A few weeks ago we received a call from a local vet with whom we work sometimes.She said that someone had borught in an adorable two-year old cat to be put down.She wondered if we would be able to take this cat and save him

We asked why the owner wanted him euthanized and she said that the woman was moving and din’t want to deal with Henry’s “eye problems” any longer.She didn’t know what was wrong with his eyes, but said that they looked “nasty”.We’re not ones to shy away from difficult situations, so we added Henry to our waiting list and we very happy when his slot finally became available.

Saying that Henry’s eyes looked “nasty” was an understatement.It’s hard to explain, but his eyes looked as if they were covered with a thick mucousy film.It took several trips to our favorite opthalmalogist before he diagnosed Buddy with “eosinophilic granuloma complex” on his eyes.Eosinophils are a type of white blood cell used to fight parasites, usually on the skin.They cause inflammation as they do their work.The inflammation typically subsides quickly.However, sometimes a cat’s immune system causes the eosinophils to “overwork” and this give rise to lesions.

The preferred treatment for eosinophilic granuloma is steroids, so we started Henry on a course of steroid drops in his eyes.He hates getting the drops, but his eyes have already improved dramatically in just a week.

There is no real cure for this disease and it is inevtiable that Henry’s eyes will start top look “nasty” again at some point in the future.Then he will need the eyedrops again for a week or two.Henry is a very sweet cat and, given that he is young, we think he has a reasonable chance of being adopted.But, we know that his chronic eye disease will make an adoption qifficult.Meanwhile, plase sponsor Henry and help us to care for him as he deserves.