Conjunctivitis in Cats - Causes and Symptoms

Author: Peter Berry
Date Of Creation: 11 February 2021
Update Date: 3 November 2024
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Cat’s Eyes swollen and watery: Cat Conjunctivitis Treatment
Video: Cat’s Eyes swollen and watery: Cat Conjunctivitis Treatment

Content

THE conjunctivitis it is one of the most common eye problems in cats. It is easily detectable, quite uncomfortable for our pet and if we don't treat it, it can result in more serious eye problems such as a ruptured cornea.

If you believe that your cat may have conjunctivitis, pay attention to this article by PeritoAnimal in which we will talk about conjunctivitis in cats, Yours causes and symptoms, in addition to telling you about some natural remedies.

what is conjunctivitis

Conjunctivitis is the inflammation of the eye mucosa, that is, from the membrane that covers it and from the inside of the eyelids. It can occur for several reasons and the symptoms are very clear, so it is easy to detect it in our felines. But conjunctivitis can be a symptom of another, more serious disease, so even though we can treat conjunctivitis at home with some medication, we should take our partner to the vet.


In the case of domestic cats, it usually occurs in small cats under 6 months of age, especially if they have not been properly cared for or have been out and about trying to survive. Once the veterinarian diagnoses the problem in our pet, he will indicate the treatment to follow, which will usually be topical in the eyes to apply several times a day for several days, in addition to eye hygiene care. In addition, if it is suspected that conjunctivitis may be a symptom of a more serious illness, the veterinarian will perform the appropriate tests to identify the causative agent and thus be able to treat the affected individual.

The prognosis will be good if detect conjunctivitis early and as more time goes untreated, the prognosis will worsen. You should bear in mind that felines often relapse, when at another time they suffer from some illness and their immune system is weakened. In addition, depending on which was the disease causing conjunctivitis, we should think that, even when our cat is cured, it can be a carrier of the disease and transmit it to others of its species.


Therefore, it is important to bear in mind that feline conjunctivitis is a condition that can occur in any specimen of any age and that can become catastrophic for the cat's eye health if it is not diagnosed and treated in time and deep, even losing sight completely.

Types of conjunctivitis

there are different types of conjunctivitis in cats or Felis sylvestris catus such as:

  • serous conjunctivitis: This problem is minor, easy to treat and the symptoms are mild.For example, the eye membrane is pink and a little inflamed, and the tears are liquid and transparent. It may be a first symptom of a respiratory illness, but it is usually caused by cold temperatures, dust, wind and allergies.
  • follicular conjunctivitis: In the case of follicular conjunctivitis, the ocular secretion is mucous rather than liquid. The back of the nictitating membrane and the eyelids get larger and a hardened surface forms. It usually occurs due to an allergy or an infection.
  • bacterial conjunctivitis: This type of conjunctivitis is a complication of serous conjunctivitis, which is worsened by a secondary infection due to bacteria. The eye secretions are so thick that the eye secretion is mucus or pus and crusts form on the eyelids. If conjunctivitis of this type occurs in both eyes at the same time, it is possible that the cat has a viral respiratory illness.

In addition, we can classify feline conjunctivitis according to its origin in infectious, traumatic, allergic and parasitic:


  • Infectious diseases: Some infectious diseases that have conjunctivitis in cats among their symptoms are Feline Rhinotracheitis Virus or Feline Herpesvirus, Chlamydia and Feline Calicivirus.
  • systemic hypertension.
  • Internal eye inflammation or uveitis caused by Feline Leukemia Virus, Feline Immunodeficiency, Toxoplasmosis and Feline Infectious Peritonitis.
  • In cases of cancer, some changes of this can cause conjunctivitis. For example: ocular lymphoma and squamous cell carcinoma when they occur in the ocular area.
  • Traumas: caused by blows, scratches, foreign bodies entering the eyes, burns, etc.
  • hereditary problems: In some breeds of felines it is the case of hereditary diseases that affect the eyes and these facilitate conjunctivitis. For example, in the case of Abyssinians there is retinal atrophy, in Manx corneal dystrophy and in Burmese there are eyelid alterations.

