Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 2: How to Identify and Treat the Cause of Conjunctivitis
• Part 2 of 2: How to Prevent Recurrent Conjunctivitis
• Tips
• Warnings

Conjunctivitis is an inflammation of the conjunctiva, the thin lining of the eye and the inner surface of the eyelids. This is the most common eye condition in cats. Most cats have conjunctivitis at some point in their lives. As a rule, with conjunctivitis, the cat's eyes look bad, the animal feels severe discomfort. Start treatment right away to help relieve your pet.

Steps

Part 1 of 2: How to Identify and Treat the Cause of Conjunctivitis

1. 1 Determine the cause of conjunctivitis. Feline conjunctivitis is contagious and non-infectious. Infectious conjunctivitis is caused by viruses (feline herpes virus, feline calicivirus), bacteria and fungi. Non-infectious conjunctivitis can be caused by foreign objects (such as dust), chemicals, and allergens.
   • The most common causes of infectious conjunctivitis are feline herpes virus, feline chlamydia, or mycoplasmosis. Chlamydia and mycoplasmosis are caused by bacteria.
   • Take your pet to the veterinarian for the doctor to figure out the cause of the conjunctivitis. If the conjunctivitis is not non-infectious, your veterinarian will order a variety of tests to help identify the infection.
2. 2 Discuss treatment options with your veterinarian. Once your veterinarian has determined the cause of your conjunctivitis, he or she will recommend an appropriate treatment. Discuss your options with him. Except in special cases, treatment for common conjunctivitis usually consists of topical antibacterials and anti-inflammatory drugs (such as hydrocortisone) that are instilled into the affected eye.
   • If conjunctivitis is caused by a feline herpes virus, treatment includes topical antiviral and antibacterial agents and oral interferon alfa, which suppresses the immune system's response to the virus.
   • For common or feline herpesvirus-induced conjunctivitis, topical antibiotics can help cope with a bacterial infection when the body's immunity is suppressed as a result of a viral infection.
   • For bacterial conjunctivitis, topical antibiotics are used. Tetracycline helps with chlamydia.
   • If a foreign object gets into your cat's eye, your veterinarian may perform surgery to remove it.
   • Topical eye medications are available as drops and ointments.
3. 3 Isolate the sick cat. If you have more than one cat in your home, you should isolate the sick animal during treatment. Infectious conjunctivitis can easily spread from one cat to another, so you need to take appropriate measures to prevent other pets from becoming infected.
   • Isolate the cat during treatment.
4. 4 Bury your cat's eyes or apply ointment to them. It is more convenient to use eye drops rather than ointment, but at the same time it is necessary to bury the eyes quite often (3-6 times a day). Eye ointments can be used less frequently than eye drops, but they are more difficult to apply. If you are unsure of how to administer medications to your pet, ask your vet to show you how.
   • If the veterinarian prescribes drops, he will write how many drops and how often should be given to the animal.
   • Before you put the eye in or apply ointment, you may need to remove the discharge around the eye with a clean cotton ball and eye wash solution. Your veterinarian will recommend the right solution for you.
   • The eye drops spread quickly over the surface of the eye, so there is no need to rub the eye after instillation.
   • The ointment should be applied with a smear across the eye. The ointment is relatively thick, therefore, after applying it, it is necessary to cover and lightly rub the eyelid so that the ointment is rubbed over the surface of the eye.
5. 5 Complete the full course of treatment. It is likely that the animal's eyes will improve within a few days after starting treatment. but not treatment should be interrupted. This is especially important in case of infectious conjunctivitis - if treatment is stopped early, the infection may remain, which will cause recurrence of the disease.
   • A full course of treatment for conjunctivitis in cats usually takes 1 to 2 weeks. Even if the animal's eyes look better a few days after starting treatment, it takes a week or more for full recovery.
   • The full course of treatment can take up to 3 weeks.
6. 6 Consider the difficulties that can arise in treating viral conjunctivitis. Although there are treatments for viral conjunctivitis, they do not really address the underlying cause. Because of this circumstance, this form of conjunctivitis can be quite unpleasant and difficult to treat.In addition, topical antiviral agents are very expensive and require frequent use. If your cat has viral conjunctivitis, expect the problem to persist with short-term treatment - it may have to be dealt with throughout the cat's life.

Part 2 of 2: How to Prevent Recurrent Conjunctivitis

1. 1 Reduce your cat's stress levels. Since viral conjunctivitis is incurable, relapses are possible after treatment. Recurrences of the disease are often caused by stress. In view of this, it is necessary to identify possible stressors and try to eliminate them. For example, teach your cat a certain daily routine and try to follow it down to the smallest detail.
   • If you have multiple cats, have separate food and water bowls and litter boxes for each one so the animals don't compete or quarrel about it.
   • The cat may also experience stress due to being bored. Provide your pet with enough toys and change them regularly. Especially good are educational toys that keep the cat occupied and entertained for a long time.
2. 2 Supplement your cat's diet with lysine supplements. The herpes virus requires the amino acid arginine to reproduce. However, in the presence of the amino acid lysine, the virus absorbs lysine instead of arginine, which prevents it from multiplying. Your veterinarian may recommend giving your cat a special oral lysine supplement.
   • If the conjunctivitis is caused by the feline herpes virus, you can give your cat lysine throughout its life.
3. 3 Consider vaccinating your pet. The severity of bouts of conjunctivitis from herpesvirus infection can be reduced by eye vaccination, for which not injections required. Vaccination strengthens the immune system, and the animal can more easily tolerate repeated outbreaks of the disease. Discuss vaccination options with your veterinarian.
4. 4 Minimize your pet's exposure to allergens. If your conjunctivitis is caused by an allergy, you should minimize your cat's exposure to harmful allergens. For example, if your pet is allergic to dust, try to clean the house more often. If your cat goes outside, it may be worthwhile to let her out of the house to protect her from allergens such as pollen.
   • If your pet's eyes are irritating to household cleaning products, try to keep your cat away from the area where you use these products.
5. 5 Watch for signs of illness. An outbreak of conjunctivitis is accompanied by swelling and redness of the eyes, and colored (eg, green or yellow) discharge from the eyes. Other signs of the disease include profuse tearing, squint, and sensitivity to bright light. If you have a flare-up of conjunctivitis, contact your veterinarian for advice on appropriate treatments.

Tips

• All cats are susceptible to conjunctivitis.
• Conjunctivitis is more common in kittens, especially in a stressful environment (when living in a shelter or on the street).
• In addition to topical medications, your cat may need oral antibiotics for severe conjunctival infections.
• Conjunctivitis can go away on its own. However, if the disease is accompanied by eye discharge and severe discomfort, take the cat to the veterinarian for an examination and appropriate treatment.
• Many cats develop conjunctivitis only once, and as a result, they develop immunity against the condition.

Warnings

• In young kittens, conjunctivitis can be accompanied by an upper respiratory tract infection, which greatly complicates the course of the disease.
• If your cat has a corneal ulcer, do not treat conjunctivitis with hydrocortisone. Hydrocortisone can slow the healing of ulcers and even make them worse.
• Treating a viral infection can stress the animal, which increases the likelihood of relapses.