Your cat’s constant attempts to lick your eyes indicate that she is grooming you. To properly groom its kittens, the mother cat typically licks their eyelids.
As a result, if your pet and you have a strong attachment, she may start licking your eyes. To show their love, cats lick their owners.
Seeing the eyes of their owner can help calm an anxious cat. However, if their paws get in the way of licking your face, they may instead scratch you.
For this reason, many cat owners opt to halt their feline’s misbehavior. Feline pets should not be allowed to lick your face for health reasons, but they can still be a great companion. Unfortunately, bacteria in your pet’s saliva may get you sick.
It’s possible to divert your pet’s attention away from your face if your feline pet has a penchant for licking your eyelids. Take a toy and dangle something in front of the kitty as quickly as you detect she’s getting close.
The idea is to keep the kitten busy chewing on the toy while you’re working on something else. To help your cat stop licking its eyes, you might utilize positive rewards such as petting and stroking. Praise the cat with its favorite snacks whenever she cuddles with you and doesn’t lick your eyelashes.
Why Do Cats Lick Your Eyes?
Feline pets lick your eye and let everyone understand that you are their owner and to mark their territory. Unfortunately, cats can transmit diseases to humans through their eyes; therefore, it’s something you should avoid.
Cats, like humans, have their unique ways of expressing their feelings of affection. Certain people exhibit more weird and unusual behaviors than others.
Some cats are more enamored with cleanliness than others. This explains why your cat may have spent considerable time grooming itself while lying in the sun.
Since cats perceive humans as more significant, hairless copies of themselves, they may be licking your eyelids as a form of self-grooming. But, of course, cats, particularly the older ones, are well-known for washing and grooming kittens, so this is not surprising.
Some cats can’t help themselves when it comes to compulsive licking. It could be related to your cat’s underlying anxiety or a long-standing obsessional tendency.
So, if she sees you sad or crying and is drawn to the strong scent, the cat may approach your face and take a whiff of the tears in your eyes. It’s usually due to the salt in your tears, even if you can’t see them, causing your eyes to water.
Can A Human Get an Eye Infection from a Cat?
It is not possible for feline viruses and bacteria responsible for pink eye in cats to be passed on to people. However, if you have additional cats, you risk unintentionally passing an illness from one fur baby to another via activities such as caressing, feeding, or grooming.
When applying topical treatments for pink eye, it is essential to do so while wearing gloves to avoid spreading the infection. After curing your cat’s eye, throw away the mittens and wash your hands as soon as possible. Do this before touching any part of your body or surfaces inside or outside your home.
Therefore, it is a good idea to give the entire house an extra cleaning with a disinfectant that is safe for pets. If you notice that your cat’s eye is acting strangely, you should make an appointment with your veterinarian as soon as possible.
The pupils of the eyes of a healthy cat are the same size, and there is no excessive secretion, inflammation, or puffiness in the eyes. So if you look closely at the eyes of your feline companion, there shouldn’t be any cloudiness, and you shouldn’t be able to make out the third eyelid.
Can You Go Blind If a Cat Licks Your Eye?
It’s unlikely, but if a cat licks an eye and it’s infested with harmful germs, you could go blind. Infected with the bacteria Bartonella henselae, which is spread by the saliva of cats, this occurred to one woman a few years ago.
Be cautious while letting your cat lick you since it may contain the Bartonella bacteria in over 40% of all cats. It’s not common, though, for this to culminate in blindness.
Antibiotics can be given to people with an infection if they are discovered early enough, which should alleviate their symptoms completely. The only way this can cause blindness is if antibiotics are never administered, and the sickness is detected far too late.
Even while it’s preferable if your cat doesn’t lick your face, if it occurs, make sure to wipe yourself up right away. While it may not be possible to convince your cat to stop licking your face thoroughly, you should try to prevent this practice as much as possible because cats can transmit disease through their saliva.
If you’ve been exposed to this virus, you’ll be able to know rather quickly if you’ve been infected. Symptoms of lymph node and local edema may be present, as well as fever.
What to Do If a Cat Licks Your Eye?
You might want to think about what else might have occurred whenever your cat first gently caresses your eyes if that’s not how your cat has always licked them. If your cat suddenly started doing it, it could be because it felt more comfortable with you or because you began to connect with it in a new way.
When your cat is about to start licking your eyes, you can try to divert its attention by doing something else. One approach could be petting it in a different place or holding it differently.
Consider if your cat likes to lick your eyes at a specific time of day. If your cat performs it more often when you hold it, the cause is more likely to be affected.
Changing where your cat sits can help if it tends to lick your eyes when sitting next to you. Your cat will find it more challenging to lick your eyes this way.
Your cat may be grooming you if it is licking your eyes. As a last resort, you can try distracting your cat by giving it a toy or something else to occupy its attention while you’re not caressing it.
