All cat lovers who do not resist the temptation to try to help these puppies that keep meddling under a car, have already wondered why the kitten has so many oars or why it has a half-closed eye.
Being away from the sandbox is a stressor for the cat and, if you can’t see it, imagine feeling unsafe.There may be many culprits in the answer to the question of why my cat is so sick.Animal Expert article, we will introduce the most common!
- Feline herpesvirus type 1 (FHV-1) is responsible for the so-called “flu” in cats.
- Has a particular tropism for the eye region and respiratory system.
- That is.
- It causes a condition that we can simplify by calling conjunctivitis and problems of the upper respiratory tract: sinusitis.
- Sneezing.
- Rhinorrhea (nasal secretion) etc.
Almost no kitten in a litter that the mother carries will be free to contract the virus, as the infection is reactivated with the stress of childbirth, although it has remained dormant for a long time.This virus can affect kittens even when they are still in the mother’s uterus and, as a result, are born with the affected eyeball.It usually causes acute infections in kittens younger than 3 months and moderate or latent infections in adults who have managed to control the initial infection through an immune system.
At the eye level, it can result in different clinical signs that have a common denominator: many pills appear in cats, viscosity and color are different; In short, what happens in these eye processes is insufficient production of tears, so mucous membranes and lipids predominate.on the same aqueous portion and, for this reason, the pills appear, and it also has the following clinical signs:
Herpesvirus infection can be a gateway for several bacteria that complicate the disease. Treatment involves the use of locally applied medications such as antiviral eye drops, such as fanciclovir or aciclovir, and the control of opportunistic bacteria with antibiotics, lubrication and cleaning of secretions in a Usually long and require much dedication by the tutor.
In the presence of remels in cats, veterinarians often perform the so-called Schirmer test, which measures tear production and initiates treatment with eye drops.
If a cat overcomes an acute infection without collateral damage, although it may still have a sequelae in the cornea, it will become a chronic carrier, the infection will reactivate from time to time, with milder conditions that may even go unnoticed.notice that our cat closes its eyes a little bit or that the cat cries a lot.
Calicivirus is another responsible for “flu” in cats.It can only affect the eyes or cause respiratory symptoms and eye discharge.It can also cause oral mucosa ulcers without other associated clinical signs.
Although the trivalent vaccine in cats, which includes FHV-1, calicivirus and panleucopenia, protects them from infection, there are two problems:
After infection, the virus is constantly excreted and, therefore, relapses of conjunctivitis are common isolated or with associated respiratory signs such as cough, sinusitis, sneezing …
As respiratory signs are the most common, chances are to use an oral antibiotic that is also excreted by tears, which helps control secondary infection by opportunistic bacteria, if your veterinarian deems it appropriate you can tell you an antibiotic and/or anti-inflammatory eye drops (if the conjunctive is severely affected).The fact that there is a decrease in the production of tears makes this option widely used.Antivirals are not as effective as FHV-1.
Serological tests are performed to reach the diagnosis, as in the case of herpesvirus, although clinical suspicion and response to treatment may be sufficient.
The Chlamydophila felis bacteria do not participate in cat flu, but can appear in the eye after a viral infection, taking advantage of weak defenses.
It usually produces an acute infection, with intense mucopurulent eye secretion and great inflammation of the conjunctiva.
Treatment of feline chlamydia, once identified by evidence of work (a sample of the conjunctiva is taken with a swab and sent for a laboratory culture) is based on ointments or eye drops from a specific group of antibiotics (tetracyclines) for several weeks.
If the infection and production of granules in the eyes of our cat does not improve with the usual eye drops, our veterinarian will suspect this bacteria during the controls and will surely require specific tests to detect it and carry out the appropriate treatment.
In brachycephalic breeds (such as the Persian cat), it is very common to have constant secretions in the tear fluid and, for this reason, this type of cat tends to live constantly with oars.
Due to the head face of these breeds, their nasolacrimal ducts can become clogged, with tears spilling outwards and the medial area of the dry, glued eye.The final appearance is like a kind of brown crust or viscous palette and a dirty appearance of this area, with redness in the area of the conjunctiva.In addition, bulging eyes (exorbitant eyes) may dry out.
A daily cleaning of secretions to prevent drying and forming wounds, either with saline or with specific products, is essential in these cats, if our veterinarian deems it appropriate may recommend the application of an artificial tear to avoid the cornea.Don’t miss our article to learn how to clean your cat’s eyes step by step.
This article is for informational purposes only, in Animal Expert.com.br we cannot prescribe veterinary treatments or make any type of diagnosis, we suggest that you take your pet to the veterinarian in case of any condition or discomfort.
If you would like to read articles similar to, we recommend that you visit our Eye Problems section.