Canine Dry eye

Question
My 11 year old Golden Retriever has had a discharge in one eye. My veterinarian has diagnosed dry eye and my dog is now on eye drops and natural tears for it.

I have a friend who had dry eye some years ago and upon recommendation began taking flaxseed capsules for it. Her condition improved dramatically and she has continued the caps and has had no more problems.

My question is this: Is it safe to try flaxseed caps on my GR? Is this a therapy that's been tried on dogs? If so, can you recommend a dosage? If not, can you see any reason this would be harmful?

Thanks!

AB

Answer
Hello -

I have a 4 year old Golden Retriever myself and he will get crusty eye on occassion.

I use the herb Eyebright to cleanse the eye area. I recommend using and making an Eyebright tincture to clean the area before applying the drops. You can purchase Eyebright from many herbal shops or by ordering it online. 1 (one) ounce of this herb will last you a while. You simply take 1 (one) tablespoon of Eyebright and add it to about 24 ounces of water (3 cups) and  heavy boil for 15 minutes. The water will turn yellow to yellowish brown. Sieve the herbs and keep tincture in a glass jar. Apply to eye at room temperature. Wipe the eye clean with a cotton ball, being sure to use a new cotton ball with every application. Do not touch the used cotton ball to the tincture or glass housing this remedy as it will contaminate it. You can even drip this into the eye it will not harm the pet, it will help soothe and comfort the eye. Then you can add the conventional drops. You will see an improvement in general eye health by doing this atleast 3-4 times per day. You can reduce Eyebright cleansing to about 2 (two) times per day after about 3 (three) months. You can use this tincture on yourself as well if you have eye irritation from allergies or a cold.

Flax seed is very safe for your pet. Flax seed is very high in Omega-3 essential fatty acids and has been part of human and animal diets for thousand of years in Asia, Europe and Africa. It can reduce the risk of mascular degeneration and will help combat dry eyes. Dry eyes are usually the result of an insufficient outer oil layer in the tear film, so the water in the tears doesn't have anything to keep it from evaporating. Omega-3 fatty acids help the oil glands and coat the surface of the eye. I recommend at least 1-2 tablespoons of ground flax seed or 1 (one) teaspoon of flax seed oil daily.

Studies have been conducted on humans and animals and have shown very good results.

It's the Omega-3, "good fats" that researchers are looking in terms of their possible effects on lowering cholesterol, stabilizing blood sugar, lowering the risk of breast, prostate, and colon cancers, and reducing the inflammation of arthritis, as well as the inflammation that accompanies certain illnesses such as Parkinson's Disease and asthma. You could take flax seed oil as well following the same dosage recommendations as your pet.

If you are interested in other herbal remedies and herbal healing teas for humans and pets, please let me know I will put my catalog in the mail to you. Please feel free to email me if you ever have any other questions. My email: wintersaurora@yahoo.com  My webpage: www.wintersaurora.byregion.net

Thank you and best wishes to you and your pet.

Sincerely,
Sharon Hubbs, AHG
Certified Natural Health Consultant and Herbalist