20/08/2026
I foresee this post’s caption is just going to be very messy and long winded because my thoughts are all over the place.
Two months back Cookie was diagnosed with cataract in both eyes, right being more serious while left was barely there but it was very active (a lot of bubbles), Dr Boo told us give or take, 6 months before he’ll go fully blind. Surgery was offered and we were not sure at all if we should do it, because not just because of age, Cookie has tons of existing health issues which complicates it further. Even though his CKD and liver value has been stable for a number of years, they can become aggravated by the GA, and it may worsen his CCD even if it’s just for the first few months. And it’s not even guaranteed the surgery will be successful (although Dr Boo was confident, and chances of success are high), and even if it’s successful then, there’s still risks of complicated after that like ulcers, retina detachment and glaucoma which also can blind him in the end, and cause pain + remove eyeball (and that’s another GA). We were given a review 2 months later, which we decided to wait and see how’s the progress. And I honestly was more and more sure I wouldn’t proceed with it as time goes, until the next review.
Apparently the right eye is now totally white, no vision and low pressure, so he’s on immediate eyedrop daily now. Left eye still visible, pressure is also stable. Which brought me back to the same decision again. Should we actually go ahead with the surgery? Dr Boo recommended to do just one eye (right) since we have concerns over the GA complications, as the time he’ll be under will be lessen by 45 mins (she say it’s even faster than dental) and we can at least ensure he has vision for the rest of his life even if the left eye progresses. But this is of course if everything goes smoothly with no complications. Her view is that vision is very important and greatly impact the QOL, and if we can treat it, why don’t we? Rather than leaving the dogs being confused and blind, especially if he’s already (or worsening) senile. And of course, we hear both sides of reviews regarding Dr Boo which makes things harder.
We decided to do a 2nd opinion with the other eye specialist at VES (apparently not many know there’s another one available locally), and managed to get a next day slot which was earlier today.
She also said the same thing about the right eye being totally white, no vision and the pressure was at 6 today. Though she said the low pressure is not as worrying as long as we use the eyedrops. It’s the higher pressure we should be worried about as it’ll meant glaucoma. And she also said the left eye is very active so the cataract will definitely form faster and resulting to total blindness very soon for Cookie.
There’s a chance that glaucoma won’t happen if we leave it be, so the best case scenario is just total blindness for Cookie. But if it happens, it’ll meant a painful experience + eventually still need to undergo GA to remove eyeball. And by then Cookie will be older and even riskier. And will Cookie do ok being totally blind? He’s always been the “weak and sensitive” one, so I’m honestly not sure. And the thought of him being blind in his last days are heart wrenching. But then what if he gets all the possible complications. Is that worth it just to have his eyesight retained (or not if it failed)? This gamble is really very difficult to make decision on. And it’s not just a simple yes or no thing. Because if we stay as is, there’s still chances he will need to remove the eyeballs if glaucoma happens.
I did thought if we should wait till the left eye is also blind, and then we can know by then if Cookie will adapt to blindness well, and if he’s not, we can do the surgery on the left instead, right? Since we’ve already lost the window to operate the right eye. Which Dr Elena said we could do that, but again, he will be older by then. So if we were to do it, we should do it as early as possible which is to operate on the right eye now instead. But she did say if Cookie is her dog, she will choose the conservative treatment instead of taking the risks with his health issues. But if we want to do it, she say it’s possible.
Current plan is to do a full check for Cookie (blood test, xray and ultrasound, possibly heart too?) meanwhile to know if he’s fit enough (because if he’s not then really no need to think so much) and the most treat it as a final thorough check for him if we’re not going ahead.
I’m really very very unsure and undecided about this. My heart and head seems like it’s going to burst at any time. I even say I might actually feel relieved if Cookie suddenly just die in his sleep peacefully in these few weeks.
Or maybe we should do a 3rd opinion with Dr Heng 🌚 What’s another opinion at this point right?
