gtokitty Posted January 17, 2013 Report Share Posted January 17, 2013 Hey all! I am Steph and this is about or almost 3 year old Border Collie Ruger. Ruger's eyes have been perfectly fine, they have checked out in his normal exams and everything like that. He and his "brothers" live full lives of agility, working service, tracking, frisbee, obedience and some personal protection work. We live in Southern Ontario where there aren't many groups to do much with. The issue we are having is this. Last October (2012)I noticed something popped up on Ruger's eye. It was in the perfect shape of an "X" We were doing some construction in our yard and he steals tools. I thought maybe he got a screw driver in the eye (was to me the exact same shape) or a stick in the eye. As soon as I noticed it popped up I took him into the vets. His eye health other than the "x" checked out normal. There was no evidence that anything had been pushed or poked into his eye. They put dye in the eye and it didn't absorb any stain. Instantly nor after a few minutes. It was just there.... He didn't notice no runny eyes, no squinting, no crusties, no third eyelid coming over. Nothing out of the ordinary other than that "X" Dr.Steve said they can get fatty deposits on there eyes but there is nothing done for them unless the dog notices them or they ulcer. We could leave it, do surgery on it now or wait till it bothered him. Here is a photo of his eye. On December 29th his eye started watering and his third eyelid was coming over his eye. Obviously at that point he felt it and it was bothering him. This was Saturday afternoon. Vets office was closed and he's had it at this point for quite some time with no ill effects visible. December 30th we had my whole family over for our family Christmas and Ruger was acting like his normal sucky self. He and all the kids and my bf were in the basement playing a game and My other dog Yrie (a 90lb working line GSD) went down stairs walked through the living room, turned around walked out and Ruger ran up from under the couch and attacked him. Ruger suffered a bite to the face which would Monday deserve two stitches under his "good" eye. Our vet visit Monday which was December 31st, Dr.Steve put dye in it and it absorbed some stain after a few minutes. He asked if I wanted to do surgery to scrape the cornea at this point and I said yes get this taken care of. He did the eye scraping (I was allowed to be in surgery with him I have always been with my animals during surgeries or any procedures they have had) The cornea looked fully healthy and resurfaced with healthy tissue underneath. (I have always had the option to see Dr.Quinn in London Ontario with a hefty charge and no payment plans Which if this doesn't resolve we will go to him. He won't be back till February) His third eyelid is sewn over his eye to ensure pressure to keep it from bulging or a secondary problem from eye pressure or trauma. He was on a course of antibiotics as well as on drops 3x a day. His eye stitch comes out next Wednesday. Here he is after he had his surgery. Looks quite Frankinsteinish.... My questions were really this, has anyone ever seen something like that? Would you say it is Pannus or Corneal Dystrophy? Just want opinions not diagnosis or if anyone has had something like this happen or any dogs with these two diseases.... Thank you in advance. Steph Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideon's girl Posted January 18, 2013 Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 Has your vet consulted with a veterinary ophthamologist about your dogs eye? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 that's who Dr.Quinn would be 300$ a visit and 2 hours away. He will not diagnose or converse on treatment with any other vet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideon's girl Posted January 18, 2013 Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 So much for professional courtesy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnottyClarence Posted January 18, 2013 Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 I've heard of one case of Pannus in a border collie, which was recently diagnosed. Would be really interested to see if that is what your dog has, as Pannus is classically found in German Shepherds and extremely rare, if at all, in border collies. Vets have said this border collie's case could be from an environmental reason. In any case, dog is on drops and doing very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nancy in AZ Posted January 18, 2013 Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 Some friends of mine who recently adopted a 4 yr old border collie from ABCR, just received a diagnosis of Pannus on him. I'd never heard of it. It is barely discernible from looking at the dog, and a short course of steroids is all that is prescribed, with the outcome expected to be satisfactory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2013 I will let everyone know as soon as we visit the Dr on Wednesday I'm excited to see his eye back open! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BCjetta Posted January 19, 2013 Report Share Posted January 19, 2013 There is 1 border collie (red/white female) diagnosed with pannus at the vet clinic I work at. I was also a bit suprised at this. My guess would be a lipid deposit on the eye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shoofly Posted January 19, 2013 Report Share Posted January 19, 2013 I've seen several BCs with this fatty deposit on the eye, one of them my own. If you remove all chicken from the diet, it will go away. I'm sorry to hear your dog had to go thru surgery for it. I've also read that it may just be too much fat in the diet rather than just the chicken fat, but for my dog and a second one i knew quite well, a change to a different protein and careful guarding against chicken did the trick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2013 he said it was more likely a fatty deposit.... He doesn't eat much chicken. He is on lamb and rice food he only gets chicken as a treat. Other dog is allergic to it. Ok I might switch him to the fish based food that my other GSD gets. He and the one GSD get Kirklands Lamb and Rice. My other GSD gets Acana Pacifica WHICH I can not afford to feed to everyone!!! He is my working dog, burns a lot of calories and has a sensitive stomach.... lucky me. Is there a food you might suggest? I'm in Canada so a lot of the US foods they don't even carry up here. I will post the Kirkland brand nutritional analysis. Yes its probably not the best food out there but there are many far worse. And you buy what you can afford that keeps them healthy and at a good weight. My link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2013 this would be the other food I could get.... http://www.naturesdomainpetfood.com/about-natures-domain/natures-domain-salmon-meal-and-sweet-potato-formula-for-dogs