Herpes in cat's eyes!

ilona

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HELP! My Avatar seems to have a very bad case of Eye herpis [emoji]128557[/emoji][emoji]128557[/emoji][emoji]128557[/emoji] I've only had him for a couple weeks and I'm not sure how long he's been like that... At list another month or more... Took him to the vet twice this week, the swelling went down but you still cannot see his eye... Vet said that he doubts his eye can be saved but I don't want to trust him... Had a week worth of antibiotics, using an ointment and lysine powder... What do I do and how do I know he's right?
 

c-attila

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***I am not a Veterinarian and this information is not intended as medical advice,please discuss this information with your veterinarian***

For treating the symptoms of Herpes you can ask your veterinarian to try Polyprenyl, an immunomodulator medication. http://www.vetimmune.com/go/polyprenyl-immunostimulant.
Also you can ask your veterinarian about Famciclovir, an anti-viral medication http://www.diamondbackdrugs.com/famciclovir-for-fhv-in-cats/
For the eyes discuss Cidofovir eye drops with your veterinarian, it works with just applying it twice a day. http://www.wedgewoodpetrx.com/learn...rse-owners/cidofovir-ophthalmic-for-cats.html
As far as I know, the efficacy of Lysine is still anecdotal but a lot of people use it and have good results, some add Lactoferrin to it, there are several threads about it on this forum. Hope this helps.
 
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mservant

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How is Avatar doing @Ilona?   It is a few days since you posted.

I hope that C-Attila's advice has been helpful.   There is also an article on TCS specifically about feline herpes affecting eyes which might have some useful information for you.
[article="32495"]Ocular Eye Herpes In Cats  [/article]
My cat, Mouse is also prone to herpes lesions in one of his eyes, but thankfully his immune system seems to have strengthened over the last couple of years and he does not get it as often as he did before he was 3 years old.  

I do give Mouse L Lysine paste when he is showing signs such as a runny eye and withdrawing like he feels pain or unwell and keep it up until the symptoms have subsided but I choose not to give it to him continuously as my vets think that possible risks to liver function with long term use would out-weigh the possible benefits.    I couldn't get Mouse to take tablet or powder form - he would foam at the mouth like I was killing him every time I tried, but he loves the paste as it is mixed with fish oils.  

 Initially we did try Famcyclovir but it was very costly and showed no benefits.  I later read that it is thought only to be effective if administered quickly during the first outbreak (and with Mouse he had had 3 outbreaks in his eye before the diagnosis was made).
 
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ilona

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I was using Isathal eye ointment since his first visit to the vet, stopped it 2 days ago because his eye was getting worse and worse thinking of some sort of allergy. He's been eating better and being more playful but his eye looks really bad, you cannot really see his cornea and the inflammation on his inner eyelid scares me :(... I have and appointment with an eye specialist in about 10 days :(, that was the closest opening they had. In the meanwhile since my vet didn't care much about saving his eye I went ahead and ordered doxycline online, trying to cover for chlamydia. It's coming tomorrow and I'm just crossing my fingers this vet is wrong
 

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Is there any other vet around you could take your guy along to for a second opinion?    It can be that the ulcers get so badly infected a cat will lose their eye, but any chance to save without leaving him in ongoing pain would be worth it.  Always best if you can to check that antibiotics are the right ones for which ever infection is present.   Also not to do anything that can reduce his immune system any further as a stronger immune system is so important in holding back any herpes outbreaks.

Your cat is lucky to be with you and that you want to take such good care of him.  
 
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ilona

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Im just lost at this point, I'll try to see another vet within the next couple days. Little rascal keeps begging for milk lol, I gave him a few times because he wouldn't drink water and now that's all he wants.
 

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I would get him to a different vet and ask for some idoxuride drops.  That's what most herpes kitty owners have used with their herpes kitties with eye problems.  Also, adding Lysine to his diet and switching to a grain-free diet will help with his overall health and help him fight off herpes flare ups in the future.  Additionally, keep your schedule as regular as possible. I'm sure the new home stressed him out, triggering the flare up.  You can also use Feliway diffusers to help de-stress.
 
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ilona

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A friend of mine picked him up from a catery, he was already sick when I got him. His eye was already inflamed at the time but she didn't think much and just gave him lysine drops. Just the fact he was given away, not sold(he's a sphynx) plus decoloration of a couple teeth(most probably from antibiotic use) says he's been sick for quite a while. What if is not Herpis but Chlamydia? Only one of his eyes is affected and that calls more for a bacterial infection, from what I've been reading is easy to confuse them and common antibiotics won't work with chlamydia :(
 
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ilona

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I'm just trying to cover as many bases as I can till he gets to see a different vet, [emoji]128557[/emoji][emoji]128557[/emoji][emoji]128557[/emoji]
 

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I definitely wouldn't wait around. Sometimes the viral infection sets up shop for bacteria to have a field day. My Pumpkin face had a bad eye ulcer last winter. She was sneezy and leaky eye. They gave us ointment and it didn't help. we gave it 7 days and went back to the vet-they did an eye stain and sure enough she had an eye ulcer. They gave me 2 different drops=one was bacterial-because anything oral won't reach the edge of the eye due to no blood vessels there-so no matter what you give orally if there is bacterial infection on the eye surface then you will need vet meds to get at it. They had 3 different antibacterial drops and chose one that was broad spectrum. then the other drops were for pain-its actually the drops that dialate the eye but evidently these drops have something in it to take away the pain of the eye infection. I had to wait 15-30 minutes inbetween these two medications. We ended up doing the drops for 3 weeks. I would call a vet and get in to make sure no issues.

also wanted to mention that they won't give you steroid eye drops until the infection is cleared up as I asked. evidently the steroids hamper the work of antibacterial medications or just make it harder to treat infections. Just my personal experience.

