# Buckling with yellow snot and eye discharge



## Granolamom (Feb 22, 2009)

I brought home a rescue doe 5 days ago, and it seems she has possibly infected one of my 7-week old bucklings with something (if I had the space, I would her quarantened her, but we have no other facilities to put her in). 
Yesterday, he started sneezing a lot, and had yellowish discharge from his nostrils, and this morning one of his eyes is oozing the same color discharge, and he blinks a lot. He has no temp is is feeding and pooping normal. He and his brother are still with their mother, and nursing. What can I do?


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## sweetgoats (Oct 18, 2007)

If it was me, I would wash her face (eyes and nose) several times a day with a warm cloth (separate cloths for the nose and eyes).

It could be yes she is sick, or it could be that it is all the news weeds, dust and so on becasue she is new to this all. 

Keep a eye on her and make sure she does not run a temp. Make sure she eats and drinks, if she stops that then you might need to have her seen my a vet to make sure she does not have something else.


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## MiGoat (Apr 21, 2010)

It's your buckling who has icky eye? Not your new doe?

Maybe he just caught something and it wasn't her? Anyhoo you want to get some antibiotics for his eyes. Greenish color means bacterial infection. I read an article recently about remedies for this let me find it a minute.


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## MiGoat (Apr 21, 2010)

That was fast! I found it easily. LOL http://www.goatworld.com/articles/pinkeye/pinkeye.shtml
Here it is from Goat World:
"I'm new to goats and need some advice. We got two little does this weekend. Cute as can be. This morning I noticed they both had a white milky discharge in their eyes. Is this pinkeye? I cleaned the eyes with a damp paper towel but don't know if I should be doing anything else."  "Could be (pinkeye) starting from stress. How old are the does? You will want to worm them, and if they are young you will also want to put them on coccidiosis prevention. Do both of these things now and don't wait. Using a sulfa drug for the coccidiosis prevention will also help with this little bit of shipping fever they are having, which is not only going to give them weepy eyes but also a little lung congestion and a runny nose. If it also has a fever going along with it, call one of us on the Goat 911 site and you will need some medications. Honestly I would order some Tylan 50 if they are young and Tylan 200 if they are older; some needles and syringes just to have on hand anyway. There is lots of worming and coccidiosis information on previous Message Forum threads. Feed stores and the GoatWorld Store.com sell terramyacin - a very mild opthomolic medication for the eye, which will help clear this up if it is the starting of pinkeye, more than like chlamydia.

August - We have a doe that is matting both eyes. Can I assume it is pinkeye? What is is treated with? I have every medication except something for pink eye. I understand you should treat the whole herd? 
I use Neopredef powder, twice daily in the eyes. It has antibiotics and painkillers. Even on the worst case it will be cleared up and gone in 7 days. I have been using it for years and always get fast results.

This is exactly the same time of year we came down with a horrible case of pinkeye, kept me and a gal in Seguin from going to the show next month! I am not wanting a repeat of this, and because of that I am not bringing in any hay until after the show. Last year we came down with it right after bringing in our hay for the year - my vet says I am crazy (she says that alot . Anyway, we just fill a small spary bottle with vinegar and water and spray the affected eyes daily. If anyone gets really clouded over they are moved into a sick pen and Terramycin eye ointment is placed in their eyes 3 times a day. Nothing is going to cure the pinkeye, you just have to keep secondary infections from taking hold. Some folks swear by port wine sprayed in the eyes, others vinegar. Some give LA200 as shots or drops for the eyes, so as you can see, no cure just lots of remedies 

Flies transport the Pinkeye Virus from animal to animal, it`s so prevalent now because of the hot weather. You can vaccinate at the beginning of Summer to eliminate the problem. But really the Neopredef powder will have even the worst case well in about 5 days. May need to redo it again in a week if other goats are present. I usually treat all goats in the same herd with the one showing symptoms.

Pinkeye is caused by bacteria. Flies spread the bacteria from other herds of goats, cows and horses. That's why antibiotics are used. I don't think the pink-eye vaccine has been tested on goats, yet. (GoatWorld Note: more information is needed on the pinkeye vaccine for goats. If you have information, please contact [email protected].)

