Eye Discharge

[Lennie B.]

One of my sister's two cats occasionally has a clear, watery discharge from one or both of her eyes. The last time this happened, my sister took her to the vet, who, after examining her eyes, diagnosed conjunctivitis. He put her on antibiotic drops, which my sister administered exactly according to instructions, and the inflammation disappeared. Since then, Prudence has had several other episodes of watery eyes, and today they were watering quite a bit. She isn't rubbing them or giving any other indication that she's in discomfort, but my sister is monitoring the situation and will take her back to the vet if necessary. We're wondering whether the discharge could be due to an allergy. Has anyone had a problem with eye discharge in an otherwise very healthy cat?

[4 feline house]

It could be an allergy, or it could even be herpetic keratitis. Since it is recurrent, she probably needs to go to the vet again.

[Lennie B.]

I just checked out "herpetic keratitis" on the internet. Since Prudence has been vaccinated against rhinotracheitis, which causes it, it seems unlikely that herpetic keratitis is the cause of the discharge. If this persists, however, my sister will definitely take her back to the vet.

[Randi]

Have you seen the good links Sirocco provided? Here's the thread:

Eye discharges, cats

Good luck!

[Logan]

I have antibiotic drops on hand at all times. We've used them on the hamsters, cats and dogs. I am not sure what the weather is like where you are, but spring has sprung in SC and along with it lots of pollen, which irritates not only human eyes, but our pet's eyes too. I use warm water on a washcloth and bathe the eye area to clean it and then put in the drops when needed. So far......haven't had the need for any drops yet this spring, and nobody is itching either. Thank goodness!

I hope the kitty's eyes will be better soon.