Cats Sewn Shut Socket Is Swollen

Hello! My cat has been having this reoccurring issue with his eye and I wanted to know if any other owners with blind cats have had this issue as well! I adopted a 3 month year old with one eye about 8 months ago from a shelter, the missing eye's socket is sewn shut and he didn't have any issues with it the first few months I had brought him home with me. Recently though every month or every other month it will get super swollen and tender, when I go to touch it gently he jerks back as well, I usually wait until it pops on its own or he pops it (about a day or two from when it starts getting swollen) because of this, the discharge is usually a little green but its mostly blood and after it drains he goes back to his normal, playful self and lets me touch the sewn socket again. I was wondering if this was normal (or at least not painful/harmful or bad) before taking him to the vet a second time! The last time I took him to the vet I was told he couldn't help my cat other than to give him antibiotics, I've finished giving him the medication and the issue still hasn't been resolved and I'm worried ):

I would be concerned about the green, as that indicates infection. Did the vet treating him remove the eye by any chance?
I'd think he probably needs a different antibiotic, and maybe a little stronger and for a longer period of time as this wouldn't be normal to me.
I would seek a second opinion. A vet shouldn't write an animal with a problem like this off as hopeless without recommending a specialist or someone who can help. I don't blame you for being worried or upset.
It's very cool you adopted a little one-eyed cat though. They're every bit as good as one with two eyes, aren't they?

Sounds like he has a chronic infection in the empty eye socket. It must flare up every so often and that’s when you get the pus. That needs to be taken care of (properly drained and treated with antibiotics). You can’t treat an abscess without draining it.

His second problem is that he has a jerk for a vet. Run, don’t walk, to find him another one. There’s nothing intrinsically wrong with your cat that a competent and compassionate vet can’t easily manage.

And welcome to the forum. Can you post a picture of your cat? And a name? Pretty please

I don't know where you are, but it might be possible to locate a veterinary eye specialist for a consult, or a teaching hospital.

1riot Please provide updates.

Have you tried warm compresses for 5 minutes or so, say, every hour? They hat might help reduce the swelling/infection. Maybe do it for as few days when the eye is not infected. To get him acclimated to the compresses.

I also think you need another vet. Please keep us current. And thank you for adopting the this kitty!

1 bruce 1 said:

I would be concerned about the green, as that indicates infection. Did the vet treating him remove the eye by any chance?
I'd think he probably needs a different antibiotic, and maybe a little stronger and for a longer period of time as this wouldn't be normal to me.
I would seek a second opinion. A vet shouldn't write an animal with a problem like this off as hopeless without recommending a specialist or someone who can help. I don't blame you for being worried or upset.
It's very cool you adopted a little one-eyed cat though. They're every bit as good as one with two eyes, aren't they?

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Apologies for the late reply! I'm not the best a figuring out forums haha. Sadly the vet who removed his eye is unknown since it was already removed at a different shelter than the one I adopted from. I'm fairly new to the area I live in so I went to the closest vet to me at the time so its reassuring to hear it's a good idea to get a second opinion! I had my last cat while still living in a familiar city so I haven't had to deal with a bad vet yet! This one told me he couldn't help specifically without a sample of the discharge but since the blockage occurs randomly I'm unable to take him on such short notice due to money issues ): Also thank you for understanding my worry! And he's wonderful! I was told that a ton of the cats there were being adopted before him and with how friendly and cuddly he was I knew he was the one lol.

silkenpaw said:

Sounds like he has a chronic infection in the empty eye socket. It must flare up every so often and that’s when you get the pus. That needs to be taken care of (properly drained and treated with antibiotics). You can’t treat an abscess without draining it.

His second problem is that he has a jerk for a vet. Run, don’t walk, to find him another one. There’s nothing intrinsically wrong with your cat that a competent and compassionate vet can’t easily manage.

And welcome to the forum. Can you post a picture of your cat? And a name? Pretty please

Click to expand...

Hello! Do you have any advice on properly draining the abscess? I'm not sure if I should take him to the vet any time it swells back up or if it's alright to pop at home with the correct supplies (if there are any?) no worries if not! Also thank you, I'm feeling much better about reaching out to a different vet about this after posting here! Thanks for the welcome too! It already seems like such a nice lil community here and heres the lil guy! His name's Binx! Even though he's orange I named him after the cat from Hocus Pocus!

fionasmom said:

I don't know where you are, but it might be possible to locate a veterinary eye specialist for a consult, or a teaching hospital.

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Hello! I'm in California so it might not be too difficult to find an eye specialist which is lucky! My last cat had very few issues until her later years so I was pretty lost with finding what type of vet to take Binx (my current cat) too! Thanks for the help (:

ArchyCat said:

1riot Please provide updates.

Have you tried warm compresses for 5 minutes or so, say, every hour? They hat might help reduce the swelling/infection. Maybe do it for as few days when the eye is not infected. To get him acclimated to the compresses.

I also think you need another vet. Please keep us current. And thank you for adopting the this kitty!

Click to expand...

Apologies again for the late responses! Life's been hectic for me recently and I haven't had to much down time. I haven't tried that yet but that sounds like a solid idea! The next time it swells back up I'll try it and update how it goes! After hearing everyones advice in this thread I'm definitely thinking I need to switch vets too, and I'm so glad I adopted him! He's such an energetic, lovable baby.

Binx is beautiful! Are his eyes orange? Orange kitties are special

The next time he has the pussy discharge, you might try to keep the hole open with warm wet compresses several times a day (if he lets you). But if he has a deep abscess that is draining through only a small hole (fistula), that might not work.

Your best bet is finding a good vet who will believe you about what’s happening. You don’t need to take Binx to the vet exactly when he has the discharge. If this is an abscess, it will be most obvious when it’s full, before the discharge happens. It might not be an abscess at all, but something is going on and needs to be investigated. An animal ophthalmologist would work but any competent vet would know how to do this, or know to refer you.

I don’t think it’s an emergency, but something that should be taken care of within the next few months. If money is an issue, find out if the new vet will accept a payment plan. There is also Care Credit for pets.

Please keep us informed about what happens.

I had a similar issue with a tooth, the swelling and pain would come and go and antibiotics would make it go away faster but did not stop it from flaring up again. It almost sounds like the socket was not fully cleaned before being sewn shut, there may be tissue or even debris left inside that could be causing the recurring infection.

I would definitely suggest finding an eye specialist to take a closer look.

My Patch has one eye and in my experience one eyed Cats do seem to be very friendly, moreso than "normal" Cats.

I do agree that a competent vet could resolve this. FYI I have taken my dog to Eye Care for Animals in Pasadena. 626 564 0202 if you are interested in going that route.....or anywhere near that location.

Yes, his eye does need checked out. Either something keeps getting in it, causing infection ... or there's something that was left behind that shouldn't have been from the initial surgery...

Have you considered supplementing his diet with a natural antibiotic/anti-inflammatory/immune support...? I've used one --Coconut Oil-- for various types of infections, both on family members & pets ... with Very Good results. It certainly couldn't hurt!

For pink-eye I just put the CO right on the eyelid at bedtime, and it seems to go through the skin & into the eye! Soothing!

I'll share a holistic-traditional vet's video about Coconut oil for pets, here: Veterinarian Discusses Health Benefits of Coconut Oil for Pets

This was an unintended duplicate post,
which I have deleted to the best of my ability. TY!