How to Apply Eye Drops to Your Cat

Most individuals view administering eye drops to cats as a nightmare. The kitties naturally don’t like to be restrained, having their eyes prodded and something we put in. However, with some gentle restraint and patience, administering eye drops to cats is something you can do comfortably at home. It might take some tries before your cat willingly participates, but her eyes will feel better once you apply the eye drops successfully. Here are the best tips on applying eye drops to your cat.

Holding Your Cat

How well you restrain your feline friend will play a significant role in how easy you will administer the eye drops to your cat. However, before anything else, ensure to clean your hands and dry them with a dry piece of cloth. There are two ways to hold your cat; on your lap or by placing her on a raised surface or table.

Hold your cat in your lap

Start by holding your cat comfortably in your lap. Once she is resting comfortably, place one of the forearms across her body to keep the maintainer in place. The length of the cat’s body should be against your abdomen.

• Sit somewhere comfortable for you, whether on a chair, couch, bed, etc.
• The forearm across the cat’s body should be the non-dominant arm. For instance, if you are left-handed, your right forearm should lie across the cat’s body.
• If the cat is likely to scratch, wrap her in a towel so that only her head is not covered.
• If you want to administer the eye drops when sitting on the floor, holding the cat on your lap will not work. Instead, you should try and position your cat between your knees and be unable to get away.

Put your cat on a raised surface or table

It might be more comfortable and more accessible for you to have your cat on a raised surface about your waist level. According to MedicAnimal, if the surface is a bit slippery, wrap her in a towel or put the towel down first so she can have some traction under her.

Place the cats head appropriately

To administer eye drops to your cat, you will require to hold her head with the non-dominant hand steadily. Put the thumb of the non-dominant hand on one side of the cat’s jaw and the fingers on the other side. Your cat’s head will be firmly positioned in your hand, with the hand under her chin. To give the eye drops easily, you should tilt the cat’s head gently upward.

Clean her eyes

According to Cinque Ports Vets, for the eye drops to be uttermost effective, your cat’s eyes will require to be clean and free of any discharge. If need be, start by cleaning your cat’s eyes by soaking a small amount of sterile eyewash solution on cotton and wiping it around her eyes. You can consult your veterinarian on an eyewash solution to clean the cat’s eyes.

Open your cat’s eyelids

Pull down the cat’s lower eyelid using the thumb of your non-dominant hand. This will result in a small pouch into which you may administer the eye drops. However, it’s not necessary even though it’s convenient to place the eye drops into the pouch. The drops will quickly disperse across your cat’s eye; hence, you don’t need to worry about putting the drops in a specific spot on the cat’s eye.

Place the applicator tip above your kitty’s eye.

Hold the tip of the applicator about an inch above the eye of your cat. Always ensure that the tip does not touch the cat’s eye. This will irritate your cat, but it will also contaminate it. It will be helpful to rest the heel of the dominant hand on the top of your cat’s head. This will enable you to have a stable aim of the drops and prevent you from touching the cat’s eye with the tip accidentally. Also, to avoid contamination on the bottle cap, place it on a clean surface on the side.

Apply the eye drops

According to the vet’s prescription, the next step is squeezing the bottle and quickly dispensing the eye drops into your cat’s eye. Always be careful not to put in more drops than prescribed. If both the eyes require treatment, repeat the same steps followed in administering the eye drops in the other eye. However, if your cat is very restless, you should consider letting her be and try again later when she is calmer. You don’t want her to be so stubborn that you won’t be able to get the drops into her eye

Keep the cat still

Your cat will most probably not want to keep still after finishing administering drop seven though she willingly participated in the procedure. Most cats might want to start rubbing their eyes. Hence, it is recommended to keep the cat gently restrained until the eye drops completely disperse all over her eyes.

Don’t massage your cat’s eyes

Most cat owners think that massaging their cat’s eyes will help spread the eye drops across the eyes. Nevertheless, the eye drops will quickly disperse on their own. According to Huntington Village Animal Hospital, the cat will blink to help spread the medication over the eye. Your cat might enjoy an eye massage after the drops, but it has no medical perspective.

Offer your cat a treat

A great way of distracting your cat after administering the eye drops is by offering her a tasty treat. Your cat will love a delicious treat such as a small tuna after the event of administering eye drops. You can also administer the eye drops to your cat during mealtime hours so that you might reward her with a meal afterward. Also, keep in mind that you will probably be required to dispense your cat eye drops numerous times a day, so be considerate with the treats. You don’t want your cat to fill up on treats every time you give the drops.

Bottom Line

Hopefully, you now understand how to apply eye drops to your cat. Usually, eye drops are comfortable for cats. Your kitty will only blink a lot after putting the drop in her eyes. However, if the drops become troublesome, your cat might paw at the eyes or try rubbing the face across the floor. In this case, you should consult with your vet immediately.