A Lab's Eye That Stays Turned to One Side
by A reader
When one eye stays turned toward the corner, it is called strabismus. In an adult dog that didn't have this before, it usually means something is affecting the nerves or muscles that move the eye, or something behind the eye is pushing on it.
Common causes include vestibular disease (a balance problem, often with a head tilt or flicking eye movements), nerve problems, inflammation of the muscles around the eye, and less often a swelling or mass behind the eye. Some dogs are simply born with a slightly turned eye.
Because this seems new, please have your vet examine him soon. Watch for a head tilt, stumbling, flicking eye movements, a bulging or painful eye, trouble opening his mouth, or a change in his pupils, and go the same day if you see any of these.
See neurological problems in dogs and vestibular disease in dogs.
This is general information, not a diagnosis. Please follow your own vet's advice.
