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My old Chihuahua's eye bulges from a bad tooth. What can I do?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Chihuahua | Male | neutered | 13 years and 11 months old | 7 lbs

My Chihuahua's eye is bulging my Vet said he has a bad tooth , he is 14, still eating and drinking . The vet said to remove the tooth would be risky at his age and he could die . my 2 major concerns are 1) is he in pain? 2) will or can the eye pop out? as it is bulging more each day. What can I do to help him?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Christie Long, DVM

Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist

Published on February 2nd, 2017

I would add that I think it's unlikely for a tooth root abscess to cause the eye to actually pop out (Proptose) however without definitive treatment the problem (the bulging and the infection) are going to get worse. Having that pocket of infection in the gum will likely cause the bacteria to translocate to the bloodstream, where it could cause other problems, including with the heart and the liver. I would consider seeking another opinion, perhaps of a veterinary dentist. I have anesthetized many, many older dogs for tooth removal, and my personal opinion is that removing diseased teeth is necessary. If Enzo has blood work prior to surgery, and possibly even a chest x-ray to check his heart and lungs, in the hands of a qualified veterinarian who is confident with anesthesia and dentistry he will likely do fine. If you don't have the tooth removed, your only other alternative is using antibiotics in a "pulse" fashion, such as 3 weeks on antibiotics, followed by 1 week off. Clindamycin is sometimes used in this fashion, but again, results are suboptimal and the infection within the root pocket will never completely resolve - it may improve, but it won't resolve.

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    Answered By David Elbeze, DVM, MRCVS

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    To answer your first question, he is not necessarily in pain, many dogs with horrific teeth do not experience pain unlike in humans, in some cases though pain can be present, especially if there is an active infection. Regarding the second question, i do not know why his eye is bulging out and for this reason it is difficult for me to give you an accurate answer, obviously it is possible, especially if he is suffering from intra ocular pressure for example.

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