E-collar for cataract surgery

[Stratton]

My sweet boy Max, 9 years old, has cataracts in both eyes and we are on the verge of surgery. He is only 6 lbs and so I'm dreading the elizabethan collar that is needed for the two weeks following surgery. I ordered a comfy cone and a kong soft cone but I think both of them are still too bulky around his tiny neck. Searching on my own i found kissecollar.com which look lighter weight and I will order one from there. I am planning to condition him to the collar before surgery.

Looking for people's experiences with elizabethan collar for a 6 lb yorkie.

[Maximo]

Sending best wishes for Max.

My Max went through about 6 months of battling corneal ulcers off and on. He ultimately had laser surgery to remove a hair under his eyelid.

We love our soft Kiss-E collars, but Max did have to wear the hard style cone collar at times during his eye troubles. The hard e-collar, lamp shade type is the only style that prevented him from mashing his face into bedding or carpeting in an effort to rub his eyes.

For safety after the cataract surgery, I recommend the hard cone.

[ladyjane]

Oh, definitely the hard collar. I would actually use two of them....soft inside and hard outside. Usually the soft are a bit longer than the hard.

[Stratton]

thank you both for your experience/perspective. i didn't think about him rubbing his face on the ground but now that you say it, of course! I was just thinking about keeping his paws away from his face. I will look for a lightweight but hard cone...

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by Stratton

thank you both for your experience/perspective. i didn't think about him rubbing his face on the ground but now that you say it, of course! I was just thinking about keeping his paws away from his face. I will look for a lightweight but hard cone...

I have always had a problem with the hard cones not sticking out far enough...so have put the soft inside because they extend out while the hard gives more support. They look worse than they are...most pups get used to them.

Good luck and please let us know how things go!

[Stratton]

I saw the vet opthamologist today... she estimates that he has less than 25% of his vision left. we have noticed that he is hesitant in jumping up on furniture, etc. it's time. She also said it must be a hard cone and extend past the snout. they fitted him with a clear one and I have brought it home to condition him. I'm going to schedule the surgery in the next couple of months, I will have to work at home to stay with him for two weeks so have to arrange that (the DH works in another city during the week). will post with updates when the surgery comes. Thanks again for the well wishes and advice

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by Stratton

I saw the vet opthamologist today... she estimates that he has less than 25% of his vision left. we have noticed that he is hesitant in jumping up on furniture, etc. it's time. She also said it must be a hard cone and extend past the snout. they fitted him with a clear one and I have brought it home to condition him. I'm going to schedule the surgery in the next couple of months, I will have to work at home to stay with him for two weeks so have to arrange that (the DH works in another city during the week). will post with updates when the surgery comes. Thanks again for the well wishes and advice

The vet probably should have one that fits. I know that I have had issues with the hard ones not being long enough. Seems that the smaller the pup's neck, the shorter the length. That is why I have used two collars. Recently I had a pup who had an E collar that the vet tech had rigged...they took a big dog collar and cut it to fit..and taped it on.
Hopefully you can find one that works.

[Maximo]

Praying for Max for his surgery and recovery to go smoothly.

The hard cone that I bought at Petsmart was long enough for my Max, but I've seen longer ones that came from the vets offices, I think. I had to put it on the tightest setting because he had a 6" giraffe neck, despite being 8+ pounds at the time. He still managed to slip out of the collar a couple times.

Glad you will be at home with him for a couple weeks.

[Maximo]

I was looking at our cones and I like Linda's suggestion for putting the soft one inside the hard one -- for comfort, especially when lying down, and to prevent slippage. Max figured out how to back out of his hard cone using the kitchen chair legs for leverage on the cone.