Something is wrong with Chloe's eye

She's always kind of squinted a lot with her left eye only. Lately it's been much more noticable though. My SO looked at it and he thinks there is a little 'lens' on her eye, as if she was wearing a contact lens and he says the surface of the eye looks rough. (I can't get a close enough look at it, she's too squirmy). I did manage to look at it and saw what just looked like a hair. She also has been getting more eye tears than normal. She tries to focus on things but can't seem to do it without shutting her left eye.

What could this be? Do you think it's time for a vet visit? She was just at the vet last week for her spay surgery, could it have something to do with that?

She'll be 6 months old on February 15th.

Oh, and she's on amoxicillan right now (she had a 7 day course starting after her spay surgery, she's almost done with it). Tested negative for FIV / FeLV.

Hopefully, more substantive advice will be appearing shortly, but a call to the vet is always quicker and easier than a trip to the vet, and the answer the vet's office gives you about whether or not to come see them is probably more informed than most opinions you will get here.

Translation: at least call the vet.

A little “lens†or film over the eye can actually be the nictitating membrane or “third eyelidâ€. Sometimes when there is an injury to the eye, caused by a foreign body for instance, the third eyelid comes out to protect the eye.

Squinting can be caused by all kinds of eye irritation or inflammation, including foreign material (hair for instance) trapped behind the eyelid and nictitating membrane. If a foreign body is trapped behind the third eyelid, you need to use a topical eye anesthetic before you can lift up the eyelid and remove the foreign body. (I wouldnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t want to do that on my own.)

To remove debris from the eye that you can clearly see, you can use wet cotton and squeeze the water from it into the eye. You may be able to remove the foreign body by gently swabbing the eye with the wet cotton.

Since foreign body in the eye can cause corneal abrasion (a potentially very serious problem) and a corneal abrasion cannot heal as long as the foreign body remains in the eye, if you suspect a foreign body, an immediate vet visit is extremely important to prevent serious complications. Delay in treatment can lead to corneal ulcer or keratitis.

Since this seems to be an ongoing problem, your kitty should have an eye exam as soon as possible to find out whatâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s wrong. (And no, this would have nothing to do with the spay surgery.)

You can check with a magnifier for hair or other foreign body in the eye. A magnifier makes it so much easier to see such things.

Originally Posted by Enuja

Hopefully, more substantive advice will be appearing shortly, but a call to the vet is always quicker and easier than a trip to the vet, and the answer the vet's office gives you about whether or not to come see them is probably more informed than most opinions you will get here.

Translation: at least call the vet.

Click to expand...

Oh I know, I just like having TCS input because odds are that one person here at least has had issues with their own cat's eye. I guess I wasn't really expecting anyone to say "nope, calling the vet would be stupid" So to clarify, has anyone experienced this with their own cat and what did it turn out to be?

I've been doing some research and it sounds like maybe conjunctivitis, especially because it comes and goes:
http://www.animaleyecare.net/disease...unctivitis.htm

Gah, the thought of having to give Chloe eye drops just sounds like a blast

I don't see her third eyelid unless I pull open her eye, so I guess that is a good sign?

Violet - thanks for the tips about removing debris from the eye. If it's just a hair (she has long hair), then I hope I'd be able to remove it without a vet visit.

I didn't think it had anything to do with her spay surgery but I seem to remember a member here that has a cat that went blind after their spay (it's one of the complications that can arise I guess? I don't know much about it).

Seriously, my vet is doing very well because of me. I have been there so often these past few weeks (and months). They know me by name...not a good sign? lol

I would take her to a veterinary opthamologist. I lost my cat to eye cancer this year, and he'd been to the regular vet every year and nothing was noticed. He would also periodically squint -- which I didn't know was serious, but now -- after much post-cancer research -- know that signifies pain.

I'd also taken him to a vet that I no longer go to when spots first appeared in his eyes, and was told all was well and they were normal pigmentation changes. (That was years ago.) It turned into a cataract, and again, despite his yearly exams, no vets were concerned.


Long story short, a veterinary opthamologist is your best bet. The eye cancer my cat died of is rare (and remember, it wasn't caught till too late), but it's so much better to be safe than sorry and missing them forever. Because that cancer is so rare, I don't think his regular vets had experience with it, and so missed it when it could have been caught early. (Even his cancer vet had only seen one other case in her years of practice.) That's why I vote for a veterinary opthamologist. Because I'd do anything to have my cat back.

I second a visit to a veterinary opthamologist. That film/debris sounds like it could be a corneal ulcer, where the top layer of cells shed due to a viral infection in the eye. (Typically, this is caused by Herpes Feline Virus-1). The squinting and tearing signifies pain and inflammation. If it is an ulcer, your kitty will need special anti-viral eye drops to allow the surface of the cornea to re-epithelialize. (Typically antibiotic eyedrops are given as well to prevent secondary infection.) Good luck and keep us updated!

I have a vet appointment tomorrow so I will let you all know how it goes.

She doesn't have spots on her eye, which is a good sign