Many people fear that Pugs, Shih Tzus, Pekingese and some other dogs are so sensitive that a loud door slam or the sound of a firecracker exploding can cause their eyes to fall out of fear. We decided to check if this is actually true.
ABOUT possibilities and reasons loss eyes in dogs ask on specialized portals, websites veterinary clinics, write in blogs and social networks. Users are usually interested in eye loss in pugs, Pekingese, shih tzu And chihuahua. Resources O dogs they write that the eyes of domestic favorites can fall out from fear or scared, such stories are also popular among bloggers. In Russian series “Real boys”, a Shih Tzu left in the care of a friend lost an eye due to stress. In 2019, the British toldthat her dog is so scared the sounds of fireworks from the street that both her eyes fell out and pet went blind.
Pugs, along with Shih Tzu and Pekingese, belong to brachycephalic breeds (from ancient Greek βραχύς - “short” and ϰεφαλή - “head”). In addition to them in this group include English and French bulldogs, bull mastiffs, griffons, Boston terriers, boxers and Lhasa apsos. Besides dogs brachycephalic there may be cats: Persians, Burmese, exotics, British, Scots and Himalayans. Moreover, this term Maybe apply and to the person for descriptions anomalies in the structure of the skull, in which it is reduced in the anteroposterior direction.
Brachycephalic breeds have a number of characteristic pathologies. Firstly, due to the structural features of the muzzle, their respiratory tract Briefly speakingthan in animals with a more elongated skull. The specially designed nostrils and the characteristic elongation of the soft palate can also impede the normal flow of air. Therefore, brachycephalic animals may experience noisy, wheezing breathing and snoring. Hot weather, increased physical activity, or obesity more dangerous for such animals than for their long-faced counterparts.
A shortened skull affects not only the structure of the respiratory tract, but also the organs of vision. Such breeds are characterized by bulging eyes - their eyeball protrudes from the socket much more than in animals without brachycephaly. Most often due to injuries (but possibly also with some diseases), the eyes are literally "squeezed out» forward so much that the eyelids end up behind the equator (the widest part) of the eyeball, where they gather into a fold. This situation is extremely dangerous - the eyelids swell and cannot open again enough for the eyeball to return to its place. Scientifically, this pathology is called proptosis of the eye and looks extremely scary, so we will not post photographs in the text (those interested can see how it looks in dogs of brachycephalic breeds and breeds with other skull structures using the hyperlinks: chihuahua, pug, Pekingese or Aussie, Dalmatian).
The animal owner cannot solve this problem on his own; instead, recommended rinse or irrigate the eye with saline solution, cover it with a cloth soaked in saline solution (but do not put pressure on the eyeball), put a protective collar on your pet (or otherwise prevent it from injuring itself further) and immediately go to the veterinary clinic. Doctors immerse put the pet into medicated sleep and set the eyeball in place, usually by cutting and then stitching the eyelids together. In case of timely assistance, two to three weeks after the operation, the sutures are removed, and the eye regains its previous appearance. In about a quarter of cases, no complications arise in dogs, and vision returns fully; the prognosis for cats is less favorable. After proptosis in animals can arise corneal ulcers, develop strabismus, conjunctivitis, glaucoma and even complete blindness. Lack of timely and competent assistance can also bring to the need for enucleation - surgical removal of the eyeball.
At the same time, brachycephaly itself is not the cause of proptosis, but only a predisposing factor. Eyeball prolapse can occur due to various injuries, such as a fall from a height. However, brachycephalic breeds are so predisposed to proptosis that the pathology may bring even incorrect a selected collar and leash (therefore, it is recommended to walk them with a harness) or lifting the dog by the skin in the neck and shoulder blades. At the same time authoritative veterinary publications And reference books among reasons proptosis I don't listneither fear nor stress. IN descriptions cases treatment There is also no proptosis in which a dog's eye falls out due to fear, usually the cause of such injury is hit under car or fight with another animals.
In addition to proptosis and breathing problems, brachycephalic breeds predisposed to cardiovascular diseases, problems With joints, as well as to dental pathologies. Some veterinarians And animal rights activists believe that breeding and popularizing brachycephalic breeds is application inappropriate suffering for the animals themselves, and call on governments to first ban the use of their representatives for advertising purposes in order to reduce the demand for such pets. More radical activists advocate for a complete ban on the breeding of such breeds. Such an initiative, in particular, is now is being considered in the Netherlands: they are discussing the introduction of a ban on the import and breeding of certain brachycephalic breeds of dogs and fold-eared cats, their use in advertising and even demonstration on social networks. However, officials understand the difficulty of introducing such rules - for example, a ban on publishing photographs of a beloved French bulldog or Scottish fold cat on the owner’s personal blog does not go well with freedom of information.
Thus, both dogs and cats can actually lose an eye. This is most often caused by injuries, but it can also be caused by careless handling of the pet, for example, too much tension on the leash while walking. But severe fright, fear or stress cannot be the cause of eye loss. In the case of proptosis of the eye, which is the scientific name for this phenomenon, you should ensure that the prolapsed eyeball is moistened with saline and immediately consult a veterinarian. If help is provided to the animal on time and in full, the eye and vision can be saved.
Cover image: Image by David Mark from Pixabay
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