? 3/28 Max ? Conjunctivitis

Max & Lori

Max & Lori

Member Since 2021
I posted in feline health as well but posting here since most know Max. His BGs have still been bad despite lowering slightly to see if he would flatten out and stop bounces so extremely high. It’s taking it’s toll on him for sure. Still not sure what I should do. I don’t know if anyone else has any ideas but I still welcome thoughts on his dose. @Wendy&Neko
Vet talked about Somogyi effect when I called a few days ago but I’ve read that doesn’t really happen to cats.

I am also concerned about his eyes. I noticed this afternoon that both of his eyes had a clear to pink tinged watery drainage. Tear ducts look reddish. I’m thinking some kind of conjunctivitis but I’m not sure. Plan to take him to the vet tomorrow to be checked. Does anyone have any experience with this? Pictured is Max’s eyes and the cotton ball where I dabbed the drainage off. Poor guy is having a hard time lately. @Suzanne & Darcy you know a lot about cats. Do you have any idea what could be wrong?

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Someone just reminded me of all of the pollen we are having here in the southeast and that may be causing allergies, which could be the problem with his eyes. I thought it looked more like an infection though. Max doesn’t go outside but he stepped out onto the porch yesterday when I was bringing groceries in the house. He wasn’t out but a minute, but maybe that triggered some allergies??? That is usually not a problem for him (it is for me, I take Zyrtec daily) I still may take him to the vet tomorrow though to make sure.
 
Lowering the dose does not flatten them out, except to “flat and high”. If he has inflammation or infection, it could raise his BG and mean he needs an increase.

Neko had some conjunctivitis, back before FD. You may have to put in eye drops, which may contain a steroid and possibly increase BG more temporarily. Meaning dose increase. Good luck at the vet.
 
Thank you. Max’s eyes look a lot better this morning but I will still call the vet. Thanks for your prayers.

Wendy, I was only doing another experiment with lowering his dose slightly. I see that’s not TR or what a typical reaction would be. I want to follow TR like I always had been and I wanted these feeding methods to work, but things were not improving much and seemed to be getting worse. I still don’t know what has gone wrong with Max.

At this point, I’d literally tried everything else to prevent deep drops early in the cycle. That includes feeding higher LC (and even MC) and frequent testing early on, which hadn’t worked for Max like it does in most other cats. As you know, we tried R a couple of times. He dropped quickly with that also. I haven’t given up on either of those interventions yet but needed to try something at the time when I decreased. I didn’t know what else I could do and I was very worried about Max.

I know most of the eye drops contain corticosteroids which can raise BGs. Most all contained steroids that I used to prescribe for humans. We also had an increased BG reaction to ear drops with corticosteroids before with Max. Thanks I’ll increase if BG doesn’t improve or worsens.
@Wendy&Neko
 
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Max & Lori said:
Thank you. Max’s eyes look a lot better this morning but I will still call the vet. Thanks for your prayers.

Wendy, I was only doing another experiment with lowering his dose slightly. I see that’s not TR or what a typical reaction would be. I want to follow TR like I always had been and I wanted these feeding methods to work, but things were not improving much and seemed to be getting worse. I still don’t know what has gone wrong with Max.

At this point, I’d literally tried everything else to prevent deep drops early in the cycle. That includes feeding higher LC (and even MC) and frequent testing early on, which hadn’t worked for Max like it does in most other cats. As you know, we tried R a couple of times. He dropped quickly with that also. I haven’t given up on either of those interventions yet but needed to try something at the time when I decreased. I didn’t know what else I could do and I was very worried about Max.

I know most of the eye drops contain corticosteroids which can raise BGs. Most all contained steroids that I used to prescribe for humans. We also had an increased BG reaction to ear drops with corticosteroids before with Max. Thanks I’ll increase if BG doesn’t improve or worsens.
@Wendy&Neko
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Terramycin doesn't have a steroid, it's an ointment. Its great for infection and irritation.

And yes, pollen can cause a flare up in the eyes too, I had a cat that was allergic to everything, ( even worse than my allergies), I couldn't open a window, except in the dead of winter.

Mention the pollen to the Vet. I have used Zyrtec in cats before, its very safe. Ask your Vet about it and they can give you dosing instructions, just make sure it's regular Zyrtec, no decongestants, additives, etc.

