Despite being in pain with both of her eyes for most of her life, an adorable Shar Pei is now on the road to recovery after finding a forever home thanks to The Mayhew Animal Home.

The seven-year-old, named Coco, was first brought into The Mayhew at the beginning of February after her previous owners sadly could no longer look after her anymore.

When she first arrived at The Home, poor Coco was covered in fleas, her skin was inflamed and she had very sore eyes.

The Mayhew’s Head Vet, Dr. Ursula Goetz MRCVS, GP Cert (SAS) CVO, said: “When Coco was first brought in, we noticed straight away that her eyes were inflamed and she could hardly keep them open.”

“On closer inspection, we discovered that Coco had the condition, Entropion, an abnormality of the eyelids in which the eyelids have rolled inward and causes the hair under the eyelid to rub against the eyeball every time she blinks resulting in pain and irritation. Entropion can be congenital and we believe that poor Coco had this condition since birth. This meant that she had been in pain for nearly seven years and it had also affected her sight. In most cases dogs will squint or hold the eyes shut because they are in such discomfort.”

“Because of the folds of skin which characterises the Shar Pei breed, many are prone to eye problems including Entropion. It can also be common in other dog breeds including Pug, Shih Tzu, Basset Hound, and many more.”

“We had to perform delicate surgery on both eyes, where we had to cut away and remove a section of skin from the affected eyelids to reverse its inward rolling. We had to be extremely careful not to over correct the Entropion in case it resulted in an outward rolling eyelid, which potentially causes other medical conditions.”

“After the major surgery we had to perform a minor corrective surgery on the right eye to cut away further skin from the eyelid. As well as being put on pain relief, we also had to give Coco a number of medicated bathes to treat her inflamed and irritated skin. It took over three weeks for Coco to fully recover.”

After receiving medical attention from our Vet Team, including vaccinations and flea and worming treatments, our staff put Coco on foster with one of our experienced carers, so she could enjoy a loving home environment whilst she recovered.

As soon as she was back on her paws and our Vet Team was satisfied she was in good health, our Dog Adoption Team soon found Coco a new home straight away.

Our Dog Adoption Officer, Lisa Guiney, said: “Despite being in constant pain with her eyes for most of her life, Coco is such a sweet and sensitive girl.”

“Coco loves nothing more than tummy rubs and back scratches. She can be insecure, but builds strong bonds very quickly. I’m so glad that we were able to find someone who is the perfect match for Coco and can give her the love and care that she deserves.”

If you are interested in adopting any dogs in our care, please visit our adoption page here or call on 020 8962 8000.

Every year our Animal Welfare Officers and Community vet Clinic respond to hundreds of animals in need. Please consider a donation to help them help even more animals like Coco. Alternatively you can make an instant donation by texting ‘WOOF13 £5’ or your chosen amount (up to £10) to 70070.