Eye problems in Cats?

Question

Hi all,

Noticed last night that my boyfriends cat was looking quite cross eyed.

She is an older cat (about 7 years old).

When she focused a little more her pupils would go back to normal.

Today I have noticed that two folds of skin are obstructing the eye on closer inspection.

Is this a sign of cataracts?

I am able to get a Veterinary opinion in work tomorrow, and will be taking her to the Vet as soon as possible,

Just wondering if any of you have encountered a similar problem, or have expertise within this field.

Answer 1

Hi there

I had this with my cat.  I took him to the vet and he told me that cats, all cats, have two sets of eyelids (particularly useful when fighting other cats).  It sounds as if your cat may have had a brawl with a neighbours cat and his secondary lid has come down as protection and got damaged - as happened with my cat.

There was nothing that the vet could do really, as my cats was not damaged too badly.  Take him/her to the vet and see what they say, better to be safe than sorry.

Good luck.

:)

Answer 2

Some cats focus cross eyed.... siamese for example... my mismarked does that.  

Answer 3

Cats have a third eyelid which is only visible with certain eye infections. The vet will prescribe an appropriate antibiotice cream

Hope this helps

Answer 4

Cat have 2 sets of eyelids to give their eyes more protection. Sometimes, the other set of eyelids come out when the other set haven't closed all the way, and that is normal.

That said, none of us can see her eyes to give you a definate answer so you're doing the right thing in getting a vet to look at her. Hope all goes well.

Answer 5

The two folds of skin  over the eyes are the cats "third eyelid" if that appears it means the cat isn't well!!  EDIT>>>> It could be anything, it doesnt mean theres anything wrong with her eyes  ie: infections etc!!!

Answer 6

The nictating membrane (third eyelid) can get infected following a fight.  Let a vet look at it just to make sure.

Answer 7

Hello,

With all your replies you are now able to establish what the 2 skin folds are.

You dont mention if she has any bowel irritations like diarrhoea. If this is present as well then it will also be a sign that she is unwell.

Cats bodies are very smart,  and her third eylids showing, is an indication that she is unwell.

I recently experienced this with my 5 month old kitten. She had the runs and the vet prescribed 1 week on anitbiotics which gave her more runs (side effect) but her eyelids were fine after the week. They just put it down to a bowel infection.

However, 2 weeks later the third eyelids returned, but she was fine in herself, playing, eating, drinking, solid stools.

But i took her to the vet as a precaution. They were not able to tell me what was wrong with her and she had to have some blood tests done.

She had to be tested for FELV (feline version of leukemia virus) and FIV(Feline Immunodeficiency Virus) which they can be both born with and only become apparent at a later stage. I dont want to make you worry but it is something that you may have to take in to account of. Especially, as you dont mention if she has been neutered or not.

Luckily, my kittens results came back ok, but she still has these third eyelids that are apparent and times. At the worst she looks quite wired! Bless her.

Our vet told us that they could keep testing her,  but as she is fine in herself that it was not necessary and didnt want to cause her more stress, until she showed signs (other than her eyelids) of being unwell.

She is currenlty on 2 weeks course or antibiotics, has the weird looking eyes sometimes but is absolutely fine!

I hope your cat is ok, and keep us updated!

Answer 8

You are probably seeing her third eye lid which is a perfectly normal thing for many animals to have as it gives extra protection to the eyes. You are always best off with a visit to the vets if you have any concerns about your cats health.

Answer 9

She's not that old and she shouldn't really be having problems with her eyes - I'd take her to the vet. Better safe than sorry I think....