Corneal ulceration is very painful. Signs of a corneal ulcer include reddening of the eye, excessive tearing, mucoid discharge, pawing or rubbing the eye, and squinting.

If this fails to heal the ulcer, the next step is to debride the ulcer margins (i.e. removal of dead corneal tissue) under a topical anesthetic using a sterile cotton-tipped applicator.

Certain dogs experience what are known as refractory (or refractive) corneal ulcers - ulcers which may take up to six months to heal, and for which existing treatments are not consistently effective.

A new surgical technique using a biotissue graft derived from the skin of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis nicoticus), a freshwater species commonly found in Brazil, is helping to restore vision in dogs ...