Quick answer: Dry eye in dogs — keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS) — happens when the tear glands no longer make enough of the watery part of the tear film. The cornea dries out, and the eye compensates with thick, sticky mucus. Your vet diagnoses it with a one-minute Schirmer tear test, and in most dogs it is a lifelong immune-mediated condition managed with prescription tear-stimulating drops. English Bulldogs carry 38 times the odds of a crossbred dog. No rinse, wipe or home remedy fixes it, but it is very manageable once correctly identified. Alongside prescribed therapy, a non-medicated dog eye cleaning rinse (isotonic, pH 7.0–7.2, filtered to 10 microns) is there only to clear built-up mucus and debris — never as a substitute for the drops your AVS-licensed vet prescribes.
The frustrating part is how ordinary it looks at first: a little goopy discharge, a dull eye, a bit more blinking. Many owners in Singapore wipe it away for months, blaming the humidity or the aircon, and only learn the real cause once the cornea has already started to change.
What dry eye in dogs actually is
A healthy tear film has three layers: oil from the meibomian glands, water from the lacrimal and third-eyelid glands, and an inner mucin layer. Dry eye is a failure of the watery layer. In most dogs the cause is immune-mediated — the immune system slowly destroys lacrimal gland tissue — which is why the condition tends to appear in middle age and gets worse over time rather than clearing up.
Two things then happen together. The cornea loses its lubrication and becomes irritated, inflamed and prone to ulcers. Meanwhile the mucin-producing cells work overtime to compensate — which is why the classic sign of dry eye is not a dry-looking eye but a stubbornly gooey one.
Singapore's climate does not cause KCS, but it can muddy the picture. Outdoors, the air is hot and humid all year round (mean relative humidity of about 82%, according to the Meteorological Service Singapore), while many dogs spend most of the day in air-conditioned HDB flats and condos, where the air is far drier. Owners often put a gooey eye down to "the weather"; with dry eye, the discharge keeps coming back whatever the room conditions.
Signs of dry eye in dogs
The pattern counts for more than any single sign: dry eye is chronic, usually affects both eyes (not always equally), and keeps returning however often you clean it.
| Sign | What you will see | Stage |
|---|---|---|
| Thick, ropy, grey-green mucus | Sticky strands that re-form within hours of cleaning | Early and ongoing |
| Dull, lustreless cornea | The eye loses its wet "shine", especially in the centre | Early |
| Red, thickened conjunctiva | Persistent pinkness around the white of the eye | Early to moderate |
| Squinting, pawing, light sensitivity | Signs of real corneal pain | Moderate |
| Corneal pigment and blood vessels | Brown or dark discolouration creeping in from the edge | Advanced — threatens vision |
| Corneal ulcer | Sudden pain, cloudiness, eye held shut | Emergency |
That grey-green mucus is the most misread sign of the condition. Owners take it for pus and assume an infection, when it is really the mucin layer of the tear film with too little water to thin it. If your dog's discharge is green or yellow, our guide to green eye discharge in dogs explains how to tell the two apart. The warning signs of a dog eye infection are worth knowing too, because dry eye and secondary bacterial conjunctivitis often go hand in hand. And if the surface has turned hazy rather than merely dull, take it seriously: untreated dry eye is one of the routes to a corneal ulcer and a cloudy eye.
Which dogs are most at risk
The largest primary-care study analysed 363,898 UK dogs and found KCS in 0.40% of them (O'Neill et al., Journal of Small Animal Practice, 2021). That sounds low until you look at the breed figures — and several of the high-risk breeds are popular choices for Singapore homes.
| Breed | Odds vs crossbred dogs | What it means in practice |
|---|---|---|
| American Cocker Spaniel | 52× | Yearly Schirmer test from middle age |
| English Bulldog | 38× | Highest-risk flat-faced breed — see below |
| Pug | 22× | Watch for pigment in the centre of the cornea, not just discharge |
| Lhasa Apso | ~22× | Long facial hair hides early discharge |
| All brachycephalic breeds | 3.63× vs mesocephalic | A flat face is a risk factor in its own right |
| All spaniels | 3.03× vs non-spaniels | Risk rises steadily with age |
For HDB flat owners this matters: the Pug, Lhasa Apso, Shih Tzu, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and Boston Terrier (Lightweight or Middle weight) all appear on HDB's list of approved breeds, so a good share of Singapore's flat-dwelling dogs sit in the higher-risk groups. AVS also singles out brachycephalic (flat-faced) breeds as dogs with particular health concerns that owners should weigh up before buying, including the medical costs involved.
