My vet says that it is too risky to give a general anesthetic to my dog who
is nearly 18 years old and has heart failure. Obviously he's correct.

The problem is that the dog has a problem with her eye - something, I think,
to do with an injury to the third eyelid - which is causing significant
irritation to the eye. Steroid drops do help but they aren't curing the
problem.

She's been taking medication for heart failure for about 3 years now and it
helps her greatly - she's very, very active (still able to run and enjoy
life).

Is there any way that surgery could be performed on the third eyelid without
a general anesthetic? My vet says that there is no way that the surgery can
be performed but he does say that the surgery would otherwise be very
simple.

This may seem like an odd question to ask but the eye problem is having a
significant impact upon her quality of life and in other respects she is
doing very well. It's an odd question because the vet, who is after all the
expert, says there is now way.

She doesn't have long left - probably less than a year and she's done very
well for a mongrel (a rescue dog) to get this far. But does anyone have a
suggestion as to how the third eyelid problem can be fixed without a general
anesthetic?

On Sun, 13 May 2007 20:28:16 +0100, "Gareth"
wrote:

My vet says that it is too risky to give a general anesthetic to my dog who
is nearly 18 years old and has heart failure. Obviously he's correct.

But does anyone have a
suggestion as to how the third eyelid problem can be fixed without a general
anesthetic?

Thank you for providing a love-filled life to a rescue dog.

We're not obligated to accept our vet's word on anything. We have an
obligation to have done our homework, and they have an obligation to
help us understand. In doing your homework, have you spotted some
information that suggests there might be a way to do the procedure with
a local anesthetic?

Via a newsgroup, you're asking the world if it knows something your
doctor doesn't know. That's fine, but I wonder why you are asking and he
isn't. And I wonder what happens, if you find the way. You might want
to ask on alt.med.veterinary.

This is strictly my opinion, and it applies to humans and animals, but I
believe medical technology sometimes prolongs our lives beyond what is
truly merciful. It seems merciful, but actually isn't.




________________________
Whatever it takes.

I would check with a vet hospital. My 15 yr old poodle is surprisingly
still a candidate for cataract surgery. I cannot afford it though. I
think they have access to more/different anesthesia than a regular
vet. My regular vet doesn't want to put him under for his teeth
cleaning. It was about $250 to have him evaluated by a
opthalmologist.


On May 13, 5:14 pm, Michael A. Ball wrote:
On Sun, 13 May 2007 20:28:16 +0100, "Gareth"
wrote:

My vet says that it is too risky to give a general anesthetic to my dog who
is nearly 18 years old and has heart failure. Obviously he's correct.

But does anyone have a
suggestion as to how the third eyelid problem can be fixed without a general
anesthetic?

Thank you for providing a love-filled life to a rescue dog.

We're not obligated to accept our vet's word on anything. We have an
obligation to have done our homework, and they have an obligation to
help us understand. In doing your homework, have you spotted some
information that suggests there might be a way to do the procedure with
a local anesthetic?

Via a newsgroup, you're asking the world if it knows something your
doctor doesn't know. That's fine, but I wonder why you are asking and he
isn't. And I wonder what happens, if you find the way. You might want
to ask on alt.med.veterinary.

This is strictly my opinion, and it applies to humans and animals, but I
believe medical technology sometimes prolongs our lives beyond what is
truly merciful. It seems merciful, but actually isn't.

________________________
Whatever it takes.

I would check with a vet hospital. My 15 yr old poodle is surprisingly
still a candidate for cataract surgery. I cannot afford it though. I
think they have access to more/different anesthesia than a regular
vet. My regular vet doesn't want to put him under for his teeth
cleaning. It was about $250 to have him evaluated by a
opthalmologist.


I'd be careful of any surgery once the dog is a certain age. We had a toy
poodle who was 15 and needed surgery. The vet acted as if it were no
problem and recommended the surgery. We didn't know any better at the time
and just went with what the vet said. She ended up dying anyway a few weeks
later but they were all MISERABLE days for her and she only died because we
agreed she's better off being put to sleep. We still blame the vet (right
or wrong) for acting as though she'd be fine and getting rich while she and
my family suffered needlessly.

careful absolutely. bloodwork, a specially-tailored anesthetic
protocol, iv fluids, close monitoring. but just beause the dog is 15
doesn't mean surgery cannot be safely performed. there's more risk,
sure, but if it's a quality of life issue, the risk may well be worth
it.

Bear in mind things can be made safer, but they can't be made perfectly
safe. Based on a simple post on a newsgroup we can't really tell how bad
things are. No harm in getting a second opinion though...

Dale

"Gareth" wrote in message
...
My vet says that it is too risky to give a general anesthetic to my dog
who is nearly 18 years old and has heart failure. Obviously he's correct.

The problem is that the dog has a problem with her eye - something, I
think, to do with an injury to the third eyelid - which is causing
significant irritation to the eye. Steroid drops do help but they aren't
curing the problem.

She's been taking medication for heart failure for about 3 years now and
it helps her greatly - she's very, very active (still able to run and
enjoy life).

Is there any way that surgery could be performed on the third eyelid
without a general anesthetic? My vet says that there is no way that the
surgery can be performed but he does say that the surgery would otherwise
be very simple.

This may seem like an odd question to ask but the eye problem is having a
significant impact upon her quality of life and in other respects she is
doing very well. It's an odd question because the vet, who is after all
the expert, says there is now way.

She doesn't have long left - probably less than a year and she's done very
well for a mongrel (a rescue dog) to get this far. But does anyone have a
suggestion as to how the third eyelid problem can be fixed without a
general anesthetic?

Thanks everyone for the replies - much appreciated.

The vet says that he will not operate and that to do so would be
unprofessional. I have no choice but to respect that I guess.

I suppose age will get us all one day if we're lucky enough to live to an
old age (or unlucky enough depending on your perspective).

I think (costly) medication can improve the quality of life of old dogs
beyond belief. She has had, I think, an extra 3 years of good quality life
(as judged by the enjoyment of walks, food and pain free life) beyond what
she could have achieved without modern (and costly) veterinary medicine.

It is sad though because I can see that the end is approaching (maybe
another year but it could be any day). Friendship (even of an animal) is
such a precious thing that there's no option other than to be sad when it
threatens to come to an end.

Thanks everyone for the replies - much appreciated.

The vet says that he will not operate and that to do so would be
unprofessional. I have no choice but to respect that I guess.


You always have other options, it all depends on how much you trust your
vet's skills/opinion. I have no doubt that you probably could (if you looked
hard enough) find a vet that would put her under. The big question is, would
that vet be doing it because they know less, or because they know more (or
are better equipped) than your regular vet.

Dale