# Maltese and Eye Problems



## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

I was reading on the no puppy mills website about genetic diseases in Maltese and was surprised to find out how many eye problems this breed is prone to inherit:

Abnormally growing eyelashes
Blindness
Abnormal draining of tears from overproduction
Glaucoma
Progressive retinal atrophy which leads to night blindness
Retinal dysplasia (malformed retina)

Lady's had her eyes checked once. They even did a glaucoma test. She passed with flying colors which is especially amazing considering she's been a diabetic for more than 3 years. Most diabetic dogs go blind, often in the first few months.

It also listed the other inherited diseases Maltese are prone to, like liver shunts, thyroid disease, white shaker dog syndrome, luxating patellas and a few others.

For anyone who wants to see the whole list (and find out the actual medical terms), here is the link:

http://www.nopuppymills.com/index.php?page=genetics


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## k/c mom (Oct 9, 2004)

> _Originally posted by LadysMom_@Feb 15 2005, 11:33 AM
> *I was reading on the no puppy mills website about genetic diseases in Maltese and was surprised to find out how many eye problems this breed is prone to inherit:
> 
> Abnormally growing eyelashes
> ...


[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the info. Actually the list isn't too bad.... considering the zillion diseases listed. I'm surprised that heart murmur wasn't on the list. I believe you said your Lady has one and Rosebud, my first Maltese, had one and I've heard of other Malts with them, as well...... Maybe it is not genetically based, though. ??


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

Yes, Lady has a very slight grade 1 heart murmur. Her vet discovered it when I frist adopted her at age 4. Nearly 5 years later it hasn't gotten any worse, thank heavens.

I was also surpised that epilepsy was not on the list. I am amazed at how many Malts I meet in this area that have some sort of seizure disorder. Most aren't as serious as Lady's - many aren't even on medication because they only have a few seizures a year.

I was walking Lady in my mom's neighborhood a few months ago and an older lady stopped to chat. Her friend has a Maltese and she was raving about them, but then she asked me if Lady "had fits" like her friend's dog did!


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

Heart murmurs can be from various causes and may be quite innocent. PDA is genetic in Maltese.

The eye lash conditions and entropion are common in Maltese in the vet books and according to our ophtho. That is why I always recommend people see an ophtho for tear staining to rule these things out.


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