Squinting or Blinking: The surface of the eye feels hot and itchy, so the cat may squint or even blink more than usual, or perhaps rub her face along the ground. This is one of the most common signs of conjunctivitis in cats. Red Eye: A red or bloodshot eye. This affects the white of the eye, the lining of the eyelid, or the surface of the third eyelid. When you look carefully the tissue has a rosy glow, or in more extreme cases it is obviously reddened. Discharge: The type of discharge will differ depending on the underlying cause of the conjunctivitis. If an infection is present, the inflammation is usually accompanied by a yellow-green discharge from the eye. In cases of dry eye causing conjunctivitis, the discharge is thick, tacky, and almost glue like. Eyes that are irritated by dust or inflamed due to allergy tend to be very watery. Swollen Eyelids: Sometimes the eye has a puffy appearance because eyelids are slightly swollen.
Allergies: Some cats have allergic conjunctivitis where pollen or other allergens set up an allergic reaction. This causes the eyes to become red and inflamed Irritants: Dust blowing into the eye, shampoo, or accidentally spraying perfume into a cat’s eye can cause irritation that leads to inflammation and redness. Foreign Bodies: This might be a grass awn that has become trapped beneath the third eyelid or long hair that falls into the cat’s eyes. The rubbing causes irritation that leads to inflammation. Dry Eye: It is rare for cats to suffer from a condition known as keratoconjunctivitis sicca, or dry eye. In this condition the cat doesn’t produce sufficient tear fluid to lubricate the eye, which then dries out and becomes red and inflamed.
Bacterial or viral Infection: This can take hold in the eye, just as in any other body tissue. In particular, cats are prone to infection with feline chlamydia, feline herpesvirus, and feline mycoplasma. General illness: Problems such as an upper respiratory tract infection are often accompanied by conjunctivitis. In this case conjunctivitis is just part of a syndrome including a running nose, sore throat, coughing, and sneezing. Trauma: If a cat has a scratch or injury on its eye, it can cause redness and inflammation as a result. Autoimmune Disease: In rare cases the body’s own defense system attacks the lining of the eye as if it is foreign material, leading to conjunctivitis. Eyelid Conformation: Some cats have droopy eyelids. This can expose the inner mucous membrane lining to the drying effect of air, which leads to conjunctivitis. Breeds such as Persians that have flat faces, may also have facial folds which press hair in towards the eye.
Conjunctivitis can occur because of Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV). [5] X Research source The symptoms of this disease include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, weight loss, diarrhea, dental disease, poor skin and fur health, as well as respiratory distress. Take your cat to the vet if he has these symptoms in addition to conjunctivitis.
The vet should rule out corneal ulcers. This is done by placing a special orange dye called fluorescein into the eye. This stains damaged tissue on the surface of the cornea green. The vet may wish to rule out dry eye as well, although this condition is not common in cats. She will test for this with a Schirmer tear test, which involves allowing a special blotting paper to absorb the tear fluid from the eye. If the paper isn’t saturated up to a certain point, your cat may have dry eye.
Corneal ulcers can be very painful and treatment for the ulcer with antibiotic drops is usually enough to settle down the associated conjunctivitis. If dry eye is diagnosed, the vet will treat this problem with artificial tears, lubricants, and either steroid drops or cyclosporine drops.
If the swab comes back positive for chlamydia, then the vet may prescribe a course of oral antibiotics (from the tetracycline family) as well as eye drops. If no bacteria are present then an allergy is more likely and the vet may prescribe steroid drops.
