Check Cat's Eye Discharge for Health: Essential for New
Cats, much like humans, can have a small amount of eye boogers, which is quite normal. However, if there's an excessive amount or if the color is unusual, it often indicates underlying health issues. These can include issues such as cat heat, eye inflammation, or entropion. As a new pet owner, it's crucial to be observant, catch these signs early, and intervene promptly to prevent the situation from worsening!
Understanding Your Cat's Eye Discharge: A SelfCheck Guide
1. Normal Eye Discharge
Normal eye discharge in cats is typically white and semitransparent, turning into dark brown granules as it dries. The amount of discharge should be minimal daily, and a quick wipe should suffice to keep it under control.
2. Abnormal Eye Discharge
(1) If you notice yellowgreen, puslike discharge in the corners of your cat's eyes, it's often a sign of eye inflammation, possibly due to bacterial or viral infections. Over time, this can lead to red, swollen eyes that may not open easily and be sensitive to light.
(2) A large amount of yellowbrown discharge may indicate that your cat is suffering from heat, often caused by a salty diet or highprotein cat food.
(3) Severe tear stains, along with dark brown discharge or puslike secretions, could be due to entropion, hair irritation, or nasal duct obstruction.
(4) Dark red or yellow discharge with blood streaks is usually a result of trauma, more common in multicat households.
How to Address Different Situations?
1. Brown Discharge or Tear Stains
✔ Adjust your cat's diet to a lowsodium cat food;
✔ Encourage your cat to drink more water and supplement with vitamins;
✔ Avoid feeding your cat human food or highprotein treats;
✔ If tear stains have already formed, use a warm damp cloth to wipe them away, doing this twice a day to gradually lighten the stains;
✔ Use petspecific Splendor (Honeysuckle Eye Rinse) to alleviate eye heat, redness, and excessive secretions, and to prevent eye inflammation. For cats that frequently suffer from heat, consider oral KavaKava (Clear Heat and Toxin Remover Tablets), a traditional Chinese medicine ingredient.
2. Yellow or Dark Red Discharge
✔ Use Berlon (Neomycin Sulfate Eye Drops) to alleviate eye inflammation, and if the eyes are swollen, administer Asulod (Cefadroxil Tablets) to control infection;
✔ Clean your cat's eye secretions regularly to relieve discomfort;
✔ Fit your cat with an Elizabethan collar to prevent it from scratching its eyes and causing further injury.
Important Notes:
1. If your cat has a large amount of puslike discharge, along with red eyes, sneezing, and a runny nose, it may have contracted respiratory diseases like feline rhinotracheitis or feline calicivirus. It's essential to seek veterinary care for PCR testing to diagnose the cause and receive appropriate treatment.
2. Avoid using human eye drops as they can be too harsh for a cat's eye and may cause damage due to differences in their body structure and metabolism.