The cattle vaccine for pinkeye is not the type of pinkeye that goats get. And though catching the pinkeye in its earliest stages and using tetracycline on the whole herd will give you some results with the pinkeye in does who have not started with it yet. Antibiotics on a whole for treating the "already there" pinkeye is just about worthless. Terramycin eye ointment is great on does whose pinkeye progresses into secondary infections. But pinkeye and soremouth are all the type of things that everyone will get every once in awhile and it simply must run its course.

My vet sold us Oxybiotic (Oxytetracycline). The name brand is "Butler". It is gone in 3 days with no spots unless it is really bad, then one more dose 3 days later. It cost $63.00 a bottle of 500ml. I don't know if you can get a smaller bottle but it really works. Our vet had us apply it between the shoulder blades. They cry for a few minutes but go back to eating and drinking. You can check with your vet but on ours it worked great. 
I have developed Pinkeye in my herd. I have been flushing the eyes with oxytetracycline (LA200) and the mild cases are responding. I have one animal that seems to be more advanced. The eyes have glazed to almost white. I have continued the flushing 3 times a day and had followed up with an injection of the same twice now. Not wanting to completely mess up the rumen. Am I on the right path and is this animal every going to clear up?: 
The treatment that I found to be effective for Pinkeye is using a yellow spray-on powder called Furox - a brand of Furazolidine. It's a good idea to separate the goats that have pinkeye from the goats that don't or else it will run rampant through your herd very quickly. We spray the Furox on the eyes and around the area of the eyes at least twice a day. It should clear up in a week or so. I do know that there are other ointments and treatments available that you do drop in the eyes - not sure about using LA200 though. Lastly, (even though) you probably already know and practice this) wash your hands thoroughly. Pinkeye is extrememly contagious and can be easily passed to humans as well as goats.

There are as many treatments for pinkeye as there are goat owners! I just prefer to spray vinegar and water into the eyes twice a day. This changes the PH of the eyes making secondary infections harder to take hold. Since pinkeye in goats is not Moraxella Bovis and LA200 is for pinkeye for cattle, we choose not to use this. But if you are going to use LA200 as an injection please use the other Tetracyclines like Biomycin, its carrier hurts less. You can also give it subQ to goats! We are going to try the new ID-1 as an eyedrop if we get it this year. We usually just treat the severe cases with terramycin eye ointment. Keeping a handle on our flies always keeps pinkeye at bay. Once the eye has ulcerated it takes much longer for the doe to get over this. But whether you use LA200, Furox, ID-1 or whatever, you are just trying to help with secondary infection, and keeping symptoms at bay, stop the treatment and symptoms come back. And like a cold it will go away in 2 or 3 weeks no matter what you do.

There is a new medication that Jeffers is now selling, it is Gentocin Pinkeye Spray. It contains Gentamicin Sulfate. I have not had a pinkeye problem in several years. However it was contagious and I had several goats come down with it over a period of several months. Their corneas became very cloudy and they were temporarly blinded. As I recalled, it took at least two weeks before the eyes started getting back to normal. Some recommendations that I have read, included isolating the infected goat from the herd and NOT treating it with anything, but allow the infection to run it's course. 
Any of the other treatments mentioned would work. We had pinkeye a few years back here. At the time we had a really good ole' country vet who gave me a couple of tubes of triplebiotic ointment. I used it 2x's a day for 7 days and it cleared up. One doe who that had pinkeye developed it so badly and so quickly that her eye was white. I also have heard other breeders mention using Today (mastitis treatment) in the eye for pinkeye. And in a pinch, I've read salt can be used, but I'd think that would burn, or also using Chardonay wine.

The last time we had a bout with pinkeye I heard about the salt treatment too. Opting for something that sounded a little less painful I would wash all the drainage from their eyes with warm salt water before administering the antibiotic ointment. They seemed to really enjoy it and their eyes cleared up and returned to normal.

