Hello,
I recently rescued a nine year old male Siamese cat from a well-run shelter. Many of the cats kept there had colds, all seeming to originate from their exposure to the shelter. I was warned of this, and after a week my cat rapidly developed what I would call a "heavy" cold. He experienced about twenty days of constant sneezing with much mucus, wheezing at all hours, and thick pus around the eyes prohibiting him from opening them more than 10%. Extremely concerned, I brought him to my vet who gave me an immune pill and an ointment for his eyes. His appetite was normal throughout the illness and he remains hungry (at all hours) today.
My question: The ointment I spread over the cats eyes dried in a way that kept his face glossy for a two week period. When his health returned I stopped applying the ointment and cleaned his face to find he had gone grey - that's the only way to explain it. Thousands of white hairs had developed all over his face, head, and chin. Even very minute hairs on his nose had become bright white. When I first brought him home his face was fully black, the smooth powdery-black one would associate with Siamese. I am at a loss for what caused this. I know it had nothing to do with the ointment, but am very concerned that this visible change could be related to something much more dangerous. Its important to note that the white hairs developed in a perfectly symmetrical way, to the point where one could easily believe his natural coloring was such. I have posted a before picture of him and two after pictures. I would very much appreciate anyone giving letting me know if they have experienced this or if they know of any condition (brought on by the cold) that would have caused this.
Before: I took this a couple of days before the cold set in.
After: I couldn't replicate the light but this contrast is true to what the eye would see. (Note the color contrast between his face and front paws in the picture below.)
I recently rescued a nine year old male Siamese cat from a well-run shelter. Many of the cats kept there had colds, all seeming to originate from their exposure to the shelter. I was warned of this, and after a week my cat rapidly developed what I would call a "heavy" cold. He experienced about twenty days of constant sneezing with much mucus, wheezing at all hours, and thick pus around the eyes prohibiting him from opening them more than 10%. Extremely concerned, I brought him to my vet who gave me an immune pill and an ointment for his eyes. His appetite was normal throughout the illness and he remains hungry (at all hours) today.
My question: The ointment I spread over the cats eyes dried in a way that kept his face glossy for a two week period. When his health returned I stopped applying the ointment and cleaned his face to find he had gone grey - that's the only way to explain it. Thousands of white hairs had developed all over his face, head, and chin. Even very minute hairs on his nose had become bright white. When I first brought him home his face was fully black, the smooth powdery-black one would associate with Siamese. I am at a loss for what caused this. I know it had nothing to do with the ointment, but am very concerned that this visible change could be related to something much more dangerous. Its important to note that the white hairs developed in a perfectly symmetrical way, to the point where one could easily believe his natural coloring was such. I have posted a before picture of him and two after pictures. I would very much appreciate anyone giving letting me know if they have experienced this or if they know of any condition (brought on by the cold) that would have caused this.
Before: I took this a couple of days before the cold set in.
After: I couldn't replicate the light but this contrast is true to what the eye would see. (Note the color contrast between his face and front paws in the picture below.)