OR there is a new kind that just came into my friends work I will see what it is and post it as soon as I found out. As ^ those foods are "Diamond foods" king of the recalled foods....... This would be another brand I could get.... My link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shoofly Posted January 19, 2013 Report Share Posted January 19, 2013 Kirkland foods are Diamond as well, you should know. I've fed Diamond before. One thing - you need to actually read the label. Many foods labeled "lamb and rice" and such actually have chicken or chicken fat in the ingredient list. Check any treats as well. I think Nature's Domain might be a Diamond product as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 20, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2013 Kirkland foods are Diamond as well, you should know. I've fed Diamond before. One thing - you need to actually read the label. Many foods labeled "lamb and rice" and such actually have chicken or chicken fat in the ingredient list. Check any treats as well. I think Nature's Domain might be a Diamond product as well. The two dogs eating the Diamond food don't have the chicken allergy. Ruger doesn't have any allergies but Charlie can't have corn but does fine on that food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 20, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2013 Does anyone know of a RAW diet with no chicken? I refuse to feed my dogs pork. Or could point me in the right direction? TY Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynthia P Posted January 20, 2013 Report Share Posted January 20, 2013 There is a person near me that does a raw mix http://www.atlantisshilohshepherds.com/atlantis-raw/raw-products-menu/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 21, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2013 TY that is 4.5 hours away from me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 25, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2013 Hey all!! OK so I was talking with the vet and he is almost positive that what is causing or what that "x" was, was indeed lipid deposits. Which he is getting on his other eye now. We opened his eye yesterday and it was great!! A little hazy his x was faintly there and his lesions on the x were gone!! YAY!! His eye is a bit cloudy which I was expecting anyway. Here is his eye, he has a bit of granular tissue on his third eyelid which should resolve soon. Today tho he has started squinting etc.... so he is going back to the vets tomorrow. He said use the drops I had that I was using before his eye could be sensitive to light, and its really dry in our house.... I don't think that helps.... I am planning on changing his food to this.... http://www.nutreco-pet.ca/brands/wholesome-grain-free/dog/wholesome-blend---grain-free-large-breed/13/ but doing more research before doing that. I am always so worried about switching foods.... This food is also made in Canada. The vet also said it probably wasn't hereditary some dogs just have it. I am thinking of getting him some doggles also as we spend a lot of time doing activities outside especially in the sun. Also read UV light is bad for the deposits to.... such a confusing thing all around...... I will let you know if he's better tomorrow or not! Thank you everyone for all your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS Cressa Posted January 29, 2013 Report Share Posted January 29, 2013 How is he doing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 30, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2013 He is doing well I will take another photo and show you guys. He has a recheck tomorrow just to see how his progress is going. I notice when he's outside it is always open, when he is inside sometimes he squints, the air in here is dry. BUT He played frisbee the other day for the first time in a month and he was able to see the disk no matter where it went. So that is a plus also Thank you for asking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejano Posted January 30, 2013 Report Share Posted January 30, 2013 Last fall we noticed a similar issue with Robin's eyes - not an X but more of a blurred square right over his pupil. My first panicked thought was either an ulcer (odd in both eyes at the same time) or CA - though his pedigree is clear as far as I could tell. We went to Cornell where the ophthalmologist diagnosed fatty or mineral deposits (they are similar) and said that scraping would do more harm than good at this point. His vision is not adversely affected. He also said that this did not appear to be an inherited trait. We tried some eye ointment, mainly to keep the eye lubricated as there was no infection. The initial "try" period was 3 months - I also cut back on the fat on his diet (no butter on his morning toast!) There was no notable difference so we discontinued the ointment as all it was doing was annoying the dog (though he was very good about it). The Dr.'s fee was $300.00 (we had the bloodwork done at the local vet for an additional $85.00, which saved some $). One odd thing which appeared in the exam is that my dog with the knock you down at 50 paces stare does not appear to blink very much, suggested that the eye not lubricating itself and the deposits are a mechanism to protect the cornea. Don't know what to add except that I took photos of Robin's eyes and continue to compare them with him now to keep an "eye" on things. Good luck with your boy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtokitty Posted January 31, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2013 Hey all, We've been back to the vets for a week check up today. His eye is still cloudy like it was when it was opened. To me I think it looks more cloudy but not to sure.... The photo I took of his eye and posted when it was opened has no flash and was with an iphone. This photo and the first photos that were taken were with high quality cameras so you can see more detail. We added in optimmune eye ointment to see if it will take some of that cloudyness away. I agree with the above comment that it is probably a lipid deposit, which is what he said it probably was and it probably wasn't genetic. BUT I wanted to search around to find out any info as most owners who care would. To clear up he had the resurface because he had an ulcer on that x after 3 months of having the x show up. SO Here is the eye tonight, I put the ointment after I took the photo. I will keep you ladies/gents updated on the progress. His diet is also being changed to a low fat diet as well. ALSO I spoke with his "breeder" and no one else has reported any dogs with eye issues. Also Juno and Coby are his brothers with the same parents and their eyes are fine as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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