Bulldog dry eye: why the standard test can miss it
This is the part most articles leave out, and it changes what you should ask for at the appointment. In a flat-faced dog, dry eye is often not a tear-production problem at all. It is a tear-retention problem — and a Schirmer strip only measures production.
Bulldogs, Pugs, Shih Tzus, Boston Terriers and Pekingese have shallow eye sockets, prominent eyeballs and, often, eyelids that do not fully meet. Lagophthalmos — incomplete eyelid closure — has been documented in 82% of Shih Tzu eyes, with an average 15% gap left at the end of each blink. In that same group the median Schirmer value was 25.0 mm/min: comfortably normal. Yet those eyes showed measurable tear-film instability (Vitor et al., Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica, 2024, 28 dogs). Normal tear volume, abnormal eye surface. A result of "22 mm, all fine" in a Bulldog does not settle the question.
Two more findings make it worse. Tear secretion measured by Schirmer test runs roughly 14% lower in brachycephalic dogs than in other dogs with no eye complaint, and corneal sensitivity is reduced — nerve density is lowest at the centre of the cornea, exactly where exposure damage lands. Because of that shift, flat-faced dogs with readings of 12–13 mm/min plus clinical signs are considered candidates for medical therapy, rather than the usual threshold of under 10 (Plummer, Today's Veterinary Practice, 2026, review of brachycephalic ocular syndrome).
Put it all together: a Bulldog can score "normal" on the one test everyone runs, feel nothing while the centre of the cornea dries out because it has less sensation there, and turn up months later with pigment already laid down. Instead of settling for a bare Schirmer number, ask for a tear film break-up time, an assessment of blink completeness, and a fluorescein stain. Flat-faced dogs also show other surface-protection problems that look alarming but are separate issues, such as a third eyelid showing across the corner of the eye. Our brachycephalic breed care guide covers the heat, breathing and eye issues these dogs face in Singapore's climate.
Three less common routes to the same result
- Drug-induced. Sulfonamide antibiotics and etodolac can reduce tear production, sometimes reversibly if caught early — a good reason to tear-test dogs on long-term sulfa drugs.
- Neurogenic. When the nerve supply to the tear gland is disrupted, one eye goes dry — and so does the nostril on the same side. In a Zurich series of 11 dogs, that pairing came with an average Schirmer value of 1.9 mm/min, was usually of unknown cause, and several dogs responded to oral pilocarpine (Matheis et al., Veterinary Ophthalmology, 2012). Mention a crusty nose to your vet; it changes the treatment plan.
- Congenital alacrima. Puppies born with underdeveloped tear glands. Yorkshire Terriers — another HDB-approved breed — are clearly overrepresented and respond poorly to standard therapy, so the outlook is guarded (Westermeyer et al., Veterinary Ophthalmology, 2009).
How dry eye is diagnosed
The Schirmer tear test takes one minute. A calibrated paper strip is tucked into the lower eyelid and the vet reads how far the tears wick along it. Normal canine values are generally above 15 mm/min; readings below 10 mm/min with matching clinical signs support the diagnosis, and anything under 5 mm/min is considered severe. It is usually paired with a fluorescein stain to check for the corneal ulcers that dry eyes are prone to.
No home test can stand in for this. You cannot judge tear volume by looking, because the visible wetness on a dry eye is mucus, not tears. In a predisposed breed, ask your vet centre for a Schirmer test at the annual check-up — the study authors recommended exactly that. In a flat-faced breed, ask for the break-up time as well, for the reasons above. Singapore has more than 120 AVS-licensed vet centres listed on AVS's public registry, and many of them can perform both tests in a routine consultation.
Treatment: what actually works
Topical immunomodulators are the backbone of therapy. Cyclosporine eye ointment is the long-established first-line drug, with tacrolimus as an alternative or step-up. They calm the immune attack on the lacrimal gland so it can resume making tears — addressing the cause, not just the symptom. Prescription medicines like these are prescribed and supplied through your AVS-licensed vet.
