Worried---Two eyes, two cats

nil4664

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This morning one of my cats was squinting in the left eye and the other cat was squinting in the right eye. I figured they got into a swatting match and accidentally scratched each other's eyes, but I looked with a flashlight and couldn't see any scratches or anything.

This evening there is a drop or two of white cloudy discharge coming from the eye on one cat. The other is still just squinting. I put some Erythromycin ointment left over from a previous vet visit in the squinty eye of both cats.

Is there any way the ointment could be detrimental?

Have you ever heard of an infection, or virus, just hitting one eye? They do sleep together nose to nose many times. Should I put some in both eyes, or wait and see tomorrow?

The cat with the discharge has been washing her face for nearly 1/2 hour so she should have all the medicine out by now.
And of course tomorrow would be Thanksgiving, the vets are closed, and I have to go to dinner for a couple of hours out of town.

Nancy
 

the_food_lady

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Hi,

I take it the Erythromycin ointment was eye ointment? If so, I'm sure it won't hurt anything (as long as it wasn't years old/expired!)

Sounds very much like they got into a scrap and each got a scratch. even though you maybe can't see it, a Vet would be able to by using a special light/instrument that magnifies things. (opthalmoscope) Usually the Vet will put in a special eye drop to stain the eye........that turn off the room light and use the opthalamoscope to check for a scratch, ulcer etc. I'd get them both into the Vet as soon as you're able. He'll determine if it's just a scratch or a torn cornea (and the degree of same). Is there an Emerg Vet Clinic around that you can pop them into? I know myself, with 5 cats, i tend not to let eye issues go.......just because a scratch can be quite painful.....

Might be a good idea to clip their claws, or if you can't do it, whenyou take them to the Vet, have them clip their claws.
 

simkie

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Eyeball issues are an emergency visit. They can go bad VERY quickly, comprimising the sight (or entire eyeball) of the cat. Infection is not uncommon. The eyes need to be stained to properly evaluate whether or not there is a scratch. This is not something you want to be treating at home with left over antibiotics. Call the vet and get an appointment ASAP. I would not treat with anything until the vet evaluates--you very well may cause more harm than good.

Good luck.
 
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nil4664

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Update

I've got some more clues this morning. The cat with the runny eye looks better in the eye I treated, but her other eye is now squinty and a little runny (clear).

The cat with just a squinty eye looks the same. The eye ointment was what the vet prescribed to her as a preventative when she had a virus infection in her head a month ago, but it seemed to make her worse, so I stopped it. It's not outdated. So now I'm pretty sure she is allergic to the carrier in it.

I hear what you're saying, but if it is a scratch so tiny it would take dye to find it, wouldn't they just put antibiotic ointment in it and say keep an eye on it anyway? And what's the chance both cats would have a scratch like that. I think it's bacterial.

I understand the rules on here, that you're not allowed to prescribe treatment, and I appreciate it.

My mom has some terramycin ointment she uses on her goats for pinkeye. I'm going to try that because I think it may have a different carrier, and see how it goes. I'll take them in on Friday if there's no change.

Thanks guys.
 

fuzmugly

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Zoe had a similar problem a year ago. Took her to the vet, eye was stained, and was told to add Lysine to her diet. It's used to treat the Herpes virus in cats. I simply crushed one 500 mg tablet into a powder and mixed it into her wet food. After a week it went away. She had the occasional flare up the following three months, but has been symptom free since.
 
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nil4664

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Thanks. Lysine was what the vet prescribed for the virus head cold, as well as the eye ointment, for the one that seemed to have a reaction to it.
 

mrblanche

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I was going to suggest it sounded like a herpes flare-up and lysine would be a good supplement for a few days.
 

goldenkitty45

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I would get them both in for an eye exam as soon as possible. I had a RB kitten that got in a wrestling match with his brother. He almost lost his eye - they had to stitch it shut. That's one reason I start trimming nails on 4 week old kittens!

Sounds like a minor scratch, but better to be safe then sorry. Hope the vet doesn't find anything really bad.
 

simkie

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The problem with treating eyes on your own is that there are A LOT of different pathogens that infect eyes. It could be any number of bacterial infections. It could also be fungal. The treatment for a fungal infection is different than the treatment for a bacterial infection--and treating for the wrong one can allow what IS growing to take off. If that happens, you may lose the eye.

Eyes really are one area where you don't want to screw around with advice from the internet and medication you just happen to have in your house. It's really important to get into the vet, get the eye stained and get the proper medication for what's actually going on. When eyes go bad, they go VERY fast and they are VERY painful and difficult to treat. Best to catch it now, rather than a week from now when you find out you've been treating fungal infection with an antibiotic and there's no option but to remove the eye.
 
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