Taffy - virulent cataracts and an eye poke!

[yodelpig]

We had to make an emergency trip to vets this afternoon after I'd noticed that her eyes were clouding over really fast and this morning she also had the beginnings of an infection in one eye, most probably due to a hay poke - poor girl!

She's on eye drops, baytril and metacam to get on top of her eyes as quickly and thouroughly as possible.

Thankfully, my vet reassured me that diabetes was not an issue. Cataracts connected with that condition are usually caused by the insulin that is needed for the treatment.

[3piggles]

Poor baby, and poor you. I know how much they mean to you, and how hard it is to see them suffer. I hope it clears up really quickly. So glad diabetes isn't an issue. All digits crossed for a quick recovery.

[yodelpig]

I am pretty gutted. Poor Taffy is now really down and her quick loss of sight is really starting to make an impact - it is just not fair after all she's been through!

My only consolation is that the unscrupulous breeder where she and over 200 other rodents have been rescued from horrendous conditions has been prosecuted by the RSPCA (the British animal protection league) and been convicted.

[belmorais]

All fingers and paws crossed here for Taffy.

I will never understand why people abuse animals, it makes me so angry and frustrated.

[Pigjes]

I hope the hay poke heals soon. Poor Taffy!

[3piggles]

I know how you feel. You can only give them extra love so they know they are still wanted, and hope for the infection to clear up quickly. I hope she adjusts, and doesn't let this get her down too long. She may also be feeling under the weather with all the meds. They help with the infections and things, but take their own toll on the pigs system. So many hugs to you and Taffy.

[yodelpig]

The infection is thankfully starting to go down a bit and the eye is not as painful as yesterday. Taffy is obviously not happy about being on a high dose of baytril, but thankfully, she's not freaking out about it anymore!!! She's even started nibbling some dried herbs from my hand afterwards, which is a decided first!

So far, she still has a bit of sight and is getting around. No sign of a diminished appetite or any problems because of the baytril. The cataract is still getting worse with every day, poor girl!

[glittze2001]

Aww bless her, is it just in the one eye?

[Pigjes]

Glad it's improving!

[3piggles]

Glad she's doing better. I don't think Baytril is a favorite of anyone's, lol. Hope it continues to improve. She will work out her sight problems if she can lose the sight gradually, so I'm glad she still has some sight to use. Lots of hugs to you both.

[yodelpig]

Her eye is looking better and she is not as tender. There is still a white dot where the poke happened, but it looks smaller and the eye is clear now and free of gunk. It will take some time for it to heal fully.

Somebody (a dispensing optician) mentioned that what my vet thought was cataracts could be oedema, an inflammation inside the eye where the displaced filaments from the swelling make it appear cloudy. Let's keep the fingers crossed!!!

[3piggles]

All digits crossed. That would be great!!! I will google it!

[newpig]

Sorry to hear about Taffy but good to hear she is improving.

[3piggles]

How is Taffy doing today??? Much better I hope. I read up on oedema. Nasty, but potentially better than diabetes. All digits still crossed for her to recover quickly and completely. Hugs!!!

[lonestarpiggies]

I hope Taffy is doing better. It sounds like oedema goes away, unlike cataracts, so I hope that's the case.

[Teebers]

The 'white dot' sounds like a corneal ulcer as well - poor girl! The vet should have used fluoroscein dye to rule that in or out as it will effect how quickly her eye will heal up.
You're right about the cloudiness - certainly it sounds more likely to be corneal oedema associated with anterior uveitis than cataracts.

What drops did he prescribe you, just out of interest?

[Pigjes]

Sending more healing vibes your way!

[yodelpig]

Nov 23, 2010 0:55:09 GMT Teebers said:

The 'white dot' sounds like a corneal ulcer as well - poor girl! The vet should have used fluoroscein dye to rule that in or out as it will effect how quickly her eye will heal up.
You're right about the cloudiness - certainly it sounds more likely to be corneal oedema associated with anterior uveitis than cataracts.

What drops did he prescribe you, just out of interest?

The vet has used the dye indeed and has ruled in a corneal ulcer and given me fucithalmic eye drops for it. The ulcer is healing very well.

I am booked in for a check up this afternoon, so will know more on the cataract/oedema front. The "cloudiness" in both hasn't gone down however, and I am inclined to think that it is cataracts - but with my bad eyes I frankly can't make the distinction, and my vet had a look at them with a magnifying glass.

Taffy could easily have had tiny cataracts in her eyes for quite some time without me noticing as they wouldn't really have shown up to a normal inspection.

[yodelpig]

Good news - Taffy has been given the all clear in terms of her eye infection. The last bit has nicely healed up overnight. considering how bad things were looking last Friday, that is amazing!

Bad news - she's got unmistakably cataracts in both eyes. One can see them clearly with the vet's special lamp. She will always be in danger of another infection, so I will need to keep a beady eye on her eyes.

[newpig]

Glad the infection has cleared up. Sorry to hear the diagnosis of cataracts has been confirmed.