So, your dog has cataracts... Here's what you can expect if you get them removed.

If your dog does have cataracts, then just know that we have something in common... or we did. On Tuesday, March 16th, my dog Philo went into surgery to have his cataracts removed.

We came to the decision to have this procedure done after realizing that he had lost his vision entirely over the 2020 Christmas holidays. Philo loves fetch, and that has been out of the question since then and it really bummed me out. When his vision finally faded away, he seemed absolutely depressed. And I was depressed watching him run into walls and furniture. Considering that he isn't even five yet, getting the cataracts removed and restoring his sight seemed like a pretty decent prospect. If he were old, like most dogs facing this condition, we would not have done it, but he has, hopefully, another 10 years left in him at least. So paying for cataract surgery would mean paying for 10 more happy years of fetch and walkies.

On the subject of cost, it wasn't cheap. This was the biggest factor, obviously, that made us consider not having the procedure done. All told, this process has cost over $5,000. The surgery itself cost $4,000, but testing, medications, and complications have pushed it over the 5k mark. That's nothing to sneeze at. The stimulus checks certainly helped, but mostly we just sucked it up and went into debt. If you think we're crazy for doing this... maybe you're right. But think of it this way: a four thousand dollar surgery broken down over 10 years of vision, if he lives that long, will be like paying just a little more than a dollar a day for him to see. That's not so bad, if you think of it like that! Right? Right?

Okay, so the cost hurdle was managed, sort of. But then there's the issue of his medication regimen. Leading up the procedure, he needed only 2 different eye drops a few times a day. That amped up the day before surgery, and since the surgery we are at 4 different eye drops, up to six times daily. It was bad enough when he couldn't see. Now that his vision has been restored, he can see us coming with the drops and is much better at dodging them. It's an ordeal every time. The pills are easy since we put them in cheese, but he gets 3 different pills now in different quantities and frequencies. It's a lot to manage and remember. But it's not so bad and worth it for him to fully recover. When he first came home from surgery, he would barely even open his eyes. But now, his eyes are almost totally back to normal! And it's wonderful to look into his eyes and see their beautiful deep brown color instead of white milky clouds.

Now, there's the issue of his complications. First of all, there was the surgery itself. One of his eyes had more advanced cataracts than originally anticipated. From my understanding, which is limited, the process of removing them caused some kind of tear or trauma to the eye. This prevented them from being able to place an artificial lens in that eye, since it wasn't stable enough to support it. That means that that eye is going to be far-sighted. Which is a real shame since he won't be able to read the newspaper each morning as he was accustomed to. Alright, so the lens issue isn't that big of a problem. But that's not all!

So when he went back for his check up the day after surgery, we were told he looked good and he was healing quickly. Yay! Then the next night, he started panting and shaking like crazy. He cried through the night. And his eyelids looked really red and inflamed. He went back to keeping his eyes shut most of the time. And we went through all the emotions and feelings of guilt, wondering what we had done to make his eyes worsen. So the next morning, we drove him back to the ophthalmologist (did I mention it's 2 hours away?) and had him examined again. Okay, so his eyelids were irritated and he seemed to be in some discomfort. We were given more drops, and two new pills to add to the routine. Great.

So we get him home and give him the pills, which are supposed to soothe him. He still shakes and cries through the night, but the new eye drops seem to get his eyes back to normal. It doesn't seem like he's getting any worse at least.

Saturday morning came and I noticed that his tummy was sagging. Odd. I touched it and it's totally jiggly, like a waterbed. We texted the ophthalmologist, who had so graciously given us his personal number, and he didn't seem too bothered by it. He contended that one of the pills he's taking is supposed to combat that type of water-retention/swelling, so he advised us to continue at the higher dosage. So we did and over the course of the day... his swelling got worse. Philo's back right leg is now swollen, as well as his chest. It looks like he gave birth to a large litter of puppies or something and his leg seems fat. So today, Monday March 22nd, we're taking him to our local vet to see if they can advise anything to reduce the fluid that he's carrying on his body.

I am writing this so that if you happen to find yourself in a similar position, you have a realistic expectation for what the surgery and aftermath might entail. In humans, cataract surgery is usually no big deal, and so I was expecting the same for Philo. We were definitely not expecting all of the problems he's had. We weren't expecting him to be so anxious and uncomfortable. We weren't expecting his body to become like a water balloon. We weren't expecting each day to be somehow worse than the last. We certainly weren't warned that these things could happen. I don't think that the symptoms Philo is experiencing are common, but obviously they are possible, so please keep that in mind.

Hopefully in another week I can bring an update that says that he is all better: his eyes are not swollen at all anymore, he's not retaining water like a sponge, he's stopped shaking, he's able to sleep through the night without crying... But time will tell! Please keep Philo in your prayers!