet.

It depends if the dead eye continues to suffer from an active infection, if it does it is advised to have the eye removed, if the eye is not painful and doesn't have an active infection most of the time then the eye does not have to be removed.

It is hard to evaluate eyes based on a photo. If your vet has told you your dog has cataracts, whether or not surgery is an option depends on a few factors. These include your pets overall health (a physical exam and bloodwork can help determine this), whether or not your pet will tolerate the aftercare (including frequent eye drops at first), and if your dog can still be visual once the cataract is removed (you may need to see an ophthalmologist for special testing to determine this). I would start with a general wellness exam and blood screening at your vet. If all looks good the next step would be a consultation with an ophthalmologist. More info can be found at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=659

I understand your concern! I think surgery is ususally your best option at having the eye growths removed if they are a problem. I would recommend a IV catheter to make sure Mitch is getting proper supportive care during surgery. Typically elevated liver values like the ALP could be due to older age. I would recommend doing what you are comfortable with and talking through all your concerns with the vet doing the surgery. I hope that helps

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. If it is possible, I would recommend having the x-rays done without sedation and depending on how the x-rays look and how her blood work looks, consider removal of the mass under anesthesia. She is not too old for anesthesia but the risk of anesthetic complications rises with age. As long as her heart, lungs and blood work are normal, she should be fine under anesthesia. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Yes the eye could be painful. Most dogs do great after eye removal and he may become perkier afterwards. You are the one that sees him everyday and are the best one to evaluate his quality of life. Personally if he’s eating and getting around I’d do the surgery so he’s more comfortable. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Jingles.

Hello, if Starsky were to have a corneal ulcer, this is a serious condition that requires immediate treatment by a vet. Most ulcers that are treated promptly improve with basic supportive care such as pain meds, eye drops, and potentially serum drops (your vet may take a blood sample from your dog, spin it down to remove red blood cells, and send the remaining serum with you to be putting drops in Starsky's eye). However, if you postpone his vet visit, the ulcer could get larger and deeper, could even perforate the cornea and cause permanent blindness, or require a corneal graft surgery to heal, or even require complete removal of the eye. It is definitely in the best interest of both Starsky and you (from a financial perspective) to get his eye treated ASAP. Hope this helps!