16 day kitten, eyes not open

I have rescued an abandoned kitten. I am worried that the eyes are not open yet at 16 days, even though her ears are up and she is hearing. Her eyes show no sign of opening. I have had many litters before and always the eyes are open by a week and a half. Does anyone know the longest that it could take for eyes to open? My concern is that the mother cat has had two litters in the past, by the same male, that suffered birth defects. Any info you can give would be helpful. Thanx so much.

Did you ask your Vet?

Do the eyes appear stuck shut? Have you tried cleaning gently with a warm wet washcloth? If it were me I'd take her up to see the vet if the warm cloth didn't do the trick.

Of our recent batch of kittens, one had one eye that would not open. We could see a brown crust, though. We soaked it for five minutes at a time with a sterile water solution. Even after our kitten's eye opened, it went shut again because of an infection he apparently got in the womb. We went to the vet to antibiotic drops and that did the trick.

Is there anything odd-looking? Any crust, swelling, or sign of infection?

I'd get a second vet opinion on your kitten.

No, there is no sign of infection, the eyelids are clean and grey (she is white & grey) I have been able to see a shadowy grey or blue behind the white fur on her eyelids for a week or so, which is why I expected her eyes to open. Yes, she has a heating pad which I use at night and a heat lamp which I use during the day, as it gets too warm with the pad. I also have a stuffed goose toy and she loves to curl up between its wings. She does not seem too stressed, she is calm when in her nest (until around feeding time) and when I hold her, she purrs and rubs her head against my hand and rolls around on her back, waving her paws in the air, so I believe she is happy and healthy except for her eyes. I am waiting for the vet to get in to his office, so hopefully, I will be able to take her this morning. Pray for good news!

Well, I have just spoken with the vet. He says that there is a good chance that she is just a 'late bloomer' in getting her eyes open. With a good appetite, good alertness and activity level, and no signs of discharge around the eyes, he suggested that I wait until friday morning before bringing her in. I also called the vet in the next county and got the same answer. With no other health concerns, he said it may be best to simply wait 2 or 3 days to allow them time to open. But he also said to watch her carefully for loss of appetite or lethargy(sp?) or any change in behavior and bring her in ASAP then. Good news is that she had been isolated 14 days now, which longer than the dormancy for most diseases, so there is only a small chance that she has something. Although, I seem to remember reading about feline panleukopenia, which can affect their eyes and/or nervous system and you may not know until they turn up blind or unable to walk well. Well, another round of the waiting game has begun....

Exposure to the distemper virus en utero can result in a kitten born with cerebellar hypoplasia. Generally, the kitten has impaired coordination but can also have other health problems. I didn't know about the possibility of blindness, though I know of a woman who had a CH cat born blind and unable to walk. It did fine until an incompetent vet allowed it to fall from the exam table. Campus Cats has a cat (now 10 yrs old) with severe CH. Tipsy is unable to take a single normal step but gets herself to the litterpan, food dish and water dish on her own when she has to (most of the time, she has me at her beck and call, of course).

Generally kittens found to have this condition are euthanized outright. I just wanted to put the word in not to give up too easily on this kitten if she is CH. CH is related to the distemper virus but is not contagious; Tipsy has her shot every year, like every other cat in the household. I don't expect her to live quite as long as a cat without CH, but she is healthy now and I hope to have her a good long time.

Sharon Talbert Friends of Campus Cats

It is day 19 and her eyes are definitely trying to open at the very corners. I am continuing with the warm washcloth and hope that all will go well. She had started to teeth and it is causing alot of frustration, because she is hungry, but after nursing for only a few minutes, she begins to chew at the nipple and whine (The little meows they make when they are frustrated, but not yet mad) So I have to let her eat a few ML, then pet her and let her chew on my finger or a towel, and then try a few more ML. So far, she is getting close to the same amount of formula in her, just more frequent, smaller feedings, but it is very frustrating and time-consuming. I am back to setting an alarm every two hours through the night to be sure that she has constant liquids and nutrition. My own wisdom teeth came in recently, so I am super sympathetic to how she feels. The good news is that she is still eating and seems healthy. If all goes well, she will be going in for her first vet visit next week (3 wks old). She will be wormed and possibly receive a vaccine, as she did not get any mother's milk, but the vet will have to examine her before deciding if she can handle the shots. I never realized how fragile kittens were until having to care for one myself.

Thanks for everyone's help and advice, as well as your concern. Good luck to all future rescuers!! I have a newfound respect for the work you do, and I am looking into tnr (trap, neuter, return) for the mother cat.

I don't know of a vaccine declared safe for kittens as young as 3 weeks, though the Heska vaccine (which is delivered in drop form to the eye and nostril) is safe for kittens as young as 4 weeks. We use it routinely for our rescue babies.

For her nursing bottle, you might look into a nurser with a sturdier nipple. I use one with a replaceable nipple (buy them by the tiny boxful) that holds up well to kittens under 4 weeks. You might also consider enlarging the hole in the nipple, if the kitten is fussy. She simply may not be getting enough at a time. Be very careful with that, though; you don't want the kitten to aspirate.

Sharon Talbert Friends of Campus Cats

I mispoke, she is 3 wks now, going to the vet at 4 wks. What is the Heska vaccine/ what is it for?

As for her appetite, she is now eating well again, up to 20-25 mL at a feeding. According to my chart, she should be between 60-80 mL a day over 3 feedings. Right now she is eating around 65-70mL. Her eyes are opening, the right eye is a darkish blue/black color, but the left eye is a milky blue. I can't get through to the vet, and am not sure if I should call the emergency number, as there is still NO discharge from either eye. I don't think that it is an infection, it appears more like a cataract over the eye. any advice?

thanx, samantha g.

Samantha,

Since it's Saturday, is there another vet that's open? It would be nice to at least ask a vet about it.

Hope everything turns out well, and let us know,