Dear Dr. John,

I recently acquired a cat who is not quite a year old as a playmate for my older cat who is 13. My older cat has had a history of intermittent eye problems with redness and discharge. My vet always gives me an ointment and it goes away every time. It started up again a few days ago and while it is not as bad this time, my young cat seems to be coughing. It is not a hairball retch as I know what that looks like. Both cats seem to otherwise be OK with normal appetites and energy level. Should I take them in to be seen and what might be going on? Could there be a relationship between the two signs in the two cats? I am also puzzled as to why my older cat periodically gets this eye issue.  A.L.

Dear A.L.,

While dust and other irritants might be affecting your older cat’s eyes from time to time over the years, there is also the possibility of your cat having a recurring viral infection leading to conjunctivitis. While often brought about by stress, sometimes the reason for its reappearance is not known. The more commonly implicated viruses are calicivirus and feline herpes virus 1. If that is what your older cat has, it has probably had a virus for a long time and your veterinarian might feel that it is the cause. I would ask them for the cause rather than just treatment. Treatment usually consists of antibiotic ointments or drops, with or without steroids, to treat conjunctivitis and various antiviral drops can be given as eye drops if a virus is suspected or diagnosed. Various supplements can also be helpful such as lysine.

Your younger cat could be coughing from any given irritant or dust, including cigarette smoke if you smoke, or it may have caught a virus from the older cat. However, these two feline viruses are typically associated more with eye and nose issues and not coughing. Most of these clinical signs with viral infections last for less than two weeks. If either or both start to become lethargic, lose their appetites, or develop yellow or green ocular and nasal discharge then I would have them seen.

Dr. John de Jong owns and operates the Boston Mobile Veterinary Clinic. He can be reached at 781-899-9994.