I use Epsom salt instead of table salt -don't know if that makes a difference. I know my grandmother used to soak infections in warm water and Epsom salt.

I have used port wine with success; one dose for the goats eyes, one for me! We keep everyone happy this way. Our Nubian buck enjoys a little nip of his own every once in a while (he drinks it). But then again, he is into herbal iced teas too. Not saying he's spoiled or anything.

For all it's worth...last summer we too had pinkeye. The kind that just won't go away. The only thing we had luck with is LA200, antibiotic salve for the eyes (I think it was Gallimycin) and lots of TLC. We used the puffers too...messy! The Gallimycin spray for hotspots on dogs can be sprayed in their eyes but it contains alcohol and really stings. I also washed their faces twice daily in warm salt water. The old farmers around here used to throw salt in their cow's eyes when they got pinkeye. Seemed a little severe to me so I went with a wash! Sometimes one injection will get results...with some of my ladies it took two and even three shots (3 days apart!) to get results. The white in their eyes sometimes takes a while to go away but when the cornea begins to reattach, you can see it start to "color up" around the edges. Hope this helps. 
Pinkeye like soremouth are things that you get no matter what, and will run its course no matter what you do. Treating with LA200 is a treatment for maxi-bovis which is the cattle pinkeye, which goats can't get, this is why the vaccine for pinkeye also won't work for our goats. You can use anything 3 times a day, and it will go away in 2 or 3 weeks, it will also go away if you do nothing. Anything which changes the PH of the eye will prevent secondary infection, which is what your goal in treating the symptoms truly are. So if you are dropping in eye drops, antibiotics, ointments, vinegar in a spray bottle or port wine, all of this does nothing more or less than change the PH making it tough for infection to form and ulcerate the eye. Now if an eye clouds over than yes you need to aggressively treat the animal with systemic antibiotics and eye ointments (nothing with a steriod in it or you could cause permanant eye damage). I do think the new eye drops from Jeffers with the Gentocin in it is a good idea, and you can also make it yourself. I don't have the recipe handy........does somebody else have it to post? I also have a bottle of ID-1 (to use as eyedrops and to boost the does antibodies to fight this, in the fridge which I will be trying if we get it, we didn't get it last year, though year before it is was a horrible strain of chylmydia which kept coming back. 
I knew the bovine vaccines wouldn't work on the goats but I didn't realize the LA200 would only help with secondary infections. Maybe that's why the vet gave it to the first case we had. Of course that was several years ago and he and I have both learned a lot since then!

Pinkeye can spread rapidly through a herd. While keeping the affected goats isolated from the rest of the healthy herd is a very good precaution, it can still be spread by flies, a goat rubbing up against something that the affected goat may have rubbed up against, etc. So washing areas that may have been contaminated is a good idea too (though not always easy or practical). It is also a widely accepted practice to give 1 or 2 cc's per day of an oxytetracyline antibiotic as well. 
The method I have used from start to finish during the last outbreak of pinkeye here was this:
A few drops morning and night in each eye. Wash the area around the eye with warm water. Paper towels are best in my opinion because you can throw them away, burn them, etc. Then give at least 1 cc per day for 5 days of the oxytetracyline such as Biomycin. For the young kids, 1 cc per day is probably just right.

Pinkeye generally runs it course in a couple of weeks. Left untreated it can cause some permanent damage - that's why it is important to treat it daily until all the signs disappear.

I've heard of alot of rememdies for pinkeye - port wine sprayed in the eyes, penicillin, too many to remember. Others will post and give their two cents. Most cases of pinkeye can be easily treated but every once in awhile there seems to be a resistant strain of it that takes a little longer to cure.

Last word of precaution - whenever you handle a goat that has pinkeye, scrub yourself well afterwards because you can get pinkeye too!

My goat is a bottle fed goat and has done fine. But this morning his eye started to swell and run a white liquid. I don't think it's pinkeye because we've been through that with the rest of our goats. 
He may have just gotten something in his eye to irritate it but if it were me, I'd clean his eye with warm salt water and use an antibiotic salve like Terramycin Eye Ointment twice a day.

