The eyes, often considered the soul’s windows, significantly contribute to your Maine cat’s agility and charm. While not vital for basic life functions, a cat can survive without them. However, the absence of eyes can notably hinder your Coon’s activities, leading to inconvenience, potential insecurity, and heightened irritability. Beyond causing discomfort, feline eye ailments may signal a more severe underlying illness. It’s crucial to approach these matters seriously.
This article, drawing from my extensive veterinary experience, will walk you through prevalent eye conditions in Maine Coon cats and routine eye care. Let’s delve into this educational journey.
Contents
1. Conjunctivitis
The conjunctiva is a mucous membrane rich in blood vessels. Once irritated or infected, it can become congested and swollen. So, if you gently flips open your Maine Coon’s eyelids and observes a reddened and swollen conjunctiva, it is known as conjunctivitis.
Upper respiratory infections are the most common cause of conjunctivitis in cats. Generally, bacterial infections, allergies, foreign objects, immune-mediated diseases, and trauma can all potentially lead to conjunctivitis.
When your feline companion has conjunctivitis, it may exhibit symptoms such as squinting, tearing, light sensitivity, scratching at the eyes, and eye pain.
What’s more, If not addressed promptly, conjunctivitis can result in more serious complications, including severe conjunctival edema, corneal inflammation, corneal ulcers, and corneal perforation.
2. Corneal Inflammation
The cornea, a clear tissue devoid of blood vessels, stays transparent. When inflammation occurs, transparency is compromised, potentially causing a cloudy appearance. Signs of corneal inflammation in Maine Coons encompass squinting, tearing, light sensitivity, eye scratching, and pain. If these indicators surface, prompt medical attention for the cat is crucial.
3. Corneal Ulcers
The typical cornea maintains a smooth, even surface. If you spot irregular small depressions on your cat’s cornea, it could signal a corneal ulcer. Causes encompass trauma, infections (viral or bacterial), reduced tear production, inward rolling of the eyelids, foreign objects, and local irritation or chemical harm.
Maine Coon with a corneal ulcer may display symptoms like squinting, tearing, light sensitivity, and eye scratching due to pain. Additionally, there might be corneal edema, new blood vessel formation, conjunctival congestion, and pupil constriction. Severe cases may involve yellow-green discharge and corneal perforation.
Corneal ulcer treatment involves antibiotic eye drops, tailored to the ulcer’s severity. Regular application by cat owners typically yields improvement within 1 to 2 weeks.
To curb eye scratching and face washing during treatment, using an Elizabethan collar is advised. Although cats may resist wearing it initially, removing it during meals can lead to immediate face washing, worsening the eye injury. Therefore, keeping the Elizabethan collar on throughout treatment is crucial.
4. Excessive Tearing
Tear glands distribute moisture across the cornea through blinking and the third eyelid’s movement, preventing corneal cell dryness. Tears are consistently produced, flowing to the eye’s inner corner and draining into the nasal cavity through the nasolacrimal duct.
Excessive tear production or nasolacrimal duct blockage can lead to epiphora, causing prolonged dampness around the eyes. This can result in eye inflammation, affecting fur color and compromising aesthetics. Kittens with severe upper respiratory infections might suffer permanent damage to tear points and ducts, causing epiphora.
Treatment options may include nasolacrimal duct flushing, but it’s not highly recommended due to limited effectiveness and the need for anesthesia. It’s rarely advised. For acute tearing, certain eye medications, combined with duct flushing, may yield favorable results.
For Maine Coons with chronic tearing, maintaining eye hygiene is crucial to keep the surrounding fur clean and dry. Applying non-steroidal eye medications after cleaning serves as preventive reinforcement.
5. Glaucoma
The eyeball holds a fluid termed aqueous humor, preserving its standard form. This fluid consistently circulates and renews itself. If this fluid faces impediments in smooth outflow, it can result in elevated eye pressure, recognized as glaucoma. The flawed drainage route might be at the pupil or the intersection of the iris and cornea.
Glaucoma may arise independently or as a consequence of other ocular ailments. In primary glaucoma, inadequate development of the anterior chamber angle prevails as the most frequent cause. This stems from the existence of an innate, unusually thin tissue at the zonular ligament, constricting the entry to the ciliary body.
The normal intraocular pressure is 15-25 mmHg. Acute glaucoma attacks in cats may result in symptoms of eye pain, causing eyelid spasms, tear overflow, severe pain leading to vocalization, sleepiness, and loss of appetite. Irreversible blindness may occur 24-48 hours after an attack. Other common symptoms include corneal edema and superficial conjunctival congestion. Chronic glaucoma may show less obvious pain symptoms but can still exhibit some or all of the symptoms seen in acute cases, albeit to a milder degree.
Treatment options for glaucoma depend on the urgency of the condition. The goal is to control intraocular pressure and prevent permanent blindness. Treatment may include intravenous injection of osmotic diuretics, eye drops to lower eye pressure, and surgical procedures. If certain eyes with symptoms like blindness and pain cannot be successfully treated with the mentioned methods, the most effective approach is enucleation, with the placement of a silicone globe as a prosthetic eye.
