Thin line reflected in cat's eye sometimes -- Just asking out of precaution and ignorance

meto

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Hey everyone, I have a question about my cat Caine's health, but I don't think it's urgent. He has no medical symptoms and expresses no discomfort, but I'm very confused by something I see in his eye sometimes. I'll sometimes see a bright, vertical, slightly curved line reflected in one of his eyes. It's as if he has a hair on his eye, and that may very well be the issue except it's always in the same place. Maybe a hair is always getting into one of his eyes and drifting to the same place, then getting expelled shortly after. When I approach him and look very closely, it's usually no longer the right lighting angle and condition to see it, or it's already gone by that point. Another thing is, in dark conditions, it will look as if it's reflecting from the back of his eye, with the glowy appearance that cats' eyes get in low light conditions. But maybe it's actually just a reflection of an ambient light on a hair, I don't know. There is no hope of easily taking a picture of this phenomenon, but I assure you it's not his third eyelid or anything. And I'm aware of corneal ulcers, but his eye usually looks completely healthy and smooth upon close examination. No unusual behavior in his eye movement or pupil dilation either. Anyone have experience with this? His annual visit isnt for a while yet, and with the virus and everything I don't want to take any unnecessary visits, but if someone here thinks this sounds serious I'm definitely willing to take him in. Just felt like more of a minor, forum type issue from my perspective. Thank you for reading, I appreciate any advice you have to offer!
 

verna davies

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I dont think you can take any chances with eyes. If you are sure that its not a reflection of a window or light, something like that, I would take him to your vet where they can examine it. Having had a cat with an eye illness, I realise how important it is to catch it early.
 

FeebysOwner

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I agree with those above. A hair in a cat's eye is going to 'bug' him, just as it would you. Plus, it would eventually 'wash out' due to tearing from irritation. So, it is more likely to be something that is not on the surface of the eye, and therefore needs to be looked at.
 
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meto

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Just wanted to update on his eye, since I did take him to the vet for his teeth cleaning and specifically asked them to check it out. They didn't find anything, all clear! Then later, I think I realized what it was, and I felt a little silly. I noticed when I picked him up that they had put the lubricant on his eyes (as normal for anesthetized teeth cleaning), and when I was looking at that, it looked very similar to what I had been seeing before. As in, the way the light reflected off of his eyes when there was an uneven liquid transparent layer on top actually resembled the lines I had been seeing in his eye, and I had been mistakenly thinking the phenomenon was coming from the back of his eye since it had the same reflective color and brightness. My conclusion is that the lines I was seeing were some normal, healthy eye fluid that took on an unusual reflection in certain light, possibly in a state of drying out and being expelled as one of those morning things that end up on the corners of their eyes. Now, the fact that I was noticing this more in his right eye is definitely something to monitor, but I suspect there was some amount of bias in my perception there (or maybe the positioning of lights in the room?), seeing as both eyes seem to have the same amount of healthy, clear discharge when examined from any other angle. By no means has he been having any redness in his eye or any other alarming symptoms, so I'll keep an "eye" on it but not take any further action. As of now: Caine is a healthy boy, veterinarians are busy people with other important things to do, and as usual I worry too much, but all for his sake. Thank you to everyone who responded before, and I'm very relieved it all turned out okay.
 
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