Cat's eye developing rustic-orange spots

pcarpe

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Hi, I have not posted here in a while. My 7 year old cat just started developing a rustic/orange spots on his iris - it's not red it's almost like a smal area with an orange/rustic haze. It cannot be seen when his pupils are dialted. I guess that's why I just noticed it as I work most of the day. I'm only home when it's dark out and the lights in the house are not super bright. There is no discharge or bumps and he has not been injured. HE also does not appear to be in any pain - he still acts the same - eats, etc. He is an indoor only cat and has never been outside. We are going to take him to the vet on Tuesday. I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas.

Regards,
Paul
 

the_food_lady

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Hi Paul,

Sounds a lot like what my old kitty Tigger had, and my old kitty Cleo has.

Tigger was about 8 yrs when I first started to notice a rust/brown colored little spot on her iris, toward the edge of it. Of course I freaked out, took her to a Vet Ophthalmologist. He told me that it was likely nothing but that there was a very small chance it was "Iris Melanoma" and the only way to know (and if it was) was to remove the eyeball. I decided to take my chances and assume it was just a pigment spot. It got a little bigger over the years, never impacted her vision, right up to the end (at 17 yrs).

My old girl Cleo developed this some years ago, too (she's about 15 yrs old now). Same thing. They're both domestic shorthairs.

Here's an article that discusses pigment spots in the a cat's iris.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Cat-Eye-Disorders&id=636134

Just to be on the safe side, you may want to see your Vet about this; even better if you can have kitty's eye checked out by a Vet Ophthalmologist.

Here's another good reputable article on both benign pigment spots and Iris melanoma:

http://www.eyevet.ca/iris_melanoma.html
 

turtlesmom

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Hi, Paul,

Same thing with my cat, Turtle, who id 10-1/2 years old. An area on the inside edge of one eye is a brown/rust color. When I first pointed out to the vet, she she it looked like just the iris changing color like it does is so many cats as they age, but that it could be the same melanoma thing the_food_lady mentioned. She suggested we watch it and if it grew much larger she should probably be seen by a vet ophthalmologist. In a year's time it did not grow and when she looked at it again this year, she said it definitely was just a change in the iris color. In that time, I have noticed very small dots of this same color in the other iris as well.

Pam
 

otto

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In addition to melanoma, it also could be a detached retina. Or maybe a blood clot (which could cause stroke). A trip to the vet is your best option for your kitty right now.

Let us know what you find out.
 

ruby35

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My kitty had iris melanosis in his eye. It started out as just a little black spot here and turned into another spot there. But over the years, it gradually started spreading throughout the eye. At first it freaked me out so badly! When I went to the vet opthamologist, and he said I may have to get his eye taken out I was like no way! But the second time I went back, a year later, the new doc who checked him out said that it's still a melanosis and as long as it stays that way and I don't notice any raised areas in the pigmentation or any kind of redness or swelling around the eye, there's no reason to think it was melanoma.

My kitty developed the first spots when he was about... 6 or 7? I don't remember now. But he lived to be 15 and I didn't have to subject him to eye removal because they never turned into melanoma, thankfully.

I do reccommend going to see a vet opthamologist. The cat will not like the exam, because it involves shining an extremely bright light into his eye for a long time. The cat will hiss and growl and spit at the doc, but it's definitely worth it to get peace of mind that it's a melanosis and not a melanoma.

The doc told me that iris melanoma isn't totally common but it's best to have the cat checked at least once a year to ensure nothing has changed with the eye, just in case.
 
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pcarpe

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Thank you all. It doesn't appear to impact his vision. I have an appointment with a feline optomologist. I will post results.

Regards,
Paul
 
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pcarpe

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Thank you all again. I posted a follow-up in the same forum
 

buddysdad

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I dont see a followup in the thread and my cat has this same symptom. Can you tell me what your vet said?
 
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