raw skin around the eyes?

hey guys,

this might be nothing, but i wanted to see if anyone had an opinion.

my cat lily has what looks to be raw skin around one of her eyes. it doesn't seem to bother her at all, but i've noticed that it sometimes takes a little while for her to fully open that eye after napping.

i've attached the photo and would love to hear what people have to say...just want to make sure my babygirl is alright!

thanks

Could be a virus, like herpes, or even an allergy or sensitivity to something in the environment. If she has any discharge from that eye it would be best to get it tested by the vet to see if they can find anything.

thanks for the feedback. i assume it might just be some kind of sensitivity, but her eye has been like this since i got her (a few months ago). she gets crusties in both eyes from time to time like most cats do, but i've never really thought much of it up until now.

Get her tested for herpes, just in case. Lots of cats have it and there is a supplement that can help the immune system keep it in check. But if ignored, and in times of stress, it can flare up into a serious illness.

If she comes back negative then you have to start ruling out everything from a litter cause to what you clean with - which is actually a lot more time consuming.

My cat got the same exact thing while sick...I later found out he had fatty liver disease, diabetes and kidney failure and had to be put down. I asked the vet if his eyes looked ok when I originally brought him into the vet and he said he looked fine, but a day later he was on his death bed. Not to scare you, as I'm not exactly saying they're linked, but it could be a sign of underlying illness and I would say it's something to look into.

Definitely worth a vet visit - especially if it's been like this a while and she's got the crusties. One of our kitties was badly infected with the herpes virus - and that's what a mild case would look like. Of course it could be a lot of things, and that it doesn't seem to bother her doesn't mean a thing.

Thanks guys. I've made an appointment with the vet and hoping for the best.