Miniature Schnauzer – Eye Problems

The Miniature Schnauzer is a feisty and playful dog. It tends to be overtly active at times and often gets hurt in the process. One should be extremely careful while playing with it.

The most common problem that a Miniature Schnauzer owner faces while playing with his dog is when the dog hurts himself in the face and even worse, in the eyes.

The dog should never be allowed to hang his head outside the window because flying debris and even insects can harm his vision.

If the dog gathers dirt in his eyes, a concoction of 2 cups of water and a teaspoon of salt should be the perfect solution. Without touching his eyes, a cotton swab should be dipped into the concoction and his eyes can be effectively cleaned with the same. Avoid eye drops unless prescribed by the vet.

Powders and soaps are to be completely avoided and trimming and clipping the hair around the eyes can go a long way in preventing irritation and eye infection.

Excess mucus or tearing, cataract and glaucoma are some of the eye ailments that are seen to affect a Miniature Schnauzer. But the most common among all ailments is the dry eye.

Just as it sounds like, the dry eye syndrome is when the dog’s eyes become dry and he suffers from irritation.

According to vets, the Miniature Schnauzer suffers from dry eyes because the dog’s immune system mistakes its tear glands for a foreign object that needs to be destroyed. When the tear glands are unable to produce adequate moisture to combat the immune system’s attack, the eyes become more and more dry.

Dry eye often leads to injured corneas, infections and even blindness. The most common symptoms are rubbing of eyes, reddened eyes, yellow discharge, and squinting and even cloudiness of vision.

This ailment is more rampant in middle-aged to senior dogs as compared to the younger ones.

When the first signs of dry eyes are noticed, one should immediately rush his Miniature Schnauzer to the veterinarian before conducting any kind of treatment of his own.