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My dog's eyes are cloudy, red, and swollen. Should I see a vet?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Weimaraner | Male | neutered | 8 years and 1 month old

Hi. We noticed our weimaraner was kind of squinting at us yesterday early evening. He appeared not to be able to keep his eyes open. They were very red and appeared a little swollen & watery. Later in the evening we washed out his eyes with eyewash from our first aid kit, which appeared to help with the redness. However, this morning our dog's eyes are not as red but have a cloudy appearance (a bit like cataracts) in both eyes. Our vets are fully booked until 11.30 Sunday morning.

4 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By David Elbeze, DVM, MRCVS

Veterinarian

Published on September 16th, 2017

This is an emergency, your vet should see you right away, if he refuses you have to take him to another vet that will see him today. cloudiness of the eye is a very serious symptom, there are several eye condition that could cause that but it is important to start the treatment urgently, otherwise permanent eye damage could occur.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Lauren Kennedy, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on August 13th, 2017

    Swollen, red eyes in dogs can be caused by several different things. Some of the more common problems are glaucoma (increased eye pressure), dry eye, conjunctivitis, uveitis (inflammation within the eye), and corneal ulceration (a scratch or puncture on the eye). Without looking directly at the eye I am unable to determine which of these may be going on with your dog. I would recommend taking him into the vet to have his eyes checked. I always caution owners that eye diseases can get bad very quickly and that they should be very aggressive in diagnosing and treating them. I hope this helps. Best of luck.

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    Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

    Veterinarian

    Published on August 6th, 2019

    Prince needs to be examined by the veterinarian today. When the mucus membranes swell up like that, it can mean they have an infection, a scratch on the cornea or a foreign object stuck in the eye. Things can get worse quickly with the eye so it's important to get this addressed quickly. Prince should also wear an elizabethan collar at all times to prevent him from rubbing the eye which can make it worse. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

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    Answered By Andrea M. Brodie, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on December 18th, 2016

    Eye problems such as this are always emergencies as there is a chance that your dog loses his vision due to infection or an injury. Redness and cloudiness as well as a discharge points to a severe bacterial infection possibly in combination with a uveitis. Please take Rose to a veterinarian or Pet ER right away. The vet will give your dog a thorough eye exam with an otoscope, a flurescein stain to show up corneal injuries and then prescribe pain medications and eye drops.

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