Q I have two young Persian cats and I can’t seem to get their eyes clean. One has a black discharge from its tear ducts. I’ve tried cleaning the area with cold boiled water and lotions but nothing seems to work.
Persian cats are prone to eye problems because of their flattened faces which can cause problems with the tear ducts. It is likely that both cats have conjunctivitis and would benefit from a check-up with your vet.
Beside the tear duct abnormality there are many other causes of this condition. If there is any sneezing it could be the result of a respiratory infection such as cat flu. This can occur in a mild form even if the cat has been vaccinated.
Slightly mucky eyes are also quite common and almost normal in Persians and cleaning twice daily helps but the discharge you mention is more serious as it suggests that there is a bacterial and yeast infection as well as the conjunctivitis.
The yeast involved is called malassezia. Your vet may want to swab this discharge to check whether there is a yeast infection so that the best ointment can be prescribed to treat it effectively.
A rarer condition is idiopathic facial dermatitis and the cause is unknown. This can look like severe conjunctivitis as there is also a black discharge but the disease spreads to other areas of the face.
These cases are best dealt with by a dermatologist.
David Grant MBE was a vet at the RSPCA Harmsworth Hospital for Animals. Write to him at Express Yourself, 10 Lower Thames Street, London EC3R 6EN. He is unable to enter into individual correspondence.