A six-year-old intact male Pomeranian was examined because of right eye discomfort. An iris neoplasm was suspected and the eye was enucleated. A uveal melanoma with malignant features was diagnosed. The dog recovered uneventfully from surgery. A general physical examination was performed at 3-month intervals afterwards without any detectable problem, but 18 months after the first presentation the dog suffered a rapid, progressive paraplegia. Radiographic examination and myelography revealed a spinal cord compression at the level of the 8th thoracic (T8) vertebral body. Surgical exploration of the area revealed a potential vertebral neoplasm: histopathology confirmed a melanoma which was suspected to have resulted from metastasis from the previously diagnosed uveal melanoma.

Rebound tonometry was a practical and rapid means of determining IOP in small- to medium-sized tortoises that required minimal manual restraint of the animals. Establishing IOP values in healthy Hermann's tortoises will provide a reference frame for use during complete ophthalmic examinations, thus allowing clinicians to diagnose a broader spectrum of ocular pathological conditions in tortoises.

To determine normal intraocular pressure (IOP) values by means of rebound tonometry in unanaesthetised ferrets, and to compare rebound and applanation tonometry, 55 clinically healthy ferrets were included in an observational, prospective, blinded study. On 52 ferrets, IOP was measured by means of rebound and applanation tonometry. On 3 ferrets, rebound tonometry was performed every two hours over a 24-hour period. Mean IOPs of the 104 eyes obtained with the rebound tonometer were 14.07±0.35 (95% CI 13.37 to 14.77) tonometer-units (TU). The IOP was significantly higher in males than in females, controlling for age and weight. A study-ordered decrease in coefficient of variation (CV) was observed (measurement 1-52=21.2±1.4 per cent v measurement 53-104=14.4±1.1 per cent) and high CVs (>30 per cent) were significantly less frequent in measurement 53-104. A significant difference in IOP during the 24- hour measurements was found, with the lowest IOP recorded at 22:00. The tonometers presented poor agreement, and IOP values were not correlated. The difference in IOP estimation increased with the magnitude of the measurements. Applanation tonometry presented a significant higher frequency of per-eye IOP values exceeding 25 and 30 TU, and a significant lower repeatability (CV=37.1±2.6 per cent v 17.8±1.2 per cent) compared with rebound tonometry. In conclusion, several factors need to be considered when measuring IOP in ferrets.

Clinicians should be aware that three large Italian dog breeds frequently suffer PIED. Breed standards should be reconsidered, and breeding programs should be directed at limiting such disorders.

Objective To evaluate effectiveness and safety of debulking and diode laser photocoagulation (DPC) for the treatment of limbal melanoma (LM). Procedure Retrospective multi-institutional case series. Medical records of animals diagnosed with LM at the Centro Veterinario Specialistico (CVS) and at the Long Island Veterinary Specialists from 1994 to 2014 were retrieved. Signalment, location, extent of tumors, recurrence rate, and early and late complications were reported. Patient follow-up information was obtained from veterinary ophthalmologists, primary care veterinarians, and where appropriate, owners.Results Twenty-one eyes of 21 dogs (13 females and 8 males) were included in this study. The dogs' average age was 6 years (range: 7 months-11 years). The follow-up period ranged from 1-108 months (median 48 months) after the last DPC procedure. Long-term follow-up was obtained by telephone interviews in 6 of 20 cases and by clinical re-evaluations in 14 of 20 cases. The most common early complications were a moderate anterior uveitis and peripheral corneal edema (21/21 eyes). Late complications included corneal fibrosis and/or pigmentation (20/21). In one case, a severe bullous keratopathy associated with extensive corneal fibrosis was observed (1/21). One case was blind due to concurrent Sudden Acquired Retinal Degeneration (SARD). However, after surgery 2 of 20 eyes lost vision and one of these was enucleated.Conclusions Debulking, in addition to diode laser photocoagulation, was technically straightforward to perform, minimally invasive, well tolerated, and highly successful in this case series.