Ghostie's irritated eyes

When I got Ghost from the pound last June - he was already producing that reddish-brown discharge from his eyes that turns kinda crumbly. As his overall well being improved, the problem seemed to, as well. Yet his eyes remained somewhat sensitive to light. (they are powder blue).

In the last week or so- his eyes have gotten really sore.. with some of the brown stuff coming out. The vet said allergies are a possibility, but more likely is chronic, low grade viral (herpes). It is in my house now! Sighh..... Archie has problems -he and G have been sneezing intermittently. Prowler and Rex have those brown tear stains. They have developed and worsened over time.

Vet says that is due to swelling and possible scarring of the tear ducts and there is not much that can be done.

She prescribed antibio eye ointment for G. Been doing this since Thursday night. 2x/day. His eyes don't seem to be getting better. If not better by Monday he is going back.

Any advice on this? It hurts my heart to see poor Ghost - who is the sweetest little fella... suffering with sore, irritated eyes. Squinting, blinking and using his 3rd eyelids a lot. He HATES having the ointment put in. Thank goodness my BF has been around to help.

For the record - they are all on lysine and have been for about a month.

I am also working hard to determine if there are any environmental causes - like dust or mold. But wouldn't that show up as itching? I don't know.

Now here comes the emotional, guilt-laden part: Sigh... did I bring this on cats that would otherwise have been healthy???? Should I have been more careful? I tried my best to quarantine each new cat. Sometimes they got out. And they all live communally now sharing food and water dishes, etc.

I feel bad that one or more of these guys was likely a carrier or active when they came into my home and how they are ALL exposed. But then - it could have happened at the pound, too. They all came from the same place.

At least they are happy and cared-for - eating, drinking, playing - instead of dead. Which is what would have happened if I hadn't taken them in.

A little something popped up in Ghost's lab work that prompted a call from the vet. His "crit" was a bit low. Something like 28. Not an alarming thing, but the vet did suggested I give G red meat twice a week. He is healthy other than the eye issue I posted about on this sub forum.

Just looking for some reassurance... and any input from folks whose cats may have or have had mild anemia.

Has URI been ruled out?

I hope they all recover soon, and that it's not herpes.

How often does it happen? Does it happen when the weather changes or when the seasons change? If there's chaos or stress in the home, does it seem to happen then?

It definitely got worse with the spring pollen season... it was better in the fall and winter. Nothing to speak of re: changes in the home or environment.

Archie's problem may be viral. It only manifests itself in one eye... though this season, both have been affected.

And two others for sure have the tear overflow problem.

No lab confirmation of herpes... just a strong hunch by the vet that I probably have a low-level viral issue in the house. And possibly that the seasonal stuff is compounding it.

Re: seasonal ... is there anything besides Benadryl that I can give to Ghost? I will ask the vet tomorrow.

You can give 1/4 to 1/2 tab of Claritin once a day. I get the generic from Wal-mart. They dissolve easily in water, so I add a couple of teaspoons of water to my girls' wet food concoction and they never know the difference.

for allergies - have you tried frequent flushing with sterile saline? i have one who has seasonal allergies, his eyes get really yucky during times with heavy pollen. i rinse his eyes out with saline 2 times a day or so and it really helps.

Originally Posted by kwren

for allergies - have you tried frequent flushing with sterile saline? i have one who has seasonal allergies, his eyes get really yucky during times with heavy pollen. i rinse his eyes out with saline 2 times a day or so and it really helps.

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I have human artificial tears and was using that on him until the vet put him on antibiotic ointment. She also now believes that allergy IS playing a role in things based on some new info that I gave her. I also gave him some Benadryl hidden in some pill pockets this evening. Let's see if that helps him, as well, but my human eye doctor told me that when there are allergies in the eyes you need to treat the eye directly.