Woman adopted three kittens who had their eyes removed

The Express newspaper carries a story which caught my eye, but which is a slight misrepresentation of the truth as I see it. The headline is "Pet owners warned about illness that is leaving kittens and cats at risk of blindness".

They say that cat flu exposes a kitten to the possibility of blindness. And the way they've pitched the story is that the three kittens caught cat flu and lost their eyes, but I would very much doubt that that is the case (but it can rarely happen). And under normal circumstances cat flu is not a treat to kittens in terms of causing blindness. The kittens' owner would have to be incredibly careless if it did happen.

Note: this is the image from The Express newspaper, but it appears to be a stock photo (Getty Images), and these are not therefore the kittens concerned. These kittens have not lost their eyes, I believe. They are just sleeping. The image is published here under fair use principles as this page is educational.

What is far more likely, but I am guessing is that the three kittens were rescued by an animal rescue organisation and brought to a veterinarian. They probably developed secondary bacterial infections in their eyes after they caught cat flu (a viral infection), and this is indeed very common.

When bacterial infections of the eye are untreated, the bacteria eat away at the eyeball and renders the kitten blind. It can affect one eye or both.

This dire state is brought about through lack of veterinary treatment which would be the administration of antibiotics to kill the bacteria.

Normally, you are not going to get that situation occurring in a home with domestic cats. If for some unknown reason a person is allowing their cats to breed informally, they will end up with kittens but unless they are incredibly callous and careless, they will notice that their kittens have a cat cold and deal with it in the normal way.

The treatment might include an early dose of antibiotics to prevent the emergence of a secondary bacterial infection. In short, you're not going to get untreated bacterial infections of the eyes unless you are dealing with a very careless cat owner or stray and feral cats.

When I read the article, I thought I would need to look for some mysterious illness but right away I realised that this was about URIs (upper respiratory infections). And this did not square up with the tone of the article which implied that they were writing about domestic cats in general.

Regarding vaccinations, they can help to prevent cat flu as the cat flu component is included in the primary vaccination course and often in a booster programme.

RELATED: Infographic on URIs in domestic cats.

However, sometimes cat owners are careless on vaccinations as well as being careless on allowing their cats to breed. This is a small minority of people, but it is significant because the contribute to the population of unwanted cats.

The person who adopted the three kittens, a Greater Manchester resident, Su Taylor, said that they are coping well. She said: "They've settled in wonderfully and run around like normal cats. But it is a shame they had to lose their eyes as it didn't need to happen".

That implies to me that she is referring to a domestic cat owner who was careless and allowed the kids to develop bad eye infections which shouldn't happen obviously. But as I've stated it is far more likely that kittens who develop these eye infections are abandoned cats or feral cats.

RELATED: What antibiotics are used for upper respiratory infections in cats?

Can cats get sinusitis?

Cats can, indeed, get sinusitis just like their human caregiver. Respiratory infections (URIs) are common in cats. They can lead to secondary, bacterial infections of the frontal sinuses. These occur with some frequency. The signs are the same as those that you would expect to see with people. 

Cat with a headache head-pressing to alleviate it. Pic in the public domain.

The symptoms include a persistent, purulent, nasal discharge, often just from one nostril accompanied by sneezing and sniffling. The cat will probably have a headache although they can't tell you that. Once again, you can deduce this from the fact that people have headaches when they have sinusitis. Sometimes cats 'head-press' when they have headaches.

The cat may appear to sit with his eyes partially closed and his head hanging. He will suffer from a diminished appetite and lose weight. This is all very typical with humans except humans although feeling bad with sinusitis continue to eat normally.

An abscessed tooth can also lead to an abscessed frontal sinus. There may be a swelling below the eye. But this is uncommon in cats.

Sinusitis in cats can also be caused by a fungal infection but this is uncommon. The fungal diseases concerned are cryptococcosis and aspergillosis. Cryptococcus is often associated with exposure to pigeons. This may occur when dust from pigeon poop blows in through an open window.

