Our question this week was:
Dr Debra – My cat is keeping his left eye closed and there is some swelling and pus.
William Rogers
Answer
Hi William – thanks for your email. You wrote that your cats left eye is closed with some swelling and pus. There are several causes for these symptoms. It could be caused by trauma, a scratch of some sort, conjunctivitis, or corneal ulceration just to name a few.
Cats often hold the eye closed either due to swelling or pain.
The safest thing to do is to take your cat to your local veterinarian or veterinary emergency clinic. They can look at the eye, determine if there is a scratch or ulcer and prescribe medication to treat the underlying problem.
You can try to gently clean the discharge around the eye with a tissue moistened with warm water. Make sure your cat does not scratch at the area because he can do additional damage to the eye from scratching.