Shades of blindness in your cats & mine

[Lizzie]

I'm picking this up from the Cat Rescue forum because it's not visited as frequently as this forum so I can get responses from, hopefully, everyone who has or has had a cat who is blind or with limited vision. I know Emily has several such cats and hope she can give input.

Some of you may remember that I adopted Surya, previously called Beans, from a shelter in Ohio several years ago. He has radial hypoplasia so moves on his back legs only. His vision, never 100%, has become more and more impaired over the years.

Although I don't move the furniture around, he still walks head first into walls and cabinets quite frequently as he is moving around. He doesn't hit hard because he now walks in a slow shuffle and he seems to sense he has to move slowly in case he bumps into something. Most of the time, though, he navigates all over the main floor of the house with no problem at all. He doesn't see his food but smells it out. I sprinkle kibble on the kitchen floor because that's his preference.

He seems to see shades so black cats have always stood out for him. If a black cat comes near, he hesitates (although they never bother him) but a lighter cat can walk right past him and he doesn't react at all. He's always focused on the black cats and used to kangaroo jump after them and bite them. I have fond memories of running backwards away from him years ago with a sofa cushion held protectively in front of me because he intended to bite me after I'd stopped him going after an elderly black cat. I laughed so hard I nearly fell over.

So, do your blind or vision impaired cats sometimes walk into walls or furniture even though most of the time they don't? Do they tend to see shades of light or darkness even if they seem truly blind?

[catmandu]

Princess amd Michael both had vision issues , so you have to be careful not to move the furniture too much.:love::love:
You may have to move the food closer or microwave for ten seconds so he can smell it.
Good Luck:love::love:

[doolittleky]

Hi Lizzie,
I am so glad to hear about Beans(Surya). I think of him daily and wonder how he is. Shoo, my visually impaired cat could see shadows and I noticed he could see some colors better than others. He too sometimes walked into things especially when he wasn't paying attention to things or if he got into a hurry. If he started running around playing then it is then he would run into things the most like a wall or something like that. He would chase this big fabric ball or someother toy and bat at it like he was palying soccer then run right into a wall. It never did phase him though, he would jsut go on as if nothing ever happened!
Melissa

[Lizzie]

Surya doesn't hurry anywhere any more so haste is not the issue, and I believe he is paying attention because he's just ambling along towards the kitchen from the bedroom usually. I'm always surprised when he does it, and I hate seeing it happen but he never hurts himself because it's so slow.

The most difficult part about taking care of him now is making sure he has a quality life. He's never been a cat to sit in windows and now he's almost blind there is no point. He used to play a lot with fluffy toys with tails and would toss them around endlessly but he'll only give them a brief head toss now when I rub one against his face. He loves being out on the deck and now the weather has finally changed he can be out there for long hours. His favorite place is the kitchen because he's always liked to be in the middle of activity. There is shallow bowl for his water, though he often frustrates me by sitting up on his hind legs, wobbling about, to drink out of the big bowl next to it. I really don't like the fact that he pees in the kitchen also, even though there is a special area on the other side of a dividing wall set up just for him, but one can hardly blame a cat so very disabled. I wish the puddles were not in front of the sinks or stove so often, but if I put up barriers he pees against them and it's more mess.

[doolittleky]

Lizzie,
How old is he now? I didn't think of him as being that old. I guess because I have always worked with kids with different issues and needs and always had animals with the same I never think of any of them as disabled. Where some people look at the disability as sad and feel pity, I look at it the opposite way and see them for what they can do whether it is with an adaption or not. I don't think animals or kids with special issues think they are any different than anyone else and that is what I love about them both! How is he health wise besides the vision issue and the peeing issue? I would love to see a recent pic of him. I miss him sooo much!
Melissa
PS did you call the craigslist person to see about that kitten?

[Lizzie]

Surya is about 7 or 8, I believe.

I think I posted about the seizure he had at the vet's office several years ago. He got really upset when he was there to have his eye checked because another cat had smacked him after Surya bit him. He's never had another, which is great. He was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy years ago and that has advanced. No thyroid problem on his blood tests and he eats a very high quality diet so it's an inherited disease. I know the majority of cats with radial hypoplasia live a normal life span, but as my vet warned me some, like Surya, have multiple genetic problems.

This morning he got to do his favorite thing in all the world. He had tucked himself into a jog in the hallway so he is hidden from cats walking down it. Miss Z., my CH cat, came thundering along and her walk is very distinctive in sound of course. Just as she got near the door to the bathroom, out he jumped and over she flipped. He does it with such glee.

[doolittleky]

Well lets hope that he lives a long life and doesn't have any other medical issues that pop up. He is such a dear dear cat! Please let me know how he is doing and if he has any other medical problems when they come up. Do you have any recent pics of him? I would love to see them.

