Additional coverage of this same incident, a four-year-old yellow Labrador, underwent emergency veterinary surgery in Fargo, North Dakota after a blade of grass became embedded in his cornea during recent dove and pheasant hunts, owner Natalie Krebs wrote in an account published in Outdoor Life.

The injury presented as a visible vertical line through the cornea and was accompanied by swelling, itching and bleeding. “He looked less like a yellow Lab and more like an actor in an allergy commercial,” Krebs wrote, describing the appearance that prompted immediate concern.

Krebs said the problem required multiple veterinary visits and a nighttime emergency trip to a Fargo clinic. The embedded grass was surgically removed in a procedure that Krebs said likely prevented more severe damage; she picked Hatchet up from the clinic at about 4 a.m. The episode, she noted, involved one dog and one person and a portion of the response stretched across roughly two hours from recognition of the injury to the completion of surgery.

Veterinary follow-up care continued after the surgery, with monitoring appointments to check the eye’s healing. Krebs reported that Hatchet was given a week off from hunting and was later cleared to return to the field, a development she described as “a relief” that allowed him to resume visits to favorite spots with his owner.

Krebs emphasized why she sought overnight care rather than waiting until morning: “Eye problems are always an emergency. If left untreated, foreign objects can migrate, rupture the eyeball, and cause blindness,” she wrote. The visible vertical line on the cornea made the foreign body unmistakable to the examining veterinarians, enabling prompt surgical intervention.

The incident highlights a common range of injuries hunting dogs face during outdoor activities. Injuries common among hunting canines, multiplied by the number of dogs you have, include cuts and lacerations from brambles, barbed wire or other field hazards, musculoskeletal issues such as muscular strains and joint problems, sprains and torn claws, and injuries to the paws from rough terrain — categories that place ocular trauma among the urgent concerns handlers must watch for in the field.

Essential Gear for Hunting with Dogs is widely recommended for protecting hunting dogs during outings. Hunting dog vests, also called chest protectors or skid plates, are the primary recommended piece of equipment to shield dogs’ chests, bellies and vital areas from thorns, briars and rough terrain; these vests often come in blaze orange to improve visibility. Hunters can also equip dogs with face masks and booties to protect against thorns, sticks and barbed wire, and high-visibility blaze orange vests or collars and steady voice recall can help keep dogs safer while navigating dense brush and fields.

Krebs said the episode has changed how she prepares for hunts: she now does more thorough pre- and post-hunt checks and pays closer attention to packing protective gear. She recalled a moment of distress when she realized she had forgotten Hatchet’s goggles before a later outing, anxiety that eased once he was cleared by vets to return to the field.

The emergency clinic in Fargo provided the overnight care and surgical intervention Krebs said likely prevented more severe damage and preserved the dog’s vision. Hatchet’s prognosis in her account is positive: after surgery and post-operative monitoring he is expected to heal fully.

By documenting the timeline — from the first sign of eye irritation through the overnight surgery and subsequent follow-ups — Krebs’ account serves as a reminder to hunters and handlers that ocular injuries in working dogs can escalate rapidly and that prompt veterinary attention can make the difference between recovery and lasting harm.

Source

Original reporting: view the original article.