Third eyelid showing

by Donna
(Niles, MI)

My cat was in a fight this morning and now his third eyelid is showing in one of his eyes. Why?

RESPONSE:

Several people have asked that question in past months and I’ve taken a few of the excerpts to answer you. It is good that you know the fight was a contributing factor and that it’s not an eye disease.

Conjunctivitis is an inflammation of the conjunctiva, the membrane that lines the eyelids and covers the exposed part of the eyeball. You may (or may not) notice redness or swelling of your cat's eyes, or if your cat's third eyelid is showing, conjunctivitis might be the culprit.

During the fight he could have had the other cat damage that membrane. Putting phenylephrine drops in the eyes (or topical ophthalmic epinephrine drops) will encourage the third eyelid to return to its normal position.

However, in many cases the conjunctivitis could be a result of some type of foreign object lodged in the eye after or during the fight. In order to clean the eye area you will want to use about a quart of warm water and very gently pour it over the affected eye. Using a piece of soft, cotton wool soaked in the water, carefully wipe around the eye, but do not wipe over the actual eye. Once you have cleared the area you will be able to see if there is still an object inside the eye that shouldn't be there. If there is, do not attempt to treat the problem yourself but take him to the vet.

Alternatively, there are a number of homeopathic herb treatments that can be successful in clearing up the problem of conjunctivitis due to allergies and other possible infections. These herbs can be purchased at your local health or homeopathic store or through numerous online sources. On my Pet Products page (you will see the navigation button near the top of each page on the left hand side)if you scroll down to Only Natural Pet and click on the banner, it will take you to their store. Or, you can click here Pet Alive Eye Heal. This will take you to an herbal item that might work for you. You can also browse other items that might help.

I hope this information has been of value to you and I wish you well in resolving your cat’s problem.

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