I am glad that lady found a home for that special needs kitten.

[emily_the_spoiled]

I have a combination of some guys who are completely blind versus some with one good eye. I don't have any that seem to make out shadows or specific colours. Unfortunately they still bump into each other and the walls. They have never hurt themselves doing this, but I have found that it has decreased the longer they are here (and I also don't move the furniture). But regardless of whether they see or not, all the guys love hanging out in the windows, bot the fresh air (it is still cool enough to keep them open now) and to hear the sounds of the birds. I have a bird feeder in the fornt yard so there ar always birds, squirrels, and chipmunks hanging around (Cat TV).

One would never guess that they are blind except that they almost always "lead with their nose". My sister who works with disabled children, says that blind kids do exactly the same thing. It is a way of sensing what it ahread.

[Lizzie]

Thank you for the post, Emily, I was hoping you would give input because I know you have had blind and visually impaired cats for years. It does make me feel better that yours still walk into things (you know what I mean!) Surya really loves being out on the deck and will stay out longer than any other cat, but he seems oblivious to the sounds outside, they don't seem to interest him at all. I think he just loves the fresh air and the smells - fresh smells since I live in a very green suburb.

He got his nose put out of joint this morning because the other cats all decided to use his floor beds, ignoring sofas and armchairs. He ambled from bed to bed, stopping dead at each one as he realized there was already another cat there. He can still jump onto a low sofa but prefers something really low. He was fine, though, he also loves the bottom shelf of a credenza I have in the kitchen and he can squeak at me for treats.


I have a combination of some guys who are completely blind versus some with one good eye. I don't have any that seem to make out shadows or specific colours. Unfortunately they still bump into each other and the walls. They have never hurt themselves doing this, but I have found that it has decreased the longer they are here (and I also don't move the furniture). But regardless of whether they see or not, all the guys love hanging out in the windows, bot the fresh air (it is still cool enough to keep them open now) and to hear the sounds of the birds. I have a bird feeder in the fornt yard so there ar always birds, squirrels, and chipmunks hanging around (Cat TV).

One would never guess that they are blind except that they almost always "lead with their nose". My sister who works with disabled children, says that blind kids do exactly the same thing. It is a way of sensing what it ahread.

[emily_the_spoiled]

Some of my guys will just sleep on top of an unwanted friend in their bed :D If that is where they want to sleep, then it doesn't matter if there is another one in the same bed.

I don't let any of my guys outside (because all my neighbors have BIG dogs), but they do like hanging out by the windows.

I have had blind cats for about 6 years and we have always been in the same house, and every once in a while they still have trouble. But I have never had to take them into the vet for that reason, so all is well.

[moosmom]

Barty, my 15 year old permanent foster (if there is such a thing) has vision problems. I have to literally put the plate of food under his nose and guide his head down. He's such a sweet boy, though. When he's hungry, he'll come tell me then go and sit by his dish like a little gentleman with his tail wrapped around his from paws. How can I fall so in love with a cat??

[catlover4ever]

Gracie and Gabriel both tend to walk into the furniature from time to time, but for the most part they have the floor plans memorized. Gabriel is able to see some shadows (color does not matter) but Gracie is not able to see anything at all but she hears everything really, really well.

Gracie and Gabriel are able to experience the great outdoors when I am outside with them, this way I keep a really good eye on them and they get to smell the fresh air and roll and eat the grass. They love to chase and follow the bees and butterflies. They also think they are going to catch birds but they have never come even close.

[Lizzie]

Barty, my 15 year old permanent foster (if there is such a thing) has vision problems. I have to literally put the plate of food under his nose and guide his head down. He's such a sweet boy, though. When he's hungry, he'll come tell me then go and sit by his dish like a little gentleman with his tail wrapped around his from paws. How can I fall so in love with a cat??

He sounds like a sweetheart of a cat. I have to put the food very close to Surya's nose also.

Most of my fosters are permanent, some because they are hospice and others because they are considered unadoptable and become ill when in a shelter environment. It can work out well when you are given fosters like your Barty because you can enjoy them while not having to worry about the costs of vet care.

[emily_the_spoiled]

My guys may bump into this, but they NEVER misplace their food dish:rolleyes::rolleyes: Usually that is the only thing they can find without a problem

[Lizzie]

Thinking about Surya finding his food made me realize that his sense of hearing is far better than his sense of smell. He's instantly on the alert when he hears the bag unzip and moves towards the sound of kibble on the floor.

My deck is on the upper floor of the house, well screened with chicken wire to prevent any disasters. I would think about setting up a tunnel in the downstairs so they could go out into a fenced off portion of the garden but my garden has gone totally wild and I've never had a lawn, and I'd be afraid of neighbor cats getting in and leaving their viruses behind.