Aslan is a big hunk of a cat who came to us in the wintertime after being spotted hanging around a local housing estate for several months. He was a big lad, with an enormous head, and rather jumpy and nervous if approached, although not unfriendly.
It was immediately apparent that there was something wrong with his eyes - cat flu was suspected by the person who brought him in, but the eye discharge was not accompanied by any sneezing or other symptoms.An examination by our vets revealed that Aslan had ingrowing eyelids, which were rubbing on the surfaces of his eyes, causing them constant irritation and making them sticky.
An operation was called for, and duly carried out. Tiny strips of skin were removed to open his eyes a little more and to remove the excess skin which was folding in and causing him such irritation. ("Botox for cats", as one of our volunteers called it!). He was also neutered and had several teeth removed or cleaned.
Aslan has a very large head which is normally caused by a build up of testosterone due to him being un-neutered until we got him - by which time he was already middle aged.
The transformation from a squinting, smelling, sniffing scared lad to a big clearsighted, sweet-smelling, clean-breathing softy has been a joy to behold. The nerves which caused the aggression disappeared quite quickly and we believe that they were simply due to the poor vision that his condition caused.
It is easy to fall prey to the belief that any cat with runny eyes has cat flu - and indeed this may often be the case - but Aslan demonstrates that other conditions may be the cause. Any cat with runny eyes should be examined by a vet who will be able to advise the best option.
