How to Check Your Dog's Eyes

Your dog's eye health is very important. Check your dog's eyes regularly to maintain his eye health. Most of the time, any eye problem, no matter how alarming they can appear, can be corrected fairly easily if taken care of right away.

Instructions

1. Lead your dog into an area with plenty of light so you can see clearly to check out your dog's eyes.

2. Instruct the dog to sit down.

3. Hold the dog's head gently to steady him so you can check the eyes. Pet the dog and talk to him sweetly so that you can get him to sit still.

4. Look for cloudiness in the eyes to determine if the eyes look discolored and the pupils gray or blue. This could potentially be a sign of corneal ulcers, cataracts or glaucoma.

5. Check for redness in the eyes. This could potentially be an unthreatening problem such as allergies or a danger sign for a condition such as conjunctivitis or other problem that may require surgery.

6. Examine the eyes for mucus and swelling. Get this problem checked out by a vet to get it corrected.

7. Flick your finger at the dog's eye to make sure that the dog blinks or reacts. If he does not, there is a problem with the dog's eyesight or the health of his eyes.

Tips & Warnings

• Clean your dog's eyes regularly with an eyewash solution to keep your dog's eyes healthy.

• Be aware of certain eye problems that can be genetic in certain breeds and look out for those problems by checking the eyes regularly and examine a dog's eyes thoroughly before adopting one.

• If your dog has glaucoma, your dog can go blind in the affected eye. If the condition sustains for over 48 hours, recovery becomes unlikely so if you suspect this problem, get him examined immediately.