My one of my kitten eye keeps closing and getting stuck while the other one is open. He has crust in his eye and hard to get all the way out. Can you give me some advice on how to keep it open. Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Male | unneutered | 17 days old

Hello, I am sorry to hear about Tom. The discharge and crusting you describe could be signs of an eye infection. Kittens are prone to getting eye infections secondary to a viral infection. You could try gently wiping some of the crusts away with a warm facecloth/towel. If the discharge continues and is significant enough that it prevents him from opening his eye fully I would recommend having Tom seen by a veterinarian so that they can perform an ocular examination and prescribe antibiotics if needed. Hope this helps, good luck!

Poor Bella! What a beautiful kitty she is. I can see that her eyes are definitely very crusty. Eye infections are very common in kittens, and often cause the kind of crusty discharge that you are seeing. She will need prescription eye drops from a vet to treat the infection, so I would recommend taking her for a vet exam as soon as you are able to. Ideally, it would be best to have her seen today at an emergency clinic if possible, because severe eye infections can cause permanent damage and even vision loss in some cases without prompt treatment. If you aren't able to take her to an emergency vet over the holiday weekend, then I would definitely see a regular vet on Tuesday morning so that she can get started on medication to treat the problem. In the meantime, you can use plain saline eye flush to gently rinse her eyes, and clean away the crusty discharge a few times a day with a warm washcloth. This will not treat the underlying infection causing the discharge, but it may help to make her more comfortable until you are able to see the vet.

I would not put antibiotic ointment on the eye without consulting your vet. Moist compresses on the eye in order to soften the crusts and then wipe them off should suffice. If the eye starts to get a yellow or greenish discharge, take the kitten to the vet for an exam and some prescription antibiotics.