milky white eye

My year old cat has a milky white cloudy eye, just her right one. It seems to always be that way just worse for a few days then it gets better, then comes back and so on.

When she went to get spayed last Friday I had them take a look at it and they just gave me the Terramycin again. They didn't relly tell me anything else. Stupid me for not asking anymore about it.

Since I brought her home she has started tilting/jerking her head to the left almost like she has water in her left ear (thats what I do when I have water in my ear). I think it has something to do with her eye though. She has always seemed to not see too well when it comes to finding treats or small things I throw to her to play with.

Any thoughts on this at all? Could she be blind? I am going to try to take her to the vet Saturday maybe, you don't need an appointment you just show up and wait so I might try that. But she was JUST there and they only gave me that cream. It just doesn't seem like some little cream is going to help her eyes. What exactly does this cream do? Thanks.

Jen,
My Tiki had the same thing a few months ago. I thought for sure she was blind because there was no way she could see through that. The Vet told me that it was a severe infection & it will get better. It took a few weeks before the white & grey colors were completely gone.

The medicine that the Vet gave you was an antibotic, so I'm assuming that she's got an infection similar to Tiki's. As for her shaking her head, I'm not sure what could be causing that. Sometimes that happens if they get ear mites & start to itch. But I was also thinking that if her eye(s) are watering, the "tears" could be leaking into her sinuses. I'm not familiar with a cats anatomy, but if it's anything like humans when it comes to ears, nose & sinuses it could be a possiblity. I'd definitely take her back in & ask about her ears...and find out what exactly is wrong with her eye.

I've attached a picture of Tiki's eye. Does it look like that or similiar to it?

hey thanks for the reply, its weird cuz the cluodiness looks like its just on the surface of the eyeball, and its a consistant amount over the entire eyeball. Its really hard to see the actualy colored part of the eye.

She doesn't really have any runniness coming from her eyes, its just the white color is all that is different than normal. I will just continue to use the cream and see if it clears up and if not or if it comes back than I will take her in again.

If anyone else has experience with this or has any other opinions, I would like to hear about it. Thanks.

I have had some experience with a blind cat.

This is just my opinion, it sounds like your cat is tilting her head to compensate for an increasing loss of vision in her right eye. Try writing some questions down on a piece of paper so you can refer to them when you talk to the vet.

Originally posted by Jen
hey thanks for the reply, its weird cuz the cluodiness looks like its just on the surface of the eyeball, and its a consistant amount over the entire eyeball. Its really hard to see the actualy colored part of the eye.

Click to expand...

I know exactly what you mean by being on the surface. The Vet told me that the infection (at least with Tiki anyway) gets into the cornea which has many thin layers. Once the infection gets in between the layers (which are clear), it makes the eye look cloudy or milky. I had asked him about the milky film when I had her in there & he said that is appears to be on the surface, but it's actually slightly deeper than what it appears.

With that picture of Tiki, it was taken before it had gotten worse. I had to wait several days before I could take her in & by that time, I couldn't see any color of her eye....it was all grey. It was really gross & scary too. I just thought for sure her eye was permantly damaged, but it's normal now. The only really strange thing that happened with her eye was that dark brown spot in the middle. She's got bright blue eyes & all of a sudden this dark spot showed up. It's been close to 2 months since her infection & the spot is barely there yet. Everyday it's showing improvement. The Vet said that it could have been an ulcer on top of the infection or just a scratch on her eye.

Definitely keep a close eye (sorry for the pun!) on it & if it doesn't show any improvement, it's a good idea to take her back in. They may need to change medications or do a swab test on her eye.

Jen, one of my cats had they same problem, but she did not shake her head. It was a infection of the inner eye and they gave me the same antibiotic cream. It was just one of her eyes and then it spread to both eyes. It did clear up with the use of the cream. Make sure you finsih the treatment. Do not stop putting the antibiotic in her eye when the cloudiness goes away. Make sure you complete the full treatment. I would still take your cat back to the vet to have the eye checked and tell them about the head shaking. By the way, what part of Ohio are you from? Just curious

Thanks for all of your suggestions, I will use the medication until the end, it seems like it will last forever cuz there's so much in that little tube. I hope it clears up ok.

AmberTheBobcat-I am from Kent OH, I live on the border of Kent and Brimfield. What part of Ohio are you from?

The most common cause of a milky white eye (that covers the whole eye) is edema or fluid in the cornea (outer layer of the eye). This can be from infection, trauma,etc. Did you vet use a little strip or a drop to put flourescein in your kitty's eye? That would show if there truly is a an ulcer or abrasion in the cornea. Antibiotic ointment is often the best therapy.
When you finish the course of medication you may want to request that they stain the eye to be sure it is healed.
Deb E

Jen, I live on the north coast along the lake just east of Cleveland. I take my cats to a vet in Chesterland, the West Geuaga Veterinary Hospital. The vets there are very good, friendly and take the time to know you and your pet. We took our bobcat to be spayed and microchipped there as well. I hope your cat's eye gets better soon.

Someone sent me this link for an animal eye clinic. You can see the pictures and symptoms that may relate. I hope your kitty has none of those problems.

Animal Eye Clinic