I don't want to sound stupid but do you use regular salt? What do you use to flush it out with?

Yes table salt is just fine. In fact, the old time solution for lots of eye problems is to just throw salt into the eye. You can also use solutions for people who wear contacts. Terramycin ointment is a great idea, so is the new Gentocin.

We had a round of pinkeye a couple of years ago. I don't know how anybody else does it, but we'd called the vet for the first one having never seen pinkeye before and after that just did it ourselves. At the first sign we gave a dose of LA200 and then treated the eyes twice daily by washing their eyes and faces with warm salt water. That cleaned all the goo off their faces and after the initial shock of seeing the cloth come towards their face (clean cloth and water with every animal!) they actually seemed to enjoy it. When the eyes were clean we treated with an antibiotic salve (like Terramycin Eye Ointment). There's a new spray out now called Gentocin Pinkeye Spray. That would be lots easier to get in their eyes! Either of these treatments can be ordered from Jeffers. If their eyes turn white and they lose their sight, don't freak out but do keep up the treatments. All of ours returned to normal with no permanent damage. Hope this helps some."


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## MiGoat (Apr 21, 2010)

Here's another interesting article from Goat World. Red highlight added by me. http://www.goatworld.com/articles/health/goattips.shtml
"Goat Tips - The individuals and members who have contributed tips to this article are not veterinarians. These are tips that have worked for them as goat keepers. - Always consult your veterinarian!

1. To keep tattoo letters from becoming lost, cut a piece of styrofoam to size then put all the letter and number points down into the styrofoam, insert foam into a tackle box. The digits are easy to pick up and don't move around.
From Joe Raff

2a. Pinkeye infections (conjunctivitis) triple antibiotic ointment purchased from Dollar store, used twice a day. Sometimes and injection of Biomycin or LA 200 SQ, can speed up the healing process.

2b. Pinkeye infections (conjunctivitis) draw up LA200 or Biomycin into a syringe, remove needle flush eye twice a day until infection is gone.-

2c. Pinkeye - If eye starts to run put Tylan 200 directly on the eyeball for several days. If eye begins to cloud put penicillin directly on the eyeball for several days, if goat becomes blind and gets a scar on eyeball put penicillin on eyeball and also give a IM shot(in thick muscle of neck) of LA 200. Continue Penicillin every day and LA 200 every 3rd day until pinkeye is cleared up.
Fred Homeyer, Antelope Creek Ranch 
3. After a doe kids-mix 8 tablespoons sugar, 4 teaspoons salt, ¼ teaspoon baking soda in 5 quarts tepid water, give to doe. This replenishes fluids lost in kidding, may be repeated one more time.

4. To prevent ketosis in pregnant does, feed one month before, free choice, Ragland's 3 way sweet block, no animal urea, continue use of the block one month after kidding.

5. Skin diseases - goats may occasionally contract ringworm - this is not a worm but a fungus, causes round hairless patches. Use 1-% antifungal cream, from drug store, or wash daily with betadine solution (iodine) or use Fungisan liquid. Use gloves, this is contagious to humans.

6. Teeth grinding is another indication of illness, usually advanced illness when a goat grinds its teeth.

7. Normal goat temp is 102.5-104 degrees F. Above normal temp is an indication of infection which may require antibiotics. Below normal temp is often fatal and indicates a critically ill animal and needs immediate care. Always take a goat's temp rectally.

8. Try to avoid summer births in hot climates where temps are often above 90 degrees during summer and fall. Kids tend not to grow as fast under such circumstances. High Temps combined with drought conditions cause stress.

9. Judy Muska's recipe for Poisoned goats - If you do not have toxi-ban on hand- 1 pint water, 1 tsp. Ginger. ½ tsp. baking soda, ½ tsp. salt, 1 tsp. molasses, 1 tblsp. Epsom salts-give entire mixture to an adult goat, for a young or small goat, give as much as you can comfortably get down, give slowly, don't get into lungs.

