Randomly Unequal Pupils

I might be going crazy.

But two days ago, Elza was looking at me and one of her pupils was clearly bigger than the other.

It went away, and I thought I was dreaming. But then, yesterday, I held her on her back, her face towards the sun, and one of her pupils was less dilated than the other one again.

I went to get a flashlight (I mean, at that point I was worried she had hit her head and was having a concussion so I wanted to make sure if what I was seeing was real).

I came back and her pupils were normal again. Nothing special today. Is that even normal?

She has no discharge. Sometimes she gets hairs in her eyes and she's squinty for a while, but when I clean her eye I can clearly see the hair in the eye discharge (yes, yuck). Other than that she is fine, not wobbly, not disoriented.

Did anyone ever see anything like that?

I think that might happen if the light is shining brighter on one eye than on the other, but not completely sure.  I know if they STAY that way, you should take her to the Vet, 'cause that's not a good sign. 

Maybe now that's Ive bumped this up, someone else with more info on this will chime in. 

From what I have read about cats' eyes they should be like human eyes and not react independently to light.  There are many different causes of pupils reacting independently like you describe @Nissie  , some like scar tissue or poor development of the iris, and others like head injuries, neurological changes and viruses.   I think it is important that you try to get an appointment with a vet so they can complete a thorough check of your cat's health.  Any observations you are able to make before you take your cat along to the vet will be helpful to them, and may also be useful in deciding the urgency of any appointment when you contact the surgery initially.

I hope it is something straightforward and not serious.  Please do try to let us know how things go.  

As mservant said above, cats pupils are much like humans and should not be responding differently to the extent that you're actually really noticing it. Differences caused by light intake are usually very slight because cats heads are so small they are rarely in a space with ultra varying light.
It could be something simple like said above and I wouldn't freak out because she isn't showing any worrying symptoms, but if you see this happening again I would try and get her to a vet. I mean it can't do anything but help IF there is a problem.

Thank @mrsgreenjeens for bumping this up and the others for replying!

So, I'm noticing that cat is eating a bit less (they are on a 2 times a day eating schedule) and there is always some left in her bowl. She now shies away from me when I try to pet her, and won't play with Neymar tonight...

I'm starting to get worried. She also seemed to have nausea after eating earlier today. She drinks quite a lot of water but I'm not sure...

Her Vet appointment is on the 25th. Should I take her to a vet hospital instead?

Is it possible to phone your vet to describe the other changes you are noticing? They might be able to offer you an earlier appointment if you tell them about these new changes?  

The shying away from petting, reduced play, and not eating as much all suggest that there is something going on.   It would be difficult for anyone other than a vet to know if it is something needing urgent attention, but if she stops eating enough that can cause other problems and become life threatening pretty quickly for older cats (I'm not sure how old she is).    If there is something neurological happening it depends what it is whether you would see a sudden deterioration.  

It is a difficult decision as you don't know what is happening or how serious (or not) it might be:  if I were you and I had the resources to get to an emergency vet appointment  I would probably go for an appointment as soon as I could.    Anything that would help me feel I was doing anything I could to help.  It could be something really simple, but it could also turn in to a life threatening emergency.

Calling the vet as soon as they open, but they are closed Wednesday and Thursday and last time I checked they were full I don't trust the other vets in my area as they tried charging me 1.5k when she had pyometra (my usual vet kept her for a week and did the surgery all for a fraction of that price.)

I usually feed them grain free kibble, and suddenly she wouldn't finish her bowl. She did however gulp down the wet food I gave her this morning instead. She stopped crouching,slept on me in the early morning, was very cuddly, until she ate. Back to being kind of distant.

Argh.

She is barely 1 and a half.

Update: Finally got a hold of the vet. He heard "unequal pupils" and he immediately gave me an appointment at 5 tonight.

I'm worried sick, and I can't concentrate on work

The symptom "unequal pupils" is called Anisocoria. It can be a symptom of many problems.

Here is a link to a web page that is all about Anisocoria in cats:

http://www.vcahospitals.com/main/pe...article/animal-health/anisocoria-in-cats/3877

Sorry not to respond to your earlier post about the vet response @Nissie  , I was logged in but fell asleep.   It stil might be something really simple and not serious and your vet is caring and wanting to make sure - just in case there is something going on which they can catch and maybe prevent an emergency.  Busy thinking of you here and sending loads and loads of positive vibes your way.   Your baby is very young and I think that must make all this seem even more worrying because you don't expect stuff like you do with an older cat.   I wouldn't be able to concentrate either.   Try and be as calm as you can around your cat as this will help her stay calm too.

So vet is kind of stumped. Elza's pupils definitely constrict differently. But she isn't dizzy or wobbly. She is constipated and her blood panel shows... inflammation.

He gave me some Prednisolone and a deworming kit (in case parasites have gotten to her brain). He said to watch her and to bring her back if she starts showing other neurological symptoms. As she is now, he can't possibly justify a 2000$ brain scan (too little symptoms).

Everything else is apparently fine.

