Eye Boogers - When To Worry?

My cat has been having increased eye discharge the last couple days. His eyes look watery and when the discharge dries up it's either an off-white or brown colour (it may be slightly light green, but I'm having a hard time discerning that). He is eating as normal and he is still alert, but he's sleeping much more than usual.

If it wasn't the holidays I would just take him to the vet, but around here all the vets are closed until Wednesday so that would mean a trip to the emergency hospital.

Is this something I should be worried about? Does he possibly just have a viral infection? He has been feeling extra tired for the past 5 days, but still eating and playing somewhat. The eye boogers just started yesterday. What can I do to help him?

It doesn't sound like anything major from what you're saying. Do his eyes seem to be irritating him? (squinting/headshaking etc).

Discharge that dries brownish is perfectly normal. The greenish tinge you're talking about could be a slight infection (can't say if it's viral or not, though). My guys get eye infections occasionally, usually because someone's been swiped in the face by one of the others We always get a vet check just in case, but so far it's only been minor infections that clear up quickly.

My instinct would be to keep an eye on him for now, and maybe wipe across his eyes (to remove crusting/discharge) with a clean, damp cotton pad or washcloth. If it doesn't resolve get him to the vet on Wednesday, but be prepared to take him in sooner if he worsens or if the third eyelid comes across his eye. Mega that it's just a minor irritation

If it's an infection, there is a test they can check for eye injury/scratch, or otherwise prescribe an antibiotic (more likely if it is both eyes). The antibiotic ointment helped my cat's eyes' swelling go down, but did not resolve the eye boogers. After the swelling went down, I did not medicate him. The dietary change resolved his eye boogers.

Thanks guys. He is definitely more sleepy and tired than normal. When I look in his eyes they look like they are just filled with water. He is still eating but I had to take his food to him rather than him running to get his food in the kitchen. He also had some soft poop this morning. I managed to find a vet open on Tuesday and made an appointment so hopefully he doesn’t get any worse before then.

that it' something minor and easy to treat

Sorry to hear your cat sounds sick. It could be several things. The vet can help test for the common causes, look for other symptoms, and prescribe fluids and possibly antibiotics. You can monitor your cat's behavior if he is eating weird things, drinking a lot of water, look at his stool, etc. If the antibiotics don't work, then it could be something else. For my cat, fluids, novel protein limited ingredient diet, and steroids helped...but I think it was the diet that helped most.

Update:Today he is still tired with weepy eyes. We also noticed a bleeding sore on his upper lip. Could this possibly be calicivirus? He is still eating but less so than before. Perhaps because of the sore on his lip.

We are going the vet tomorrow.

Thanks for the update. That is another symptom. Could possibly be related to allergies or something else. When my cat had issues they checked his mouth, and he ended up with sores all over from what ended up being an allergic reaction. Him not eating could be related to not feeling well.

carebare said:

Thanks for the update. That is another symptom. Could possibly be related to allergies or something else. When my cat had issues they checked his mouth, and he ended up with sores all over from what ended up being an allergic reaction. Him not eating could be related to not feeling well.

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I was thinking possibly allergies too. I guess we will wait till tomorrow and see what the vet says. Thanks for all the replies. Will update again tomorrow.

I really hope things go ok at the vet's today, and that whatever is wrong is quick and easy to treat. You're both in my thoughts today

We just got back from the vet. It is likely calicivirus. He has sores inside his mouth and his eyes are red. He is also losing his voice and had a high fever. He was given an antibiotic shot and anti-inflammatories.

I’m very worried about him. We didn’t to go to our regular vet because they are closed and I wasn’t happy with this vet. She didn’t explain things well and it didn’t seem like she fully understood what was going on.

Oh no Poor little boy. Your regular vet is open tomorrow, isn't it? Maybe you can get a phone consult to go over things? Mega, mega that your boy gets better soon

My regular vet is on holiday and she won’t be back until Jan 2nd. I was told today that I should see his symptoms improve in 2 days and I should bring him back if I don’t... we will see I guess. Thanks for the support I appreciate it.

I have to give him some anti inflammatory pills. Does anyone have any experience/tips giving pills? The doctor didn’t explain to me how to administer it.

The easiest way to give pills is to coat them well in something strong-tasting and yummy (I've always used meat paste or chicken paté, but Greenies Pill Pockets are a less messy, popular-seeming choice on TCS). This doesn't work for all cats though, and all the cats I've had as an adult have needed me to physically give them the pills.

I have two methods for this. The simpler one is to wait till they're settled somewhere, grab the pill, and approach like nothing's going on. Then I get alongside them, use my left hand to gently restrain them on their chest and block forward movement, and my body to block backward movement. My right hand (already holding the pill) gently opens up their mouth and I quickly and calmly put the pill towards the back of their tongue. For some cats, that's not quite enough, and I need to encourage their head up and rub their chin and throat gently to encourage them to swallow. In any case, I watch them like a hawk for a few minutes afterwards, just to make sure they're not pretending to swallow, only to sneak off and spit the pill out in private

The second method is similar, but I catch the cat and kneel on the floor, placing them on the floor between my thighs. In this case, my feet and legs are blocking the backward movement, and it's slightly easier to get the right angle to pill them easily. I prefer the first method when possible, though, as it's far less stressful for the cat.

In all cases, buttering the pill can help disguise the taste and help it slip down more easily. It get very messy if they do spit it out or fight you though. In all cases, I have some extra yummy treat on hand to try and create a more positive experience overall, and to take the taste away (in the case of liquid meds especially). If they're really not interested in food, I'll try and pet them to tell them how good they've been. The aim is to try and prevent a majorly negative association from building over time
Pilling Cats: Must-know Tips For Hiding Pills

Columbine Thank you so much for the advice! Wish me luck with the pills tomorrow morning! I'm going to use some of your strategies.

You're very welcome. I hope your boy is easier to pill than some of my little monsters!

The pilling was successful! Actually I think he wanted to eat the pill once I put butter on it haha.

Seems like my kitty is doing better today. He still has watery and red eyes and some sores in his mouth and lips, but he has much more energy today. I'm hopeful that this is just a virus that will pass.

I actually read that the herpes virus can also cause sores in the mouth and on the lips so this could very well be herpes instead of calicivirus. Either way there is no medication that can really resolve it, just time and support.

Thanks again for all the help!

That's great I'm so glad your boy's such a co-operative patient Great to hear that he's doing better today, too.

Whatever the bug is, I hope he's back to his usual self very soon

How's your little guy doing Neo_23 ? I hope he's well on the road to recovery

Thanks for checking in! He is doing much better. His fever is gone and he is acting like normal again. I believe most of his mouth ulcers are almost healed (hard to tell because he won’t let me check). His eyes are still weeping a little but it’s far better than before. He is on the road to full recovery.