The classic study of 36 dogs found that topical cyclosporine raised tear production by 5 mm/min or more in every dog that started above 2 mm/min, and in 59% of eyes that started at 0–2 mm/min. It also reversed long-standing corneal pigment and blood-vessel growth, even where tear production never improved (Kaswan et al., Archives of Ophthalmology, 1989).
The catch: this is lifelong management, not a cure. When UC Davis researchers withdrew immunomodulator treatment from 14 well-controlled dogs, half the eyes fell from an average Schirmer value of 15.9 mm/min to 6.1 mm/min, taking about three weeks to drop below the 10 mm/min threshold (Park et al., Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, 2021). Stopping because the eye "looks better" is how dogs relapse. Artificial tears help with comfort but do nothing to restore gland function.
Where daily eye hygiene fits
Here is the straight version, because a lot of marketing gets this wrong: no rinse, wipe or supplement is a treatment for keratoconjunctivitis sicca. Prescription cyclosporine or tacrolimus does that job, and nothing on this page replaces it. What careful daily hygiene does is clear away the mucus that builds up between doses, so the medication reaches the surface of the cornea instead of sitting on a crust, and trapped debris does not scratch a fragile cornea.
For that job the liquid you use matters. Our Pure Majesty Pets dog eye cleaning rinse is formulated at pH 7.0–7.2 to match the natural tear film, and it is isotonic and sterile-filtered to 10 microns, so it does not sting an inflamed eye. It contains sodium hyaluronate at 0.05% — the water-binding molecule used in eye lubricants — with no alcohol, bleaching agents or added fragrance. To be clear: it is a non-medicated hygiene rinse, not therapeutic artificial tears and not a treatment for KCS, and it is used in addition to — never instead of — the drops your vet prescribes. Technique matters as much as the liquid, so read our step-by-step guide on how to clean around your dog's eyes properly.
In Singapore, shelf alternatives such as Petkin Tear Stain Eye Wipes or MicrocynAH Eye Wash are stocked by Kohepets. They can help with surface grime, but like any rinse or wipe, they do nothing for tear production — and none of them replaces prescription therapy.
The same caveat applies if you are considering daily antioxidant support: Advanced Vision drops for dogs are a maintenance supplement for an ageing dog's eyes, dosed by body weight — not a treatment for a diagnosed tear-film disorder. They are made in North America in a GMP facility, with a certificate of analysis for every batch. In Singapore, pet supplements are regulated by AVS as animal feed. For the full routine, browse our dog ear and eye care range, and for clean, debris-free eyes start with the eye cleaning rinse.
Delivery to Singapore: Free worldwide shipping — ships to Singapore with duties and GST prepaid (DDP), nothing to pay on delivery. Allow 5–14 business days after dispatch. Check the product page for current S$ prices and bundle savings.
Five mistakes that cost dogs their sight
- Treating recurring discharge as a cleaning problem. Wiping the same eye clean every day for weeks is a diagnostic clue, not a chore. Book the tear test.
- Accepting a normal Schirmer in a flat-faced dog as the end of the matter. See the Bulldog section above — production can be normal while the tear film still fails.
- Reaching for human redness-relief drops. Tetrahydrozoline and naphazoline narrow blood vessels and mask inflammation without dealing with it; they are not suitable for dogs.
- Using leftover steroid eye medication. On an ulcerated cornea — a real risk in any dry eye — topical steroids can speed up damage badly. Nothing steroidal goes in without a fresh fluorescein stain.
- Stopping treatment once the eye looks good. The eye looks good because of the treatment. See the withdrawal data above.
When to call your vet today
Get a same-day appointment if your dog is squinting or holding the eye shut, if the eye looks cloudy or hazy, if pain suddenly increases, or if the discharge changes character abruptly. Any of these can signal a corneal ulcer, which gets worse fast in a dry eye. Persistent redness on its own also deserves a look, and squinting in one eye calls for a prompt first-hour response.
Out of hours in Singapore, several AVS-licensed centres offer 24-hour emergency care — for example Beecroft Animal Specialist & Emergency Hospital (991E Alexandra Road), VES Hospital (232 Whitley Road), Westside Emergency (86 Serangoon Garden Way) and the Bedok branch of Advanced VetCare. This is not a complete list; call ahead before you travel.
A practical note for active dogs: NParks' dog-run rules ask that dogs be healthy and free of open wounds. A dog with a painful, squinting or ulcerated eye should skip the dog run at East Coast Park or Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park until your vet gives the all-clear.