A veterinarian will diagnose feline sinusitis through external symptoms and demeanour as mentioned above confirmed by an x-ray which may show increased density in one sinus.

Also, the treatment is the same as for people namely antibiotics which should be chosen carefully and based on culture and sensitivity tests. Surgical procedures can be performed but I would expect this to be as an absolute last resort.

Turning briefly to people, as I understand it, sinusitis can be caused by allergens and minute foreign bodies such as pollen being inhaled. A cat might be particularly sensitive to environmental, airborne, particles such as pollen which may cause sinusitis in that individual cat. If that is true, I would expect the owner to run some tests to see whether keeping the cat inside, in a filtered environment, alleviates the condition.

In people, there are a number of treatments that can be used without the intervention of a doctor such as NeilMed sinus rinse. It's a question of using all one's means to prevent the inhalation of particles which can trigger the production of fluid in the sinuses because they irritate the membrane in the sinuses.

Cats have two frontal and two sphenoid (wedge-shaped) sinuses. My book tells me that the small sphenoid sinuses don't often cause problems.

How do I know if my cat has a cold?

This is an easy question to answer, at least at a fundamental level, because the symptoms of a cat cold are very similar to those of a human cold. Veterinarians call cat colds "upper respiratory infections" or URIs. So you only have to think about people when they are suffering from a cold to recognise one in your cat. Remember, though, that cats cannot catch colds from us and vice versa because the viruses that cause cat colds are not zoonotic.

 How do I know if my cat has a cold? Recuperating. Photo: Pixabay.

So what are the symptoms? Well the symptoms from the herpesvirus last from 2 to 4 weeks and include sneezing and a discharge from the nose. There may be conjunctivitis in the eyes (pink eye) which is a secondary bacterial infection and possibly corneal ulcers if the disease is untreated. There might be drooling from the mouth and a fever. Pneumonia is rare from this disease and your cat is likely to be lethargic.

The symptoms from another well known virus causing cat colds, namely the calicivirus, includes a discharge from the nose, a discharge from the eyes, chronic gingivitis, ulcers of the mouth, fever (sometimes), pneumonia (common), lethargy (mild) and lameness.

I have mentioned the two major viral groups which are responsible for the majority of clinical upper respiratory infections in cats (80% to 90%). There are considerable variations in the severity of the illness. Some cats have mild symptoms while others have rapidly progressing severe symptoms which can sometimes lead to death. What percentage of cats have herpes?

Antibiotics can deal with any secondary bacterial infections such as conjunctivitis. As for the viral component of the disease, the patient should be rested and the atmosphere humidified. The patient should be confined to a warm room with a vaporiser. Eating and drinking should be encouraged because dehydration and anorexia can weaken a cat. 

Highly palatable foods with a strong smell should be provided. You can dilute with water. Supplemental fluids can be given using a syringe (ask your veterinarian about this or look it up on the Internet). Once your cat begins to eat and drink again the worst of the disease is over.

It is advised to wash and disinfect bedding, bowls, cages and other items that the patient comes into contact with to prevent a spread of the disease to any other cat in the home. Human caretakers can also be part of the spreading process and therefore they should change their clothing, wear disposable shoe covers and wash their hands frequently.

There is no substitute for asking a properly qualified veterinarian for advice but on recognising a cold in a cat, think about people and the symptoms that they display under the same circumstances.

Can cats get colds?

Yes, cats can get colds. The symptoms are like ours but the viruses causing the cold are different; herpesvirus and calicivirus. The cause upper respiratory infections which people refer to as URIs.

That's it really in terms of answering the question in the title. You can read about feline viruses on this page.

The best disinfectant is bleach. However there is a link between bleach and infections in kids.

Some breeders use L-lysine to help manage persistent herpes virus infections (read more).

The feline herpes virus is a bit of a monster in causing a lot of ill-health. There are many pages on it.