kitty eye problem

I just found this board and think it's great. We recently (one week ago) adopted 2 5 month old kitties. We brought them home and on the second day one of them had a lot of eye discharge, he shuts it more than the other one, and eye goopies. We called the shelter and they said it could be him getting used to our place. She said to wipe it clean when it gets bad. IT is also a little pink. When should we begin to really worry it and take him to the vet?
Also when should we give them wet cat food? My wife thinks every day but I think I read on here that it should be used as a treat.

Thanks for your help!

It could be something as simple as an eye infection from an upper respiratory infection or could be feline herpes. Either way a vet should see those eyes.

As for wet food, my girl gets it everyday. I feed her merrick's with felidae dry to nibble on while I'm gone if she wants it.

Originally Posted by leppy

I just found this board and think it's great. We recently (one week ago) adopted 2 5 month old kitties. We brought them home and on the second day one of them had a lot of eye discharge, he shuts it more than the other one, and eye goopies. We called the shelter and they said it could be him getting used to our place. She said to wipe it clean when it gets bad. IT is also a little pink. When should we begin to really worry it and take him to the vet?
Also when should we give them wet cat food? My wife thinks every day but I think I read on here that it should be used as a treat.

Thanks for your help!

Click to expand...

If the eye goop is greenish coloured get him back to the vet. Eye infections are nothing to fool around with and just to be on the safe side have it looked at.

As for wet food - I doubt you would have read anywhere on this site that dry food is better. In fact, a wet food diet is far healthier for your kitty than dry. Dry food is full of carbohydrates and fillers and can cause cats to be overweight (although in the case of kittens this won't likely be a problem). Kittens should be fed a kitten quality food until at least 10 months old (I personally believe 1 full year but there are others here who think the cat may gain too much weight on kitten food). I feed Merrick wet morning and night with a good quality dry food (1/3 cup for the kitties to share) for free-feeding while we are at work during the day.

Also, if you feed quality foods (wet and/or dry) you will find your cats will eat less since they don't need to eat as much to get the nutrition they require.

If you get the chance post some pictures in the fur pictures forum - we'd love to see your babies.

The goop is not greenish in color at all. Mostly clear. Some days when we come home we think it looks like it is getting better and then later it looks worse. Is this something we should take to the vet?
As for food we give them dry during the day to eat and then in the evenings we give them wet with dry mixed in. Should we continue feeding them this way? If so, for how long?

How do I post pictures on here?

I just found this board and think it's great. We recently (one week ago) adopted 2 5 month old kitties. We brought them home and on the second day one of them had a lot of eye discharge, he shuts it more than the other one, and eye goopies. We called the shelter and they said it could be him getting used to our place. She said to wipe it clean when it gets bad. IT is also a little pink. When should we begin to really worry it and take him to the vet?
Also when should we give them wet cat food? My wife thinks every day but I think I read on here that it should be used as a treat.

Thanks for your help!

I do not wish to alarm you, I am just giving you some information about a friend's similar experience (you can read my thread "Will someone, please, shed some light.") Eye discharges on a kitten can't be taken lightly. They could point out to very serious underlying problems. A visit to a vet is a must and, if it the situation does not clear, some blood work is imperative.

If the kitty starts sneezing a lot or has discharge in the nose get to the vet right away. Since I foster alot of young kittens I see this quite often and the vet usually prescribes "Terramycin" ointment. You can also pick this up at your local feed store. Clean the eye really well with warm water and a cotton ball and apply the ointment to the eye about 3 - 4 times per day. The discharge shoud clear up in about 2 days. Find a good vet in your area and get them checked out and be sure they are cueernt on all thier shots.

Welcome to TCS I hope that you learn alot here just like I do.

Originally Posted by leppy

The goop is not greenish in color at all. Mostly clear. Some days when we come home we think it looks like it is getting better and then later it looks worse. Is this something we should take to the vet?
As for food we give them dry during the day to eat and then in the evenings we give them wet with dry mixed in. Should we continue feeding them this way? If so, for how long?

How do I post pictures on here?

Click to expand...

Do you have a vet (other than the shelter) that you can call and discuss the eye problem with? Also, have your kittens had all their vaccinations? I personally would take them to the vet just for an overall health check including the eye.

There is no need to mix the wet and dry food if they are happy eating either. I would only suggest mixing them if the cat didn't want to eat one or the other. Our 2 get one 5.5 ounce can to share each day plus about 1/3 cup dry food left out while we are at work during the day.

Actually the shelter has a vet at their site so we are taking Sly to see her today after work. We have been cleaning it with a warm towel. She said that she see this all the time and can clean him up.