Swollen eye

My dog has a swollen eye, he can open it but sometimes squints and paws at it, or keeps it shut. He’s in good spirits and is acting normal. Not sure of what it could be or what to do. My dog is 9 years old and has no prior injuries or sicknesses. 

Hello and thank you for this important question.   An animal that is acutely unable to open its eye is likely to be in a lot of pain and constitutes one of the 'real' medical emergencies.   Please call your vet or out of hours provision and be prepared to be asked to present this case immediately.

To be clear, being able to open the eye to some extent is not enough to rule put the need for this; while the eye is painful and being scratched, it is at risk of being damaged further.

To be clear, being able to open the eye to some extent is not enough to rule out the need for this; while the eye is painful and being scratched, it is at risk of being damaged further.

Dogs with swollen eyes may show discomfort, redness, or excessive tearing, often indicating an underlying issue like allergies, infections, or injury. In some cases, the swelling around a dog’s eyes can resemble the appearance of hooded eyes in humans. The meaning of hooded eyes refers to a condition where excess skin folds down from the brow bone, partly covering the eyelid. Just like in dogs, this droopy appearance can be due to genetics, age, or inflammation. Monitoring your dog’s eye health is important, especially if their swollen eyes persist or mimic such structural changes.

When an eye may be 'swollen,' it could be experiencing an increase in pressure, also known as glaucoma, or inflammation of the surrounding tissues.  Both of these can be emergencies, so please contact your vet as soon as possible.

Could it be an eye irritation? My cat had a similar issue once. After a vet visit, we learned it was a minor scratch on his cornea likely from playing in the bushes. We used prescribed drops, and he was fine in a few days.

Absolutely, it does sound as if there is an 'eye irritation,' because this simply means that the eye is irritated for some reason.  Sone eye irritations are caused by scratches to the cornea, others by increases in pressure, others by foreign bodies, others by 'dry eye' which is where the tear supply dries up.  Others by a condition where the eyelash grows inwards and spikes into the eye.  All of these are emergencies, because the longer the pain and irritation go on for, the more likely the animal is to damage their own eye by scratching at it; sore eyes are incredibly painful.  For example, what starts as a 'scratch to the eye' can become an ulcer and we have all seen ulcers lead to eye removal. Obviously some of these cases are more minor than others and many, if caught nice and early, will resolve with drops.  Never the less these cases are emergencies because they can deteriorate at any time and need to be seen sooner rather than later.

Absolutely, it does sound as if there is an 'eye irritation,' because this simply means that the eye is irritated for some reason.  Sone eye irritations are caused by scratches to the cornea, others by increases in pressure, others by foreign bodies, others by 'dry eye' which is where the tear supply dries up.  Others by a condition where the eyelash grows inwards and spikes into the eye.  All of these are emergencies, because the longer the pain and irritation go on for, the more likely the animal is to damage their own eye by scratching at it; sore eyes are incredibly painful.  For example, what starts as a 'scratch to the eye' can become an ulcer and we have all seen ulcers lead to eye removal. Obviously some of these cases are more minor than others and many, if caught nice and early, will resolve with drops.  Never the less these cases are emergencies because they can deteriorate at any time and need to be seen sooner rather than later.