Are you seeing signs of cloudiness in your dog’s eye? If these symptoms are found at an early stage, it might be quite easy to figure out the cause and establish a solution, but if you are already seeing those cloudy eyes, you might need to take immediate action by taking your dog to a vet.
Please know that cloudy eyes don’t always start out as whitish color since the symptoms may start out as a bluish tinge or even grayish haze. Oftentimes, cloudy eyes in dogs can often be confused with the sun’s reflection in his eyes, so if you suspect it, take your dog to a place of shade and try to examine his eyes out of the sun’s glare.
What Do Cloudy Eyes in Dogs Mean?
Cloudy eyes in dogs often translate into potential blindness. Similar to what you see in the movies, people who are acting blind often have their eyes shrouded in white, which portrays the idea that their eyes are covered and therefore cannot see. If cloudiness has crept into your dog’s eye, it might be mean partial or complete blindness.
You might be asking, “How is my dog behaving the same way even with cloudy eyes?” Most of the time, the cloudiness does not happen to both eyes simultaneously since it creeps in one at a time. Even though your pet might be losing vision in one eye, he can easily confuse you since dogs function pretty well with one eye closed.
How about dogs with both eyes impaired? If that is the case, your dog can still find his way around if he is in a place that he is familiar with (because he can just rely on memory and his other senses), but if you move a piece of furniture to another place or put your pet in an unfamiliar environment, he will frequently bump into objects.
What Should I Do for Cloudy Eyes in Dogs?
You might be tired of me saying this, but I’m going to say it again since this statement is always true. If you want to treat the cloudiness in his eyes, you need to know the exact cause behind it, which can be hard if you are trying to figure this problem out by yourself. So, what can you do in this type of situation?
One, you can try to read up on the list compiled below, and after doing thorough research, try to match the cause with the symptoms that your pet is showing. After figuring out the cause at home, you can either order eye health products to solve it through medication or go to a vet hospital to undergo a surgical operation.
If the first one fails, you can try this second option of going to your vet and getting a close-up examination of his eyes. Your veterinarian will be able to figure out the cause or try to guide you to a medical clinic that can. Under their guidance, you will be getting the best advice from trained professionals.
Causes Behind Cloudy Eyes in Dogs
We have covered the introductory materials regarding cloudiness in a dog’s eye, and please realize that any problem with the eye should be taken seriously since untreated conditions can often lead to permanent damage to the eye, which can often result in partial or complete blindness.
1. Normal Cloudiness
Medically coined as nuclear sclerosis, this type of cloudiness is normal for aging dogs, which means you don’t have anything to worry about. Eye cloudiness due to age is a natural process that happens both in humans and pets, but let me tell you the symptoms so that you can be absolutely sure.
Symptoms of nuclear sclerosis usually happen to dogs that are over at least 5 years of age, eye cloudiness will come slowly over time, and it doesn’t cause any pain during the process. Due to this slow but sure change, your pet should be able to adapt to this condition with a minimum of difficulties.
If the cloudiness in the eyes is caused by nuclear sclerosis, you don’t have to worry too much about undergoing surgical operations or medical treatment. However, you can still look out for your dog’s eye health by adding eye health supplements to your dog’s diet plan.
2. Dry Eyes in Dogs
It might be due to the environment or to the various products that your pet is using, but dry eyes in dogs can often result in cloudy eyes. If your dog’s body doesn’t produce enough tears, his eyes will not get the necessary lubrication to keep the organ hydrated and moist.
Due to the lack of tears, the eyes become dry and often lead to irritation. Eye cloudiness can result if the eyes are left dry for prolonged periods of time. Other symptoms might include inflamed & swelling eyes, yellowish discharge, and frequent blinking accompanied by squinting of the eyes.
Similar to what we use for dry eyes, you can use eye drops to regularly keep your dog’s eyes moist and healthy. Specifically formulated for dogs, the product linked above is created by VET PLUS, which is one of the leading companies in pet ocular health and one of the foremost brands known for its great customer reviews.
3. Formation of Cataracts
This is probably what you are most worried about, but yes, cloudiness in the eyes can often form due to cataracts. Performing the exact same task as humans, cataracts are the white milky change that happens in the eye, and they clump together to obscure vision and sometimes cause permanent vision loss.
Due to the DNA structure, some breeds of dogs are more susceptible to cataracts, and they are more prone to cataracts because it is a hereditary condition. Even though they can be treated with a medicated product, it is highly recommended that you go to the vet for further analysis and in-depth treatment.
If you do want to treat cataracts at home, eye drops have been formulated by LumenPro, and these products have been proven to reverse the effects made by cataracts. However, the price range is quite on the expensive side, so read the product details carefully before making your choice!
4. Glaucomas, Ulcers, and More
Last but not least, we are going to consider all the other factors that can result in cloudy eyes. These conditions cannot be always treated with a medicated product since glaucomas, eye ulcers, anterior uveitis, and corneal dystrophy often require surgical operation and medicated treatment.
Glaucomas are a build-up of pressure inside your dog’s eye, which can be fixed with prescribed medication. Since it needs a precise reading to solve this condition, getting a generic medication for wrong eye pressure will worsen the entire situation instead of solving it.
For eye ulcers, your vet will do a color stain test in order to determine if your dog has ulcers in his eyes or not. Depending on the degree and the size, your vet will prescribe the necessary medication such as antibiotics to solve this condition. Anterior uveitis is just another word for eye inflammation, which is treated with anti-inflammatory drugs.
Last but not least, corneal dystrophy is just a fancy term for problems regarding the cornea, and depending on the degree of corneal degeneration, the treatment might vary from over-the-counter drugs to medicated surgeries.
Conclusion: Is Your Dog Getting Old?
As your dog continues to age, his physical condition will be on a downward trend, which means that more and more medical cases will continue to pop up. Even though you might be stable financially, these medical bills might be a hassle to deal with if your dog undergoes a surgical operation or needs medical treatment.
If you want to prepare for the future, you might be interested in investing bits of money into a pet’s life insurance. Similar to what a person would get from his life insurance plan, your pet will get financial coverage for his medical treatments, whether it would be surgeries or any medication that he receives after a physical examination.
Even though small deductions are made on a monthly basis, they will act as a lifesaver for your pet if you ever need to get immediate medical assistance for your canine companion. Carefully consider this option, and if you don’t think it’s necessary for your pet, then you do you!
As always, the final decision is up to you, and I’ll try my best to offer resources and information so that you are well-informed. Thank you for reading through our post called Cloudy Eyes in Dogs, and please visit our website for regular updates and future content. Have a great rest of your day, and don’t forget to smile.
