Chester's Chronicles: Cherry Eyes
Just like human conditions, the onset of symptoms for certain diseases may not show up at birth or, if at all, in some cases. Consistently, this is the same with cherry eye issues for the bulldog breed...
Cherry eye is a condition that bulldogs may experience in which their third eyelid/ gland (also known as nictitating membrane) protrudes outward from underneath their eye(s), giving them pain, extreme eye discomfort and altered vision. This nictitating membrane is normally anchored to the inner rim of the bulldog's eyelid by a fibrous attachment. Because genetic reasons are at play, it seems that the elasticity or strength of this fibrous attachment is affected during the bullie's development. This mispositioned, red-colored, swollen protrusion is more so seen in the bulldog breed as their brachycephalic regions are truncated (broader, shorter skull shapes); which seems consistent with the different developmental phases that they undergo compared to other breeds.
Solution: Depending on the severity of your bulldog's eye condition, non-surgical options are available. However, if your bulldog is experiencing cherry eye issues in which affect their livelihood (i.e. early stages of isolation, sitting in areas where you cannot reach them, blinking aggressively, extremely watery eyes), then surgery is the way to go! Surgical treatment for cherry eye is extremely effective, especially early-on because the longer you wait, the closer your bulldog is to becoming blind (sounds dramatic, but it's so true)!
Want to hear more on cherry eye surgery? Shoot Chester an email to get details on his own surgery experience, -or- stay tuned for his future bull-log post detailing post-surgery after-care and how he was able to afford such a costly surgery!
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