My Shih Tzu has a black marking in its eye. Should I be worried?

This could be an inflammation of the sclera (episcleritis). At this time this does not look very dramatic or like an emergency as I cannot see other swelling which would point to more serious diseases such as glaucoma or an underlying autoimmune disease, however I would make an appointment with a veterinarian for an eye exam soon. It is not possible to diagnose this from a photo, and would need a proper eye exam. The cause of episcleritis (superficial inflammation of the sclera) or scleritis (full thickness inflammation of the sclera) is unknown, however toxins, autoimmune disorders and toxoplasmosis are accepted causes, In severe cases the vet may want to take a biopsy under anesthesia to distinguish between a mass and inflammatory tissue. Treatment may be necessary and would consist of corticosteroids and/or other immunosuppressants.

Please repost with a picture of your pets eyes so that we can best help you with your answer. We can give you a more detailed reply if a picture is shown. The bubble can be anything from a cyst to a cherry eye, to chemosis (fluid accumulation of the conjunctiva caused by an allergic reaction). We look forward to hearing back from you soon. Take care.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Olaf his adorable! From your picture I am not worried. In some breeds the eyes can get a little red with excitement, when they are tired, etc. As long as Olaf's eyes do not seem painful: excessive blinking, holding an eye closed, excessive tearing, yellow or green discharge or rubbing them it is fine to wait until your appointment next week. I hope this helps and I wish you and Olaf the best!

Poor girl. It is hard to say if this is a concern without seeing the eye itself. Please repost your concern with 3 uploaded images of Dora's eye so that we can review it and give you our opinion moving forward. We look forward to hearing back from you soon. Take care!

Hello and thank you for your question. Is it possible to take a photo graph of the spots and resubmit your question with the photo? Pets can get spots for many reasons including, normal-nonpathogenic pigmentation, infections and endocrine disease. A photo may help to give you the best advice. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hello. It appears that Panda may have bruised the eye. It is not uncommon for the dog breeds with protruding globes to accidentally get bumped in the eye. Usually, the redness will go away in a few days, but if the area does not clear or seems to be getting worse, or you notice any discharge from the eye, enlargement to the globe, unequal pupils or anything else that concerns you, please see your veterinarian as soon as convenient. Otherwise, just observe things for a couple of days. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thanks for visiting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is really difficult to tell from this photo and the one directional view of the shadow in question; however, I would assume this isn’t pannus because there are no other symptoms of pannus (i.e. conjunctivitis, or any vasculariztion (red blood vessels leading to this spot) that I can see and the photo isn’t very convincing. However, I would suggest taking 3 more photos at different angles and not changing anything about the photo or this can lead to distortion,m. The eye in this photo looks almost cartoony and hard to decifer what other possible things this could be. We look forward to your repost and best of luck getting some good shots. If you are having difficulty with this, then a vet visit should be considered to have Bruno’s eye examined with proper instrumentation. Best wishes.