I would imagine that eye has to hurt. you can still give the lysine. I was not giving the lysine when all this happened..I do now. I took a month break from lysine and she got weepy eyed..now we are back on lysine and she isn't blinking as much or have inflammation under the bottom of the eyes.
 
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angels mommy

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I definitely wouldn't wait around. Sometimes the viral infection sets up shop for bacteria to have a field day. My Pumpkin face had a bad eye ulcer last winter. She was sneezy and leaky eye. They gave us ointment and it didn't help. we gave it 7 days and went back to the vet-they did an eye stain and sure enough she had an eye ulcer. They gave me 2 different drops=one was bacterial-because anything oral won't reach the edge of the eye due to no blood vessels there-so no matter what you give orally if there is bacterial infection on the eye surface then you will need vet meds to get at it. They had 3 different antibacterial drops and chose one that was broad spectrum. then the other drops were for pain-its actually the drops that dialate the eye but evidently these drops have something in it to take away the pain of the eye infection. I had to wait 15-30 minutes inbetween these two medications. We ended up doing the drops for 3 weeks. I would call a vet and get in to make sure no issues.

also wanted to mention that they won't give you steroid eye drops until the infection is cleared up as I asked. evidently the steroids hamper the work of antibacterial medications or just make it harder to treat infections. Just my personal experience.

I would imagine that eye has to hurt. you can still give the lysine. I was not giving the lysine when all this happened..I do now. I took a month break from lysine and she got weepy eyed..now we are back on lysine and she isn't blinking as much or have inflammation under the bottom of the eyes.
I agree. Ulcers are painful. Angel had one once, & kept his eye closed or squinting, because of that. Definitely needs a vets care asap!

 

mservant

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Affecting the one eye only indicates more likely to be viral to me as if bacterial it is easily spread to the second eye.   Of course it bacterial infection then sets in with an ulcer the bacterial infection can spread across later.   Mouse has only had ulcers in one eye and managed not to get bacterial infections thankfully.

I hope you are able to get your cat to another vet and checked soon.

What kind of milk is he getting?   Does he tolerate cows milk or do you give goat or cat milk?
 

stephanietx

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A friend of mine picked him up from a catery, he was already sick when I got him. His eye was already inflamed at the time but she didn't think much and just gave him lysine drops. Just the fact he was given away, not sold(he's a sphynx) plus decoloration of a couple teeth(most probably from antibiotic use) says he's been sick for quite a while. What if is not Herpis but Chlamydia? Only one of his eyes is affected and that calls more for a bacterial infection, from what I've been reading is easy to confuse them and common antibiotics won't work with chlamydia
You can ask the vet to run the PCR URD test which will tell you if it's herpes or chlamydia or one of the other less common upper respiratory diseases.  However at this point in time, finding a new vet is important.  @Ilona have you found a new vet yet?
 
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ilona

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Called the The next closest one and booked an appointment for Friday, started him on antibiotics today, let's see how it goes. His eye is looking better since the day I stopped using the ointment, hope I hear positive news on Friday
 
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ilona

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Avatar and me wanted to thank you all, you guys are amazing and you've been a huge help!
 

mservant

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@Ilona  Avatar is such a cutie - I adore his 'hands and feet', those fingers and toes are amazing.  
    He must be great fun to watch playing - he has to get well so he has a tonne of energy so we can start to get more photos of him having fun.  


   for the little guy.
 
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ilona

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Hey everyone, touching base to thank you all once again... my kitty poo seems to be doing much better, saw a new vet who's saying that seems like there's no need for enucleation [emoji]127881[/emoji][emoji]127881[/emoji][emoji]127881[/emoji]... so happy about that. His corneal ulcera is healing pretty well, started him on stronger meds and eye drops, hoping to see results soon
 

mservant

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Thank you for posting and letting us know how Avatar is getting on.  Great news with how his eye is healing, and what the new vet has to say.   It sounds like he should at the very least be feeling a lot more comfortable now, and with hope of getting the better of the virus.   Much better chances for him now he is in a safe and loving home where he can hopefully start to relax and build up his immune system.  


Any more photographs to show us?  
 

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That's great OP! I'm sure he feeeeels so much better. I can only imagine how uncomfortable that was.

Just keep in mind the infection probably did take a toll on the eye. There is probably some vision loss or light sensitivities.
Make it a habit to approach him on his "good side".
It usually doesn't come back, but do keep your cats immunity up. Keep him healthy and stress free.

Keep the eye drops on hand just in-case it does come back. Additionally, follow the vets direction, and continue to observe your cats' eye. If the cats eye is still red or watery.
 
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ilona

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The redness is gone, his eye is still cloudy tho. Still coughs and sneezes, she put him on stronger antibiotics for 2 weeks and I'm using eyedrops a few times a day. He's a mouthpiece alright... I don't need an alarm clock anymore [emoji]128540[/emoji][emoji]128540[/emoji]
 
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