Thank you for your thoughtful replies. Our vet recommended an eye specialist when Lexie's ulcer didn't heal completely. Initially antibiotic ointment was prescribed- Lexie tested positively for dry eye. Soon after she started on the
tacrolimus and Olfoxacin drops. A contact lens is protecting the eye. The drops cross the contact lens easier than ointments. And, yes she will need to be on the Tacrolimus forever. We don't wish to replace medical treatment with home remedies. We wonder what else we can do to help prevent this.
Lexie is still trying to paw at the eye with her hinds- that's with two meds and an Elizabethan collar! Her eye looks much improved but we're nervous about removing the collar. Tomorrow the opthamologist is getting a phone update.
And, yes, of course we are from across the pond...NYC.
Hi there - it's nice to hear from you again. I am Flo, sharing my life and home with five Cavaliers. We live in Birmingham, UK.
It does seem to me that you are getting the very best treatment that there is for Lexie. I must admit that the use of a contact lens as you describe is completely new to me, although Holly did have her eyeball scraped and a serum spun from her blood plasma to try to heal a very deep ulcer, but this did not work for her, as she has an autoimmune disease which makes her system overactive, resulting in complete rejection of her own DNA.
After a shouting match with my regular vet, who wanted to remove the eye alltogether, I insisted on following the complex set of ointments and antibiotic creams that the consultant opthalmologist recommended. It was quite a regime, around the clock, but after a couple of weeks the ulcer began to heal and my own vet and I agreed that we both had much to learn and we are working together to keep Holly's eyes both healthy. Eventually Holly was placed on a maintenance regime of the Lacrilube twice daily and the Tacrolimus (Protopic) twice too.
I was over the moon 3 months ago when a routine tear count yielded 19 in the best eye and 15 in the eye that was nearly lost. We have an appointment for January 18 for another visual check and tear count and I am optimistic that the counts will be good again.
It sounds to me as though there is little excepting pain relief that you could or should do to improve Lexie's condition except to be patient and work towards the time when she will no longer want to scratch or paw at the eye(s) and the collar can come off. Have you tried Metacam (could be called something else your side of the pond)? This is very effective for the pain of corneal ulcers and with my vet's agreement I always have a new bottle in the cupboard ready for use if needed. There is another eye ointment for the relief of extreme pain in the eye, which you will probably never need, but if you are using Metacam without success, please let me know and I will find the name of the drug for your vet to prescribe.
I think we should both thank Karlin for telling us about the inflatable collars , which sound much more comfortable than the traditional buster collar and I do agree that Lexie could be much happier wearing one of those. I will not tempt fate by purchasing an inflatable for the time being. Holly hasn't been worried about her eyes for some time now, so I am not going to tempt fate by purchasing a collar I hope she will never need.
Please keep in touch - I am sure we can help and learn from each other.