Good luck!
Deb
 
Thanks so much Deb! Thanks for mentioning the Terramycin, I had not thought of that one! Excellent suggestion. I really think it is some kind of allergic response because this morning he looks totally different. Now watch that bite me in the butt because I said that! I called the vets office just now and gave them report on his eyes, the pollen, etc. They said, just as you did, cats definitely get allergies too and can have watery itchy eyes. I was a nurse practitioner before I retired and I’m trained in caring for humans. Unfortunately my brain is still wired to think worse case scenario because of the type of patients I used to have. And, Max has so many comorbities so I freak out when one more thing happens. I don’t know much about illness in cats, so I’m learning from good people like you who are willing to share their experiences. So thank you!!! :) My vet’s office told me that since he’s looking better, to keep monitoring him and call back if he gets worse again. She gave me an appointment for Friday to be checked just for peace of mind, but said they want to see him asap if he starts looking worse. I will mention the Zyrtec to them. He has taken that before a long time ago before feline diabetes and did fine. Thanks again.:bighug: @Deb and Sylvester
 
You're welcome @Max & Lori Lori!

That terramycin is very messy, but it works great! Also, I have used the triple antibiotic drop with the steroid in my last diabetic cat, and I honestly don't think it made a noticeable impact in his numbers. But I understand the concern, because roids are the worst.

In the meantime, you could always put sterile saline in his eyes, it may help to flush any debris or pollen from his eyes. I have 4 bottles for the cats and one for me!!:bighug:

I'm a hypochondriac too, so don't feel bad, we just want our furbabies to always be in top shape!!
 
Absolutely! I used to think some patients I had who were like that were just way over the top hypochondriacs, and they drove me crazy sometimes. But then I remember how I am over my own loved ones, including my sweet Max. When it comes to what and who we love, we do anything to help and protect them. That’s the way it should be. Thank you for your suggestions Deb. I will get some saline too. That should help! :cat: @Deb and Sylvester
 
Hi Lori! Thanks for PMing me to let me know you had tagged me. I have just been so busy lately that I haven't been on the Board much unless I get an email (tags are supposed to do that). I got on this afternoon to help a ProZinc user and I saw your PM. ANYWAY.... this looks very similar to what one of my cat (Ellie - Elinor of Aquitane) had late last year. We had absolutely no idea where this came from. I mean, where do these indoor cats get this stuff?? The first thing that I noticed was that Elinor's nose looked a little different -- swollen over the bridge of her nose -- it looked wider -- (I see that in Max's picture, I think?) And she had a slightly pink-tinged discharge. Turns out that the skin under the fur around the bridge of the nose and around her eyes was also affected. She ended up with both oral antibiotics and eye drops. It did clear up and everything returned to normal. I believe it was Clavamox, but another broad spectrum antibiotic could work if Max is unable to take Clavamox. The eye drops were Neomycin and Polymyxin B Sulfates and Gramicidin Opthalmic Eye Drops -- so no steroid was needed. I hope this helps and I hope Max gets better soon. You are definitely NOT being a hypochondriac.
 
I've read a few of the other posts, but instead of what I do a LOT of, which is self-medicate my cats because I have to because I have so many (and can't take them to the vet at the drop of a hat -- and I have so many meds here to use -- I wouldn't mess around with doing a "home job" in this case. I would take Max to the vet to have this looked at. I'm concerned that the skin around the eye is also affected. Either way (and even though I stock Terramycin at home always since no Rx is required) I would feel more comfortable if you took him to the vet.
 
Ah ha!!! Correction: I found the receipt in my file and we used Antirobe (Clindamycin) for Elinor's skin infection around the eyes, plus the eye drops I mentioned (with no steroidal component) -- truth be told... my daughter just went through the whole file for me and found it! She's such a sweetheart!
 
@Suzanne & Darcy thanks so much for responding. I don’t get an email every time someone comments either so I was just wondering if the tag worked. I know and trust your knowledge about cats health in general. You have a lot of experience. I have an appointment Friday with his vet because I am not sure about what is going on. Max’s eyes look better today but you’re right his nose looks wider to me too. I thought it could be acromegaly related. Other things are concerning me with Max too. Thanks for saying I’m not a hypochondriac, but with Max, I definitely am one. He’s been through so much in his 13 years! I know I can be a pain venting my concerns with Max on here and I really don’t mean to be. I’m sorry if I am just too anxious sometimes. My gut feeling though is something else is going on with Max. I had to cancel his vet appointments this month because something else came up one day, then I got Covid again a couple of weeks ago and had to quarantine so his appointment got changed to April 11th. I called and got this appointment for his eyes on Friday. He needs his labs drawn so I’m hoping they will go ahead and do that. Thanks for your advice. I will let you know what the vet says Friday afternoon and thanks for your time. I know you are busy with your own kitties.:)
 
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