10. Check behind your goat's eartag for ticks, this is a favorite hiding place for ticks.

11. Chilled Kid- Hypothermia- Fill a 5 Gal bucket with warm water (like very warm bath water for you) immerse kid in the bucket, keep mouth, nose and ears free of the water, for 15-20 mins, massage kid while in the water, remove, dry extra good, when kid is completely dry return to dam.

12. Goat shelters in the south - three enclosed sides and covered top, leave the open end facing the south, remember to make it high enough to get under in case you have a sick animal hiding inside that needs care.

13. Wethers and Bucks fed on substantial amounts of grain are prone to develop renal calculi (water belly, kidney stones); add ammonium chloride to the diet, keeping the Ca ratio 2:1. To encourage water consumption, clean loose cattle minerals should be free choice and fresh water. Many prepared feeds have ammonium chloride added.

14. Castrate goats before one month of age, dehorn kids at 3-5 days of age, separate buck kids at 3-4 months of age-weaning age is 10 weeks to 3 mos. - remember to give tetanus shot to goats before castrating or disbudding.

15. After a kid has bonded with dam, "slather" Vaseline (petroleum jelly) around anus to prevent feces from sticking to anal opening. Check kids frequently as feces can clog anal opening and cause kid to be unable to "poop".

16. Try not to feed whole kernel corn it can cause acid in the stomach which can become an ulcer and can cause death to the animal-cracked corn can be feed in small rations-corn is "goat candy".

17. Moldy hay can cost you the life of your goat. Always smell the hay, if it smells fresh, feed it, if it smells stale or moldy, don't feed it.

18. Bacterial Scours-1tsp Terramycin powder mixed with 10cc water, draw up 5cc of the mixture into a drench gun, add 10cc to 25 cc kaolin/pepto bismo, depending on weight of goat, for adult weighing 150+ lbs-25 cc kaolin/pepto bismol; for a kid weighing 30 lbs-15 cc kaolin/pepto bismol give mixture slowly making sure animal swallows, do not get into lungs, if the goat has not been dewormed in the last ten days give appropriate dewormer. May repeat terrimycin-kaolin/pepto bismol mixture in 24 hours. Do not deworm again, if no improvement in scours consult your vet.

19. Use 7% iodine to dip naval cord and hooves of newborn kid to prevent disease. Naval cord acts as a wick to draw bacteria into kid, hooves are soft and also can draw in bacteria, use a baby food jar or other small container.

20. Inverted eyelids-use a piece of dental floss and super glue. Get the kid in someone's arms or hold until they quiet down. Take a piece of dental floss and put one drop of super glue on one end of the floss. Apply glued floss to lid near the eye, just below the eyelashes on the outer edge not inner edge, then when the glue is stuck, pull slightly to get the eyelid t o pull away from the eyeball so the lashes do not rub against the eyeball. Then take a loose end about ½ inch down from the first glued spot and glue to the area below or above the eyeball. Depends upon which lash you are treating, upper, or lower. Clip the remaining dental floss off. This is like taking a stitch to keep the eyelid positioned correctly until the eye can heal. While doing this I also use eye ointment 2 to 3 times a day for the ulcerated cornea. Don't worry about the super glue it falls off in about three days, which is usually about what it takes to correct the problem.
Vicki Murashima

21. To get the "buck" smell off your hand after handling them, use toothpaste to wash your hands, cheap toothpaste, use like soap, rinse and it's gone!

22. DO NOT use Immodium AD for diarrhea or anything else on goats. It can stop the peristalic action of the gut and cause quick and horrible death.
Suzanne Gasparotto, Onion Creek Ranch

A thirteen ounce coffee can holds one pound of goat feed. Very helpful in measuring feed or feed dewormer.
Carroll Wyatt

24. Tattoo - If you can wait until the kid is 3 to 4 months of age, the tattoo will "take" better. To insure a tattoo that is easier to read, after you rub in the ink, rub with baking soda, it will make "little bumps", not harmful to kid, and "raise" the tattoo for easier and long lasting reading.

