Why Is My Cat Squinting One Eye – Is It Normal?

Eyes are the most beautiful, expressive, and adorable things of a cat. Your feline friend expresses their love and affection by gently blinking at you. But sometimes, you have seen that your cat is constantly squinting its one eye. Unknown to this behavior, you may ask yourself: Why is my cat squinting one eye?

Cats squint one eye due to eye irritation or conjunctivitis. It can also indicate blepharospasm or corneal ulcers. Cats squinting one eye can happen due to anisocoria, glaucoma, and other eye-related diseases.

In this article, we will be explaining why your cat is squinting one eye. We will also be answering some other frequently asked questions and providing some essential information to help you understand the reasons behind your cat’s squinting behavior and avoid vision-related problems.

Reasons Your Cat Is Squinting One Eye

There are five main reasons why your cat is squinting one eye. Maybe your cat is experiencing eye irritation or infection. Your cat may also have conjunctivitis and blepharospasm. However, squinting can also indicate eye-related diseases like anisocoria, corneal ulcers, or glaucoma.

Eye Irritation

Your cat is squinting one eye because of eye irritation. Several irritants like dust, strong perfumes, or smoke may get into the eyes of your cat and create discomfort.

Moreover, any foreign body may accidentally enter your cat’s eye and cause irritation as well. Consequently, your cat may squint its eye or rub it excessively, experiencing uneasiness and pain.

Conjunctivitis 

Conjunctivitis or pink eye is a common reason for your cat’s squinting. It is a contagious disease for cats, and it may occur due to viral or bacterial infections in the eyes.

In many cases, an upper respiratory illness may cause conjunctivitis in cats. Your cat may show a runny eye with gray, yellow, or green discharge.

Blepharospasm

Cats may start squinting one eye due to blepharospasm. It’s a condition when your cat’s eyelid becomes red and swollen. Consequently, your cat starts blinking or squinting one eye. Water discharge can also occur in this situation. Blepharospasm happens mainly because of eye irritation, allergies, or bacterial and fungal infections.

Corneal Ulcers

Squinting one eye can be a sign of your cat’s corneal ulcers. Corneal ulcers develop from eye injuries, anatomical abnormalities, infections, and chronically dry eyes.

Your furry friend may feel great pain and continuously rubs and squints its eyes. Corneal ulcers can be treated with proper medication and care. So, when you see your cat squinting or rubbing its eyes unusually, you should visit your vet immediately.

Glaucoma

When your furry friend is squinting one eye, it may be a sign of having glaucoma. When your cat’s eyes don’t get adequate drainage for aqueous fluid, it develops this condition.

There can be several reasons for glaucoma, including anatomical abnormality, an increase in intraocular pressure, long-term eye injury, eye tumors, and damage in the eye lens. Your cat may show different symptoms like squinting, vision loss, unresponsive pupils, loss of appetite, inactivity, etc.

Do Cats Squint When In Pain

Your feline partner may squint one eye when it is in pain or extreme discomfort. A long time squinting may occur due to eye-related issues like irritation, conjunctivitis, blepharospasm, and corneal ulcers.

When your feline friend is in pain, it can also constrict or dilate its pupils. It would help if you made an appointment with your vet to diagnose and treat this condition properly.

Why Is My Cat’s Eye Half Closed

Your cat’s eye can be half-closed for different reasons. Your cat may feel eye irritation or have conjunctivitis due to infections in the upper respiratory tract.

Blepharospasm is another reason that causes squinting in cats. Moreover, your cat may half-close its eye constantly due to having eye-related diseases like symblepharon, anisocoria, corneal ulcers, and glaucoma.

What Can You Do For A Cat’s Irritated Eye

When you are sure that your cat is having irritation in the eye, you can try rinsing the eyes with an eye-wash solution. In that case, you must use two separate bowls for two eyes.

But before doing that, you should consult your vet and make sure that the irritation is not a sign of other eye-related diseases. Some common eye irritants for cats are perfumes, smoke, dust, cleaning chemicals, etc. However, anything that gets in your cat’s eye accidentally may occur irritation, and your cat can show signs of discomforts by squinting or rubbing its eyes.

There can be redness and discharge as well. As eyes are a sensitive part of your cat, you should be careful about treating your cat’s eye-related discomfort.

