What is Cherry Eye in Dogs and How is it Treated?

Cherry eye in dogs is not lethal but can cause a lot of irritation to your dogs’ eye.
A dog has three eyelids. The third eyelid (nictitating membrane) which is normally not visible has its own tear gland and is responsible for wiping clean the dogs’ eye. When a dog closes its eyes the third eyelid then moves across the eye to remove any dust or dirt that may be there.

The connective tissue that holds the third eyelid in place may weaken which then causes the membrane to move around uncontrolled resulting in irritation to the eye.
The membrane will then suddenly pop up and form a red bulge at the bottom corner of the eye close to the nose, hence the name “Cherry eye”. The reason why this happens is still not clear but if it happens to one eye it is quite likely to happen to the other.

Treatment of Cherry eye:

There are two main ways in which cherry eye is treated, both surgically.
The vet will either push the gland back into place or surgically remove the gland or part of it. If the gland is pushed back there is still a possibility that it will pop out again later in life.

If the vet decides to remove the gland this may cause further problems as this gland produces up to 1 third of the eyes’ tear production and if removed may result in dry eye, especially with older dogs.
The most common symptoms if dry eye include redness in the eye lining, thick discharge for the eye and the dog pawing his eye.

So please get a second opinion before having the gland removed.