Main causes

Conjunctivitis in cats can occur due to eye infections, allergies or due to various diseases, but especially those that affect the respiratory system.

These diseases, which have conjunctivitis among their symptoms, are many and highly contagious, in addition they have a high probability of leaving eye damage if they are not treated in time.

Other causes are the environmental dirt in which the cat lives, as they will easily produce infections that will lead to conjunctivitis, not cleaning your cat's eyes, excessive cold and drafts that cause colds and other respiratory diseases. Finally, we add that they can also occur due to some genetic problems that facilitate the appearance of conjunctivitis.

most common symptoms

Conjunctivitis can be easily detected by its most common symptoms such as:

  • Irritation of the ocular conjunctiva, that is, redness of the eyes and their mucous membranes (inner part of the eyelids).
  • tear constant that causes puffiness of the eyes.
  • thick eye discharge in abundance (excess of ramelas), sometimes yellowish or greenish.
  • The third eyelid sticks out due to swelling.
  • In puppies, due to swelling and secretions, they get the eyes half open and it costs them to open them.
  • sit itchy eyes, so they usually wash and scratch a lot with their paws.
  • In advanced cases it can occur corneal opacity.
  • Another symptom in long-term cases is the changes in color and shape of the iris.

Recommendations and Home Remedies for Feline Conjunctivitis

At PeritoAnimal we recommend that if you identify any of the symptoms mentioned above in your companion, do not hesitate to take him to the vet, since it can be a simple conjunctivitis due to mild problems or a symptom of a serious illness. The specialist will indicate the appropriate treatment, which, in addition to medication, may include some home remedies.

It is very important to remember that there are viral diseases that can cause many problems besides conjunctivitis, which have a vaccine and that is why we must follow the vaccination schedule. Also, once we've gone through this, if our pet has a relapse, we'll notice it sooner and we'll be able to act at home with remedies to alleviate the symptoms and we can even prevent conjunctivitis. Next, let's show you some home remedies to prevent and treat feline conjunctivitis:

  • It's always good to keep our pet's eyes clean, even if they do, with saline and sterile gauze. This way we are able to prevent them from accumulating mites and dirt that can cause eye infections. We should always use different gauze for each eye and clean from the inside out. It is very important that you do not use cotton instead of sterile gauze, since cotton leaves filament residues very easily and this becomes a foreign body in our cat's eye, causing several problems.
  • With one proper nutrition we get the cat to have a strong immune system.
  • If we see that our partner scratches the eyes a lot, we should try to prevent it from doing so, as it is more likely that it will end up inflicting a wound.
  • To soothe itchiness, inflammation, redness and other symptoms, after cleaning the eye, we can apply sterile gauze around a finger. chamomile or thyme infusion, in the same way that we explained before with saline solution.
  • If we have several pets, the best will be separate the affected from the healthy to avoid contagion and, in addition, clean and disinfect their beds, blankets, etc.
  • There are products for sale in stores specializing in animals such as artificial tears and eye baths. With these products we help keep your eyes clean and hydrated, respecting the pH of our feline's eye. It is good to apply the drops in the eyes, at the dose indicated on the product and then cover the eye with a damp cloth with warm water for a few minutes and then do the same in the other eye with a different cloth.
  • We must keep our cat's fur healthy and clean. In this case we insist on fur around the eyes that we can brush it out of the eyes and cut it at home if we have the right material, or the safest one, take it to the vet to have it done. This way we can avoid eye irritations and infections.
  • Remember that one of the causes of conjunctivitis is colds caused by air currents, so we should try to have the house windows closed or ajar. If we are going to travel by car with the cat, we must think the same with the car windows and with the air conditioning, try that it is not coming directly to your pet.

In case you check the symptoms, you should always take the feline to your veterinarian specialist, since if it is a conjunctivitis, it is most likely that he will recommend some medication in addition to other things that we can do at home.

This article is for information purposes only, at PeritoAnimal.com.br we are not able to prescribe veterinary treatments or perform any type of diagnosis. We suggest that you take your pet to the veterinarian in case it has any type of condition or discomfort.