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| Please bear in mind when reading topics pertaining to health issues, that most of these questions were answered by helpful Maltese owners with no formal education in veterinary medicine. When in doubt seek a professionals advise. |
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Eye problems
Last Thursday, my husband and I were looking at Austin when we noticed what we thought might be a growth in his eyes. The vet was closed for the day so, we decided that we should buy some "eyewash" and try to wash it out of his eyes. Our thinking was that if it washed out, we didn't have anything to worry about. I went to Petsmart and looked at all the eye care products. There were only three. I chose a product called Tear Clear. It was labeled safe, gentle, non-irritating. I flushed his eyes with the product and the "growth" washed out. I guess it was lint or hair that had "balled up". About 15 minutes later, we noticed that Austin was rubbing his eyes and squinting. We looked at the bottle more closely and discovered that it was "eye stain remover". We quickly flushed his eyes out with water and took him to the emergency vet. We have been there every day since Thursday. The doctor says the outlook for a full recovery is good but he is quite pitiful and we feel terrible! I am giving him his medication hourly and giving him the best care possible. I doubt this would happen to anyone else, but I thought the story was worth telling. We've learned quite a hard lesson. Read the instructions!
Please keep our sweet baby in your doggy prayers. He is our most precious possession. Even through all this he keeps on loving us unconditionally. He even licked my tears as I cried for him.
by Terre W.
ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
DISCUSSION:
Terre: I am sitting here with tears in my eyes. I am so sad for you and for your baby. Accidents do happen unfortunately. You did not do it intentionally--don't beat yourself up, okay? He'll recover and everything will be fine. I will say a prayer for him. I thank you for the warning about reading labels. It could easily happen to any one of us. The way they package things these days it all looks alike. I know a couple of years ago I thought I was using Visine in my eyes and it was nasal spray. I was out of commission for almost a week. I will be extra careful now and I will read labels more thoroughly. Thank You, and I hope he feels better! Keep us posted!
Jay, you asked about the ingredients. The product is called Tear Clear. It did not have any ingredients listed. My veterinarian called poison control and they did not have the product on file. I called Petsmart and asked them to look at the other eye stain removal products. I called very late and Petsmart was closing but the manager took about 20 minutes and called poison control herself with the same result. She said that the other eye stain removal products contained sodium chloride and sodium citrate in a phosphate buffer. The preservative used was Benzalkonium Chloride 1/100%.
Angel
Oh Terre, the poor little dear. Angel is right. Don't beat yourself up. It's over. It was a mistake. One, thanks to your sharing, that we have all learned from. Thank you so much. Give Austin a squeeze for me. I'm so glad he'll recover.
Marie
Terre, everyone makes mistakes...Austin will get better. Buster sends licks and wags! Thanx for sharing...I will definately read all labels more carefully.
Libby & Buster
Hello Terre, I'm very sorry to hear about your accident with Austin. I hope all turns out well for everyone and hopes he has no permanent damage to his eyes. I'm curious as to what the ingredients of the "eye stain removal" were? Your vet should be able to tell you. Thanks..
Jay
Thanks for letting us know! We are thinking about you and little Austin. I know you must feel terrible, but our little fur babies are so forgiving. I'll never forget the time I clipped the vein on Noah's nail and he was bleeding everywhere and crying. I felt like a jerk! But you know what? We both survived and I can say confidently that we are closer than ever and I still clip his nails.
April B
Thanks everyone for your comforting messages. When I woke up this morning I could see improvement. He also wants to play...a very good sign.
Terre W.
Terre,I'm so glad that Austin is doing better.I wanted to share a story about a friend of mine. She had just bought a new puppy. She noticed that one eye looked red. Took her baby to the Vet. The Vet told her it was an infection and gave her drops to use for 10 days. After 5 days it looked worse.When she called the Vet back to tell him,he said to just continue the drops.She finally brought the pup back to vet and insisted he look at her. The Vet had grabbed the wrong drops off the self.The drops he gave her made the pup blind in one eye.She is now 3 yrs old, and is doing great!!EVERYONE makes mistakes!!! I admire the courage it took for you to share your story with us.How many people would do that???God Bless,
Debbie B
Terre: I know how you must be worried. We have a terrible time with Little Shayna with all her in grown hairs in her eyes. It hurts me so to see her fuss with her eyes and squint all the time. So glad Austin is doing better. I put drops in Shayna's eyes all the time and every time I do, I look to see I have picked up the right bottle, because I can't imagine hurting her more than she is hurting already. This to will pass, please forgive yourself.
Shelley