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My cat has brown eye discharge for years. Can I treat it at home?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Domestic Shorthair | Female | spayed | 10 years and 4 months old

My 10 year old calico has a brown liquid (not thick) discharge in just one eye and it is continuous. I know from the previous owner that she has had this for at least 2 years. Her one eye is smaller and she will close that more often than the other. She does not have a red eye. She doesn't appear to be in any stress and plays with my other two cats and does not Is there something I can do instead of going to the doctor? Thank you so much

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Kevin Sanada, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on February 8th, 2018

One possibility is that the tears are not draining properly. If the eye is small, then this would definitely explain why it's not draining properly and is ending up on her face. They can also get blocked tear ducts that will cause a similar problem. If the eye and conjunctiva do not appear red, then I would not be worried about infection or other inflammation causing the discharge, but I'd have to examine her to be sure. Unfortunately, what you are describing is not specific to any one condition, so I am not able to narrow-down the causes and provide advice about treating it. I can say that if it is a blocked tear duct, or other drainage problem, then it would require veterinary intervention. It is best to have a veterinarian examine her to get a specific diagnosis. I'm sure that a great amount of information can be obtained from just an exam, or some minimal testing. I hope that helps and all is well with Ellie.

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