6. Cataracts
The crystalline lens is a transparent tissue derived from the epithelium, containing numerous transparent fibers. Therefore, cataracts are defined as “non-physiological opacification of any crystalline fiber and/or crystalline capsule, regardless of its etiology.”
When you observe that your cat’s pupils no longer appear as deep black, there is a possibility of cataracts. You may notice the pupils appearing white, and this white area may enlarge or shrink with changes in light intensity.
Cataracts can be triggered by various factors, including congenital abnormalities, genetics, toxins, radiation, trauma, other ocular diseases, systemic diseases, and aging. Currently, there are so-called cataract eye drops on the market, but their effectiveness is at best to slow down the deterioration of cataracts. Surgical intervention (lens removal surgery) is the only treatment method that can restore vision in cats. However, it must consider the cat’s health and behavioral conditions, and cataract surgery is best performed by a veterinarian who specializes in ophthalmology and has practical experience.
Home Care for Your Friendly Coon Eyes
The eyes of a healthy Maine Coon typically do not have any discharge. However, sometimes, especially when your soft feline just wakes up, there may be some brownish discharge at the corners, similar to humans. This eye discharge is a natural occurrence.
Occasionally, when Maine Coons “wash their faces,” they may not completely clean these eye secretions, and human assistance may be needed to clean them.
At times, a cat’s tears can cause the fur around the eyes to turn reddish-brown, leading people to mistakenly think that their eyes are bleeding.
In reality, this discoloration is due to components in their tears that can stain the fur. Additionally, there is a tear duct between cat’s eyes and nose, allowing tears to drain into the nasal cavity. If inflammation causes the tear duct to narrow, tears may overflow from the eye corners. In such cases, cleaning with a tissue is sufficient.
For brown, dry eye secretions, dampening a small piece of cotton and gently wiping is recommended. For cats that tend to be nervous, using cotton or makeup remover pads is a better choice than cotton swabs, as swabs may risk injuring the eyes.
Effective Daily Steps for Maine Majesty Eye Care
- Step1: Soak cotton (makeup removal cotton or small gauze) in saline solution to moisten.
- Step2: Gently lift your cat’s head upward with your hand, apply slight pressure to control the head, and gently stroke around their face to help it relax.
- Step3: From the inner to outer corner of the eye, gently wipe the eyelids along the edge of the eye. If there is dry and hard eye discharge (yellow-green eye discharge), use a cotton soaked in saline solution to gently wipe back and forth, softening the discharge. Avoid forcefully wiping away discharge, as it may easily cause inflammation of the eyelids and the skin around the eyes.
- Step4: If there is transparent eye discharge at the corners, you can drop a few drops of artificial tears to flush the eyes and remove the discharge. Some cats may be afraid of artificial tears, so before dripping, you can soothe your companion. Reach over from behind the cat with the hand holding the artificial tears, which may be less frightening for them.
- Step5: After cleaning the eyes, apply artificial tears or eye drops for maintenance. Gently remove excess tears with a moist cotton ball. Be careful not to touch the surface of the eyeball during the wiping process.
When cleaning a Maine Coon’s eyes, never forcefully remove eye secretions with your fingers, as nails can potentially scratch the skin around the eye corners, leading to more severe eye issues.
For more insights into caring for the eyes of your Maine Coon, don’t hesitate to check out our comprehensive guide on eye care tips for Maine Coons on our website.
FAQs About Maine Coon Eye Care
What essential eye care supplies should I have at home for my Cozy Purr?
Ever observed your Maine Coon’s eyes acting oddly during late hours? Perhaps one eye appears larger, or there’s an alarming redness. No need for urgent trips to medical facilities. Having a few vital eye care tools at home can be a game-changer.
- Saline Solution: Get contact lens-specific saline from a local store. Carefully cleanse your Maine Coon cat’s eyes with a cotton ball soaked in saline. Keep an eye out for unusual particles in the solution.
- Cotton Balls: A pharmacy basic that’s always useful.
- Non-Steroidal Antibiotic Eye Drops or Ointment: Easily available from pharmacies or clinics. If your furry friend’s eyes cause midnight unease, begin with non-steroidal antibiotic eye drops or ointment. They lack steroids, ensuring no worsening of corneal ulcers. Plus, they can tackle potential bacterial infections.
- Elizabethan Collar: Maine Coons with irritated eyes often rub their faces excessively, unknowingly causing harm. Introduce the Elizabethan collar, reducing eye injuries from their face-rubbing frenzy.
What should I do in urgent situations with my Maine Coon’s eyes?
In urgent situations, apply eye drops every 3-4 hours and keep your big Maine cat away from light, which aggravates their discomfort. Once the vet is available, seek immediate medical attention.
What is involved in a comprehensive eye examination for my Pawsome Coon?
For a comprehensive eye check, visual examination, direct magnifying glass inspection, tear tests, fluorescein staining, and pressure measurements are necessary. Only a thorough examination can provide accurate results, as eye problems often coexist.
