Non-diabetic cat's third eyelid stuck

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FosterMomGoldie

Member Since 2013
Sorry if this is the wrong sub forum...

In addition to my diabetic foster, I have two non-diabetic cats of my own (sadly they won't put up with another cat, or I'd keep Goldie). Buttercup is a petite and friendly nine year old with nothing very serious in her medical history, and she's been in the family since kittenhood. When I got home from work on Monday, I noticed the third eyelid of her left eye was stuck about a third of the way up. When it didn't fix itself in a day I called the vet, who was unconcerned since there were no additional symptoms, but I brought her in yesterday to be safe. After her exam, the vet said it was almost certainly an idiopathic nerve issue, and to simply keep an eye on it for the next few months. He also gave me a few anti-inflammatory pills, but he didn't seem to think there was a high chance of that fixing it.

Anyway, I thought I'd run that by all the experienced cat owners in this board to see if anyone has prior experience with this kind of thing, because I'd never heard of it, and if you guys agree with the vet that it's not something to be concerned about just yet.

To be clear about "no other symptoms", her appetite, thirst and energy levels are all the same, she is not behaving as though her vision is impaired, there is no discharge coming from the eye, and she is not rubbing or fussing at it or reacting to it at all. The vet did notice that her eye is not dilating correctly the way her other eye is. He checked for signs of an ear or mouth infection which might be causing nerve trouble, but everything looked good.
 
Is she able to blink to keep it moist? If yes, it doesn't sound like there is much you can do.

If no blinking and the eye becomes dry, ask the vet about using sterile, preservative free eye drops, such as Systane.
 
Yeah, she's blinking normally. Her eye seems to be a little more moist than the other one actually, so I think it's fine. Thanks!
 
This is a new one for me. And yes, perfectly fine to post this here.

Did you google idiopathic nerve issue in cats to see what information comes up?

It may not be anything serious, but if you are still concerned maybe going to an eye specialist will help.
 
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