Having your pretty cat's eyes suddenly sticky and shut must come as a shock. If this is happening to your cat, chances are there's one particular condition to blame. Read on to learn about it and what you should do to help your cat.

Pink Eye

Pink eye is probably the culprit here. Like with humans, cats can contract pink eye. When they do, the body produces sticky, thick mucus from the nose and tear ducts. If enough of it forms on the eye, it can effectively glue the upper and lower eyelids together. This can leave your cat partially or fully blinded and unable to do anything about it.

How It's Spread

Just like with humans, pink eye is spread between cats by a form of herpes. It's not the sexual variety, but instead a kind that can be spread by touching or inhaling infected bodily fluids. So another cat probably gave it to your kitty, but it may have been long before you even met them.

When they contract this disease, they unfortunately get it for life. However, that doesn't mean that they'll always have symptoms. Usually, cats will only experience symptoms when their immune system is compromised. This could be due to them having another illness, being afraid or stressed out, or because they're getting older. 

What to Do

The first thing you should do is call a veterinarian's office to make an appointment. The sooner you can get in, the better, as your cat will be pretty miserable until they get medical help.

Your vet will be able to care for your kitty and can prescribe antivirals to help combat the disease. While this won't cure your cat, it can shorten the duration of their symptoms and help them to feel better.

While you're waiting to go to the vet's office, you can help your cat's eyes. Get a washcloth and soak it in warm water. Squeeze out the excess water and use the cloth as a compress over one of your cat's eyes. Hold it there for a few seconds and then very gently wipe your cat's eyelids. This should help to loosen and remove some of the mucus. Repeat until your cat's able to open its eyes.

Unfortunately, the mucus is produced quite often when a cat is sick with pink eye, so you may need to repeat this process several times over before going to the vet's.

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