Eyes/Non-crusty Likely Pea Eye

[Kelly91513]

Hi all,
So yesterday I notice my 4 month old pig's right eye looks watery and droopy. Today it looks the same and I talked to my friend at a gp rescue who confirmed my worry. I checked for hay and put some ointment in her eye just in case, but no visible hay. I'm guessing its just genetics. Her Left eye looks normal. I took this one picture, let me know what you think. This is Teddy Bear:

This is what she looked like before:

 

[foggycreekcavy]

Four months seem pretty young to be getting pea eye.

 

[Kelly91513]

Thats what I thought...what should I do? I'd rather not go to the vet if I don't have to because I've racked up a huge bill there with my other pig...but if I must...

 

[bpatters]

Pea eye is thought to be inherited, and treatment isn't usually necessary unless it gets so bad that the pig's eyeball is irritated or dry because the lid won't close completely. Large lumps can be removed by laser if necessary.

Pea eye can be, but isn't necessarily, a sign of a heart condition. Guinea Lynx says that pigs given Lasix for a heart condition usually show improvement in pea eye. You can read their blurb at https://www.guinealynx.info/eyes.html#pea.

Like FoggyCreekCavy, I think pea eye doesn't usually show up this soon, but it's not an emergency. I'd be comfortable watching her carefully, and documenting the size of the problem with pictures. Also listen to her carefully to see if her breathing is abnormal in any way or if she's more lethargic than usual -- either can be signs of a heart condition. Also weigh her daily to make sure she's neither gaining nor losing too much weight.

 

[pinky]

My 1 year old female had something almost identical with her eye a few weeks ago. It was just slightly visible, like your photo. I made a vet appointment but also looked it up to see what it might be. I narrowed it down to pea eye or a prolapsed eyelid. I ended up taking her to two exotic vets, the second for another opinion. The first one felt it was a prolapsed eyelid and probably happened as a result of an injury. She worked on it to see if it might slip back in. It wouldn't and she said it probably would remain that way. She prescribed Bauch & Lomb Triple ABw/steroid ointment. She took Moo out of the room when she worked on her. To be on the safe side, I took her to the other vet I see. He examined her in front of me and completely washed out the eye. He also tried to work it back in but it was still the same. He said the ointment was right but that it should be applied twice a day. He also told me to flush it with a pure water eye rinse, Butler eye irrigating solution, and told me to really squirt a strong stream from the outside of the eye towards the tear duct to flush any debris out before putting in the ointment. Within 2 days it was completely back to normal. He said a prolapse and pea eye resemble each other. I think you should have it checked, just in case.

 

[pinky]

I also wanted to mention that the first vet charged me $47.75 ($31.00 office visit and $16.75 for the ointment.) The second one cost me $58.00 for the office visit and there was no charge for the eye irrigation solution so it was not expensive to treat.

 

[Kelly91513]

Being a worried pig owner that I am I'm bringing her to the vet. Gonna cost me $65! Grrr. Oh well. I want a piece of mind.

 

[Kelly91513]

So $96 later, Teddy Bear does not have Pea eye, she has a type of bacterial problem that has begun in her eye. Her lungs are clear and nothing else wrong yet, so I'm just treating her eye with ointment and keeping a close eye on her to make sure she doesn't start sneezing or have any discharge from her nose. Hopefully this will clear it up and all is well. Crossing my broke ($) fingers.

 

[Rayvn]

That sounds terrible . I hope Teddy Bear gets better soon.

 

[pinky]

Was it conjunctivitis? That's pink eye. It's contagious so make sure you wash your hands really well after holding her. I'm glad it wasn't anything serious. You're a good piggie mommy.

 

[Kelly91513]

Ya he said it was a type of conjunctivitis but he said it was similar to what my other pig had. Thanks for your concern, I hope she gets well. She's too cute to look sick.