I'm still stressed out

Hard not to stress when  you see a change and don't know what is causing it.     But hey, at least the vet has checked all the usual signs and nothing is showing up so Elza looks to be in good general health and not about to have some sudden stroke or anything.  This is good.  She is probably wondering why you have been all anxious and what she was doing at the vets when she feels fine.        She is very lucky to live with a caring and observant human who has taken her to get checked out, and will still watch over her to make sure she stays healthy.   Now you are alert to what her eyes are doing, and have her checked at the vet, if you notice any other changes you will be in a good place to check out with the vet in future.   Hopefully this is just some unusual reaction she has developed but which is stable and not going to develop anything else unusual or affecting her overall health.

Has she settled down from her trip to the vets?  Hopefully not too unhappy about taking the med's the vet has given you.  

It will be difficult but try not to stress and worry too much over her as she will probably pick up on your worry and that won't help her.   Lots of pampering for both of you would be my reccommendations at this point.  

She is a good girl, I'd 100% blame myself if something happened to her.

She seems fine, although I caught her trembling earlier today I find solace in the fact that when she developped pyometra in January she sought our "protection" (asking us to stay near her, come with her under the covers, come with her under the bed :'D)..

Anyways, I emailed the only pet ophtalmologist in the area (you never know) and I secured a second opinion vet in case she shows new symptoms. Her f/o apt. is on July 15th and after that I'm leaving both of them with a sitter to go visit my grandma (who is VERY old and dying) during 3 weeks.

Crappt timing

Sorry, I need to vent and I'm pretty sure my entourage finds it weird that I'm that worried about a cat.

But I rescued her, she is my responsibility

That is doubly hard that your grandma is so sick and you need to go see her.  Making these choices is so painful.   When my first cat suddenly showed signs of a massive neurological incident it was Christmas eve and an inexperienced locum vet didn't know what was happening and said to keep her at home until they reopened on the 27th - which I did, but had family 50 miles away that didn't get how I might not feel able to join them for Christmas as had been planned.  I ended up leaving my sick kitty for about 8 hours so I could join older family for the festive dinner, and then raced back home as soon as I could.  Thankfully she was stable for the time I had left her but it really pained me to do it.  It's great you can get a cat sitter.

Just a thought, but is there any way her eyes might have been reacting independently for a while and not been noticed? Possibly from when she had the pyometra? Infection or surgical complications might have caused slight neurological damage at that time which is now stable?

Huh. I didn't not think of linking the pyometra/emergency spay to her current situation. To be honest, if the issue is pre-existing, I have not noticed it before...

The pet ophthalmologist has written back, he said that it wasn't normal but could be benign, therefore suggesting taking an appointment and having the issue checked. I might skip tonight's second opinion vet and go straight to the ophthalmologist, I don't know. I just need to fix this before I leave, I couldn't live with myself otherwise.

And I'm taking a pet insurance, that's it.

Update.I cleaned the litter this morning and I found my necklace. MY NECKLACE.Elza seems to be doing much better. I thought I had a cat, not a clueless puppy.

Nissie said:

Update. I cleaned the litter this morning and I found my necklace. MY NECKLACE. Elza seems to be doing much better. I thought I had a cat, not a clueless puppy.

Click to expand...

I'm glad your kitty is doing better hopefully that was the only inedible thing that she ate.

Nissie said:

Update. I cleaned the litter this morning and I found my necklace. MY NECKLACE. Elza seems to be doing much better. I thought I had a cat, not a clueless puppy.

Click to expand...

Eeeek, do you think she did eat it like Raina21 mentions, or might she have taken it there and burried it?  Which ever, she is definitely getting up to mischief.       If there is any chance she ate it and it passed through, you are really lucky as it could have got tangled and maybe even needed emergency surgery - need to make sure she doesn't get her fangs on any cords, chairs, ribbons.       If she was trying to get the necklace through her system it might be why she was hiding and reluctand to be touched for a while as she probably had a rather sore belly...  the vets deworming kit might have helped shift it.  

Let's say that the way the pendant was encased in poop leaves little to doubt. I need to kitty proof the house.

That explains her nausea, low food intake, constipation and seeming pain.

She is still avoids me touching her, though. But I'm starting to wonder if it's due to the fact that she used to always have someone with her at home, and that now that both cats are alone with me, and that I work long hours, she might have become more skittish or she is retaliating? 

I don't think cats retaliate and respond in the same ways as humans can, but your thoughts about being more skittish would make sense.  One or both of them could easily be experiencing anxiety as a result of having you around less, and if she is the only one it may be that the relationship between your cats has been going through a change too at this time and perhaps she is not as dominant as she was.  It is worth observing them both very carefully - and yes, make sure that anything which is long cord, string, tape, or chain is well out of her way.   I couldn't believe my eyes the other day when I found what looked like some red string in Mouse's poop tray.      The monster had managed to chew and pull and chew his way through a large section of the thread formerly edging a fleece blanket we both use regularly.         I have now pulled off the remaining edging stitching.