[Shasta220]

I got a 13wk old puppy the other day to babysit. She got scratched in the eye by our cat earlier today (both are utd on shots). Her eye stays open fine, but the haw (she’s a lab but has saggy haws already) is a little bit inflamed, and a little bit of pink/red eye-goop builds up.

I will be contacting the owners (all the way in Italy, woah!) if it doesn’t improve soon to see if I can get her into the vet tomorrow. Until then, are there any things I can rummage for that might help?

I’m honestly not too concerned, as she doesn’t whine/be in pain about it, and the eye itself appears fine. I just don’t want anything to escalade, of course.

Thanks!

[Dori]

Hi Shasta220. It really is your responsibility to get the puppy to the puppies vet or your vet and get it checked out quickly. I feel that you should do this before contacting the owners as they are not in a position to assess their puppy or his eye. It’s not really a matter of whether the dog seems to be in pain or not, a scratch by a cat especially in an eye can turn bad pretty quickly. Your better off getting on top of this before matters get out of hand which is a possibility especially in such a young pup. That’s part of the responsibility of dog sitting. If the vet says everything is fine or gives you some ointment for the pups eyes then there is no reason to scare the owners while they are in Italy and cannot do anything. Obviously, you will tell them upon their return what happened and that you immediately took care of it. If you’re getting paid to babysit the puppy then it is also your responsibility to pay the vet bill, not the owners. Please take the puppy to the vet and get his eye checked out.

[Shasta220]

Thank you Dori, I’m calling them right now.

[Dori]

Who are you calling right now? The vet I hope.

• This reply was modified 10 years ago by Dori.

[Cyndi]

The same thing happened to my Doberman’s eye when he was only about a week old. He got scratched by one of the other pups. His eyelid was split a little. The vet gave me some ointment to put in his eye a couple times a day and he was fine after that. He opened his eyes right on schedule and never had a problem after that.

[theBCnut]

I’ve seen far too many dogs lose eyes because the owners thought it could wait. To me, eyes are always emergencies, and I can tell you that vets agree with this. If the eye itself is scratched, it can rupture.

[Bobby dog]

I agree with taking the puppy immediately to the Vet. Cat scratches can be dangerous to animals as well as for humans let alone to an area as sensitive as the eye.

I don’t care about paying for a farm visit for my horses or an office visit for my cats or dogs regardless if it turns out to be nothing at all or a true emergency. That is the procedure I have any sitter follow when taking care of my animals; my permission for a Vet visit is not necessary. Peace of mind is priceless regardless if you are away on business, vacation, or for emergency reasons.

[Shasta220]

She is completely fine. Got her into the vet (oops, Dori. I meant to say calling the vet right now.), he saw very very little damage, it was only in the lid. She’s on antibiotic drops and is all good to go. He wasn’t concerned at all, but better safe than sorry. 🙂 since it was our cat and the pup is my responsibility right now, I went ahead and paid for it. I won’t even bother to tell the owners until they come back, I don’t want them to be worried (or upset that I paid, lol!)

Just so upset that the vet charges an extra 50$ for a checkup that she didn’t need…..aka checking her temp, weight, and heart beat when they did it literally three days ago! Ugh.

[Shasta220]

Another question entirely off the topic…. What are symptoms of kidney failure in cats? I’m taking care of their cat as well as pup. All I do right now is go to the house to scoop litter and put some canned food in her bowl. She’s 17 and has kidney disease already, and they did give me their vet number incase of kidney failure, saying it’d be okay to put her down if necessary. I’m keeping my fingers crossed all will be fine, but what are some things to look for? I’m guessing no urine in the litterbox is a big one, right?

[Author]

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