My dog's cherry eye surgery failed. Should I consider gland removal?

Question

6 month old Great Dane had 2 unsuccessful Cherry eye surgeries in 6 weeks on his right eye. First surgery performed by my regular Vet was a complete failure. Second surgery performed by a Veterinary Ophthalmologist for both Cherry Eye and Scrolled Cartilage of Third Eye lid shows only minimal improvement. I've spent over $3200 for both unsuccessful surgeries. Isn't it time to consider gland removal at this point since additional repair surgeries come w/ no guarantee of success? Pet's info: Dog | Great Dane | Male | unneutered | 6 months and 18 days old | 115 lbs

Andrea M. Brodie, DVM · Accepted Answer

The problem with a removal of the gland of the third eyelid is that many dogs develop pannus/dry eye(because that gland is responsible for much of normal tear-film production), which then needs to be treated life long with expensive eye drops and can also impact your dog's eye sight negatively. So unless there is a medical reason to remove the gland, it is not advisable. Consult with the ophthalmologist weighing up the risk vs. the benefit of removing the gland. If the cherry eye is only a beauty fault to you , then I would not risk creating a dry eye in the dog and just leave it as it is. Unfortunately, cherry eye surgery is not always successful. Cherry eye is hereditary, so it’s best not to breed a dog that has developed this condition. You will always need to monitor your dog for "dry eye" after surgery: Signs to watch for that would indicate dry eye are: redness to the lining of the eyelid, a thick pus-like discharge from the eye, and a cloudy cornea.

My dog's cherry eye surgery failed. Should I consider gland removal?

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