Okay, so, my cat, Mittens, she’s been having this issue with her eyes lately. They’ve been all red and watery, and she keeps pawing at them, which, you know, can’t be comfortable. I took her to the vet, and after a quick look, the vet said it looked like a minor eye infection. Nothing too serious, thank goodness, but still something that needed to be taken care of.
The vet prescribed this erythromycin ointment. Now, I’ve heard of erythromycin before, it’s an antibiotic, right? But I’d never used it on a cat, let alone in ointment form. I was a bit nervous, I won’t lie. Getting a cat to sit still for anything is a challenge, let alone putting something in their eyes.
So, the first step, obviously, was getting the ointment on. Easier said than done. I tried holding Mittens gently but firmly, but she’s a squirmy one. I finally managed to get a tiny bit of the ointment on my finger. The vet had said to apply a thin ribbon to the inside of the lower eyelid. Sounds simple enough, in theory.
- First, I tried to hold her head still. Yeah, right.
- Then, I gently pulled down her lower eyelid. She did not appreciate that.
- Finally, I managed to get a bit of the ointment where it needed to go.
Honestly, it was a bit of a wrestling match. But we got it done. I had to do this twice a day for a week. By the third day, Mittens seemed to realize that I was trying to help, and she started to cooperate a little more. It still wasn’t easy, but it was definitely better than the first day.
And you know what? After a few days, I started to see an improvement. Her eyes weren’t as red, and she wasn’t pawing at them as much. By the end of the week, they looked almost back to normal. I was so relieved. I continued the treatment for the full week, just to make sure the infection was completely gone. I mean, you don’t want to stop antibiotics just when they are starting to work, that’s common sense.
So, what I learned?
First, the stuff works like a charm. But more importantly, getting medicine on a cat is a two-person job, if you can swing it. And lastly, a little patience goes a long way. Now, Mittens is back to her old self, batting at her toys and chasing sunbeams, with clear, healthy eyes. And I’m just happy that I could help her feel better. I’ll keep that ointment on hand, you never know when you will need it again.