Will A Cat Eye Infection Heal On Its Own

A cat’s eye infection doesn’t heal on its own and needs proper diagnosis and treatment. It can happen due to conjunctivitis, upper respiratory infections, corneal disorders, epiphora, and uveitis.

Eye infections can cause redness, unusual blinking, squinting, watery discharge, and extreme discomfort in your cat’s eyes.

If you don’t consult a vet and give your feline partner proper treatment, it may lose or damage its eyesight. When you see any eye infections symptom, you should not wait for it to heal automatically. Instead, you must consult your vet urgently.

Can I Give My Cat Human Eye Drops

Never use human eye drops to treat your cat’s eye-related problems. When you detect any eye infections or diseases in your cats, you should immediately consult a vet.

Then after the necessary diagnosis, your vet will recommend the proper treatment for your cat. Even if your cat’s eyes show redness, discharge, or some minor issues, you must consult your vet to help you tackle the situation.

Remember, eyes are susceptible areas. So it would help if you took the matter with much seriousness and care.

What If My Cat Is Squinting One Eye And Sneezing

When your cat is squinting on the eye and sneezing, it’s a sign that your cat is experiencing an eye infection. The infection can be due to some bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. In many cases, upper respiratory problems cause eye infections in cats.

Your cat may show symptoms like rubbing and squinting, redness, and swelling, eye discharge, sneezing, and nasal discharge. In that case, you must make sure that your cat is getting proper rest.

You should also gently clear off the discharge and provide your cat a healthy diet and enough drinking water. Not to mention, you must consult your vet as early as possible.

What Could Be Wrong With My Cat’s Eye

When you see your feline partner squinting or rubbing its eyes than usual, you must show concerns because it may indicate your cat gets an eye infection.

There are a few common eye problems that occur in cats. They are eye irritation, conjunctivitis, corneal ulcers, iris discoloration, allergies, glaucoma, etc. To make sure that your cat is free from those problems, you must check its eyes regularly. 

How Long Do Cat Eye Infections Last

It depends on the severity of the infections. After a proper diagnosis, your vet can tell you the exact timeframe of the recovery. Generally, most bacterial and viral infections get cured within five to fourteen days. These infections are usually treated with antibiotic drops or ointments.

Should I Clean My Cats Eyes

You can clean your cat’s eyes when you see a small amount of discharge. An occasional small amount of discharge in cats is normal. When you clean the eyes, use a warm washcloth or cotton balls and sterilized water.

Dip the corner of the washcloth or balls and gently clear the dirt. Always use separate bowls for each eye. If your cats have other symptoms like squinting, redness, excessive blinking with this discharge, then you must take your feline friends to a vet to have proper treatment.

Should I Take My Cat To The Vet For A Watery Eye

You should take your cat to the vet if it has watery eyes with some other signs like squinting, excessive blinking, redness, etc. In this case, your feline friend may fall victim to eye infections, conjunctivitis, allergies, or other eye-related diseases.

Watery eyes indicate that the tear film of your cat’s eyes is producing more tears. Generally, it helps to fight bacteria, and remove debris and keep your cat’s eyes healthy. But if other symptoms are there with the watery eye, you should take your cat to the vet to identify and treat the condition.

How Do You Treat A Cat’s Irritated Eye

You can treat your cat’s irritated eyes with an eye-wash solution. If your cat allows it, you should gently rinse out their eyes with the eye-wash solution. You can do that only when you are certain that the eye irritation is caused by dust, smoke, perfume, or other strong fragrances.

If your cat is seen with excessive blinking or unusual squinting, consult your vet to help you overcome your cat’s discomfort.

Things To Consider

When it comes to squinting and eye-related problems, there are some other things you should know. Your feline partner may squint one eye due to some other eye-related diseases as well.

Anisocoria

Anisocoria can cause your cat to squint one eye. It’s a condition when one pupil of your cat becomes larger than the other. It can cause abnormal eye movements, redness, and discharge. Anisocoria indicates retinal problems, corneal injury, posterior synechia, cancer, and in some cases, brain damage.

Symblepharon

Symblepharon happens for feline herpesvirus and generally attacks kittens under three weeks of age. The affected eyes get swelled and glued together, and watery discharge slowly becomes like pus. 

Check Your Cat’s Eyes Regularly

You should check your cat’s eyes regularly. Make sure it is bright and shiny, and there is no constant squinting, excessive blinking, or discharge. As eyes are extremely sensitive areas of your cat, consult your vet if anything seems unusual.