25. Deworming - If the dam has not been dewormed 11 days prior to kidding deworm dam three days after she kids. Deworm kids at 30 days and 60 days with safeguard or panacur for tape worms. Deworm entire herd twice annually for tape worms with safeguard or panacur. Ivomec does not take care of tape worms.

26. If feeding bucks heavily, to show, it is recommended that you top dress feed with extra Ammonium Chloride and give 2cc, orally, of Methigel, weekly. Methigel prevents kidney stones in cats. You can get Methigel from your Vet, Jeffers or Atica Pet at 1-800-822-9085
(note: GoatWorld also has Ammonium Chloride available in the GoatWorld Store)

27. Probiotic paste - if you give large doses of antibiotics for several days you may "kill" off the "good" bacteria in the goat's "stomach" which aids in the digestion process. It is a good idea to give probiotic paste, natural yogurt or buttermilk to reactivate these bacteria.

When a doe kids more than twins, it is a good idea to supplement by bottle feeding one or more of the kids after they get the colostrum from the dam. This insures that all the kids are receiving enough nourishment to sustain life and prevent a weak kid or death."


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

I dont think its pink eye -- sometimes goats get a cold and it can cause eye and nasal discharge. I also experienced a goat with allergies! So thats also a possibility 

I would watch him closely for a temp to start -- it doesnt always coincide as soon as you see the snots so it may come later if it is more then just a cold.

Lori's suggestion is good about the warm cloth wiping his eyes and nose. 

Give him a couple ccs of nutri drench


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## MiGoat (Apr 21, 2010)

Green drainage is usually a sign of bacterial infection in other animals. Is that different in goats?


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## MiGoat (Apr 21, 2010)

Oh my gosh my reading comprehension is a off. I reread the opening post... I'm reading "green" discharge instead of "yellow"
*sigh* Well the information above, from Goat World, is interesting nonetheless! LOL


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

MiGoat said:


> Green drainage is usually a sign of bacterial infection in other animals. Is that different in goats?


green yes would be a bacterial infection in goats -- sometimes even yellow but not always.

I know you said you saw the correct color but I just wanted to answer your question


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## jdgray716 (Aug 8, 2008)

sweetgoats said:


> If it was me, I would wash her face (eyes and nose) several times a day with a warm cloth (separate cloths for the nose and eyes).
> 
> It could be yes she is sick, or it could be that it is all the news weeds, dust and so on becasue she is new to this all.
> 
> Keep a eye on her and make sure she does not run a temp. Make sure she eats and drinks, if she stops that then you might need to have her seen my a vet to make sure she does not have something else.


This is very good info. I agree with Lori on this one.


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## CrossCreekTX (Aug 10, 2009)

Pink eye is a symptom of vit A deficiency. Goats on green feed are unlikely to have problems with it. If your goats have an eye infection, cod liver oil directly into the eye and down the throat will clear it up.


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## MiGoat (Apr 21, 2010)

Cod liver oil right on the eye? How much like a couple of drops? That is interesting!


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## CrossCreekTX (Aug 10, 2009)

Yes, just a couple of drops. Don't use mint or lemon flavor, just the plain stuff.


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## MiGoat (Apr 21, 2010)

Thanks will keep that in mind. Vitamin A deficiency. Wrote that down!


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## starlight242005 (Feb 23, 2014)

What do you give a 1 week old nigerian dwarf buckling with a closed cloudy white eye


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

How long has it been going on? Have you made sure the eyelashes aren't turned under?


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## MsScamp (Feb 1, 2010)

starlight242005 said:


> What do you give a 1 week old nigerian dwarf buckling with a closed cloudy white eye


Assuming the eyelashes aren't turned in and rubbing on the eye, it is probably pink eye. If the eyelashes are turned in, do a search on here to find out how to treat or take him to your vet. If the eyelashes are not turned in, pink eye will cause sensitivity to light and the afflicted animal will squint and/or keep the eye closed. Flush the eye with saline or human eye drops and put a couple of drops of LA200 or Penicillin in the eye a couple of times a day until it clears up. Use a syringe - no needle. Terramycin ointment will also work. Check to make sure there is nothing in the eye, also.


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