Frequently asked questions
Are Bulldogs prone to dry eye?
Yes. In a study of 363,898 UK dogs, English Bulldogs had 38 times the odds of KCS compared with crossbred dogs, and flat-faced breeds overall had 3.63 times the odds of mesocephalic breeds. Flat-faced dogs also lose tears faster because they do not blink fully, so a Bulldog can show dry-eye damage even when its Schirmer reading looks normal.
Can dry eye in dogs be cured?
Immune-mediated KCS is managed rather than cured. Most dogs need topical immunomodulator therapy for life, and tear production usually falls again within weeks if it is stopped. Some drug-induced and neurogenic cases can resolve once the underlying cause is dealt with.
Can I use human artificial tears on my dog?
Vets sometimes suggest plain preservative-free lubricant drops as a comfort measure, but they do not increase tear production and cannot replace prescription therapy. Ask your AVS-licensed vet before adding anything, and avoid any human product sold for redness relief.
Is dry eye painful for dogs?
Yes. The cornea is packed with nerves, so a poorly lubricated one is genuinely uncomfortable — hence the blinking, face-pawing and sensitivity to light. Corneal sensitivity is reduced in flat-faced breeds, which is why those dogs sometimes show damage before they show discomfort. Comfort usually improves within weeks of the right treatment.
Does Singapore's humidity protect my dog from dry eye?
No. KCS is mostly an immune-mediated problem with the tear glands, so outdoor humidity does not prevent or fix it. Dogs that spend long hours in air-conditioned rooms may simply show signs sooner. Persistent sticky discharge in any climate is a reason to ask your vet for a Schirmer test.
Can I get a Schirmer tear test at any vet in Singapore?
It is a quick, routine test that most AVS-licensed vet centres can perform during a standard consultation. For flat-faced breeds, also ask for a tear film break-up time and a fluorescein stain, since a normal Schirmer result alone can miss tear-retention problems.
References
- O'Neill DG, Brodbelt DC, Keddy A, Church DB, Sanchez RF. Keratoconjunctivitis sicca in dogs under primary veterinary care in the UK: an epidemiological study. Journal of Small Animal Practice. 2021;62(8):636–645. PMID: 34134171. PubMed
- Vitor RC, Teixeira JBC, Santos KC, et al. Shih-Tzu dogs show alterations in ocular surface homeostasis despite adequate aqueous tear production. Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica. 2024;66:1. doi:10.1186/s13028-024-00724-2. PMID: 38229091. PubMed
- Plummer CE. Understanding and Addressing Brachycephalic Ocular Syndrome. Today's Veterinary Practice. 2026. todaysveterinarypractice.com
- Kaswan RL, Salisbury MA, Ward DA. Spontaneous canine keratoconjunctivitis sicca. A useful model for human keratoconjunctivitis sicca: treatment with cyclosporine eye drops. Archives of Ophthalmology. 1989;107(8):1210–1216. PMID: 2757551. PubMed
- Park SA, Good KL, Thomasy SM, Kass PH, Murphy CJ. Effect of withdrawing chronic topical immune modulating treatment on Schirmer tear test values in dogs with dry eye disease. Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics. 2021;37(7):394–398. PMID: 34232790. PubMed
- Matheis FL, Walser-Reinhardt L, Spiess BM. Canine neurogenic keratoconjunctivitis sicca: 11 cases (2006–2010). Veterinary Ophthalmology. 2012;15(4):288–290. PMID: 22051024. PubMed
- Westermeyer HD, Ward DA, Abrams K. Breed predisposition to congenital alacrima in dogs. Veterinary Ophthalmology. 2009;12(1):1–5. PMID: 19152591. PubMed
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine (Riney canine health programme). Keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS) in dogs. vet.cornell.edu
- Animal & Veterinary Service (NParks). Flat-faced and heat-intolerant dogs. nparks.gov.sg
- HDB. Keeping pets: approved dog breeds. hdb.gov.sg
- Meteorological Service Singapore. Climate of Singapore. weather.gov.sg
- AVS. Public registry of AVS-licensed veterinary centres. avs.nparks.gov.sg
This article is for general information only and is not a substitute for advice from your veterinarian. If your dog shows signs of illness, contact your AVS-licensed vet.