Louisiana animal hospital takes donations after small dog loses dead eye
SAINT GABRIEL, La. (BRPROUD) — A baby French bulldog named Amari lost one eye and might never recover vision in her remaining eye. The veterinarian and staff at St. Gabriel Animal Hospital & Rescue think trauma and a common medical condition led to the surgery.
Now, the puppy is getting the care she needs. Melanie Morgan Guillot, the practice manager, lead technician and rescue coordinator, said they got Amari on Tuesday, Feb. 27. The dog’s breeder/owner called ahead to see if the pup could be taken care of and surrendered her.
Guillot said they named her Amari, which means “strength.”
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“When Amari came in, her right eye was not viable and considered dead already,” she said.
She said the dog “came in a plastic box without any blankets or towels and “was mostly in shock when she arrived,” trembling and hurting.
Guillot said they hadn’t seen the dog before Tuesday but think she had Exophthalmos, “a condition that causes bulging eyes and is very common in pugs, Boston terriers and French bulldogs.”
Rough play with another dog potentially made the problem worse. Guillot said they don’t think anyone intentionally hurt the small dog.
“As far as the severity goes, we believe it was caused by this condition combined with trauma. Unfortunately no one witnessed the incident and we won’t ever have a definitive answer,” said Guillot.
The person who turned Amari in said she was born in November, but Guillot said her size is more like a six-to-eight-week-old.
WARNING: Some of the photos below are graphic.
A baby French Bulldog named Amari is being held at the St. Gabriel Animal Hospital & Rescue. (Photo courtesy of Melanie Morgan Guillot) A baby French Bulldog named Amari is at the St. Gabriel Animal Hospital & Rescue. (Photo courtesy of Melanie Morgan Guillot) A baby French Bulldog named Amari is being held up at the St. Gabriel Animal Hospital & Rescue. They believe she had Exophthalmos. (Photo courtesy of Melanie Morgan Guillot) A baby French Bulldog named Amari is seen wearing a cone. (Photo courtesy of Melanie Morgan Guillot)
Dr. Gary Sod performed surgery on Amari within hours of the clinic taking her in.
According to the St. Gabriel Animal Hospital & Rescue, “her right eye was removed, which provided her immediate pain relief.”
They also took some of her blood and used it to make Autologous Conditioned Plasma. “ACP is made by concentrating a patient’s own platelets and growth factors into a small volume of plasma. This can then be used to improve recruitment of cells to an injury site and optimize healing,” Guillot said.
The puppy’s left eye is closed to help it heal from a severe corneal ulcer and abrasion, and she gets medicine in it every 8 hours.
“Amari is doing extremely well, she is bright and happy. She loves to play and takes her medications like a champ,” Guillot said.
If you would like to donate to St. Gabriel Animal Hospital & Rescue to help Amari and other animals, visit their PayPal account.
“While it is still too soon to tell if she will recover vision in her left eye, for now she is vibrant and pain free,” Guillot said.
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