Why do so many manuls have eye problems?
Abricose, karaganda, zelenogorsk, etc
Does it have something to do with their eyes being big and thus having a large surface area?
Abricose, karaganda, zelenogorsk, etc
Does it have something to do with their eyes being big and thus having a large surface area?
Comments 5
Domestic cats are exactly the same. Rhinotracheitis affects the upper respiratory tract and the eyes. If treatment is started just a few hours too late, the cat can lose an eye.
And Bozhenka in Poznań new Zoo.
Annika Wawrzyńska, Still, I love Bozhenka very much. And everyone else as well
Hello, Pavle! 🤗
Pallas's cats really do quite often show eye problems, as well as damage to the nose (for example, as in the Pallas's cats Tashi, Haruto, and some others).
This is mainly due to a feature of their immune system, expressed in a high sensitivity to various infections, viruses, and parasites, especially the parasite Toxoplasma gondii, which causes toxoplasmosis, as well as to the feline herpesvirus (FHV-1), which causes rhinotracheitis.
Rhinotracheitis affects the mucous membranes, above all the respiratory tract and the eyes.
Toxoplasmosis, in turn, can affect various organs, including the brain, but often manifests externally precisely as eye damage.
The thing is that in the wild Pallas's cats have lived for millions of years in solitude, in a dry and cold, yet very sunny climate of the Asian steppes and mountains, where they relatively rarely encounter viruses and parasites.
In zoo conditions (especially in a more humid climate), their immune system finds itself in an environment to which it is not evolutionarily adapted.
That’s how it is 😐
Health to all the little Pallas's cats and strong immunity! 🙏
Vika Malyshkoverified_filled ,
Thank you very much for the explanation!
Yes, I also read that because manuls lived in isolation and had very little contact with people and their domestic animals, their immune systems are not adapted and are very vulnerable to all kinds of ailments. Even in a zoo, it is impossible to eliminate all risks: viruses can be carried by insects, rodents, and birds.
That is why I always wish all manuls robust health!
And I wonder, do manul keepers check whether they have vaccinated, healthy domestic cats? That is also a risk factor...