Making A Blind Kitten Comfortable

Pjg8r

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i added two kittens to the family today. One has vision in one eye the other is completely blind (their eyes were enucleated in August for untreated infections). They are almost 4 months old. I currently have them in a large dog crate until I take them to the vet on Monday. When I begin to let them explore, I plan on adding a room at a time. My question is will that confuse the totally blind one- one day there’s a door someplace and the next day there isn’t? Are there any special considerations when I introduce them to my existing cats? I want to make this as low stress for them as possible. I haven’t named them yet....
 

ArchyCat

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I have never had a blind cat. However, several TCS have. One of the basic things, is to always make a noise, the someone, whenever you enter a room where he is. The cat will come to associate that noise with you. And I guess, also make the same noise when the cat enters a room where you are.

Good luck! And keep us updated!
 

lavishsqualor

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People like you are the reason I joined the Cat Site! I work in the apartment industry and I see so many people treat pets, especially cats, as disposable items. I often feel as if I am absolutely DROWNING in abandoned, unloved cats and even though we sponsor feral/stray colonies on every complex in my portfolio it can be completely overwhelming and depressing at times. There are just so many!

Thank for taking these beautiful cats in. I shed a lot of tears over cats but the one rolling down my face now is one of sheer and utter happiness, so thank you for that!

You are my hero.
 

Norachan

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One of my cats is blind in one eye. He had such a bad eye infection when I first found him that we thought he would be totally blind, but we managed to save the sight in one eye.

It doesn't bother him at all except when he is jumping. He bobs his head up and down a lot trying to judge the distance, but he's never missed.

Cats can get around in almost pitch darkness. They use their sense of smell, hearing and whiskers to find out what is around them.

Maybe a few hints on how to make your home easier to navigate here.


Or on introducing a blind kitten to other cats here.

 

Mother Dragon

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Our Habanero went blind but was so able to function that we didn't know it for a while. As long as we didn't make changes, like moving furniture, she was as good as a seeing cat. She jumped up onto the top the bed, onto furniture, into our laps, and easily made her way around the house. The one problem she had was that she couldn't see what she was jumping down onto and she jumped onto my face a couple of times. We solved that by putting a little rail she could feel and use to judge how far to jump.

We have a Scat Mat and didn't want her to step on it, so we edged it with strips of AstroTurf. We also sprayed it with Lemon Pledge so she could smell it. We put the lemon scent anywhere we didn't want her to go.

When she went blind, the other cats were more careful of her.

Your kittens will be fine. They'll learn their environment quickly and essentially be normal cats.
 

RenM

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Hi! My Sparrow is 100% blind. When I brought him home, I kept him in a small hallway and bathroom with his litter-box until I was confident he would use it. (He was a stray but potentially feral.) He took to it immediately, so after about 4-days I opened up the door to my study. I coaxed him in with a crinkle ball and put his food in there instead of in the hallway. I then used the crinkle ball to coax him back to his litter-box so he knew how to go back and forth. It took him no time at all to acclimate to the bigger area. He loves the study and spends nearly all his time in there expect to go get water or use his litter-box (or hide from the vacuum behind the toilet).

I also originally had a baby-gate on my stairs. I've taken that down, but he has not tried to go upstairs yet. I tried to coax him up, but he didn't even want to try. I'm letting him go at his own pace on that aspect. I also started using this: SightScent.com - The Sight and Scent Mapping Program for Blind Pets

I honestly don't know if it helped because he learned the study so quickly. But my hope is if/when he decide to go upstairs, he'll smell the scent associated with his litter-box and water.

So no, I don't think they'll be confused if you help them explore the open door and then lead them back to a known point (like their litter-box).

Good luck!

Also, Babble Ball. It drives me nuts, but Sparrow loves it.
 
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Pjg8r

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I tried to upload a short video today but i failed. I have named them. Jack (one eyed Jack) and Helen are settling in so well. She loves Da Bird if I click it on the floor. She has conquered the litter box. I have ordered so many toys that make noise. The vet gave them a clean bill of health today. They had a face to face with my adult crew and that went well. I am thrilled.
 
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Pjg8r

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Jack went exploring today with Indie and Tyler and Alex hung out with sweet Helen. They were together about 20 minutes then I split them back up, fed Jack and Helen and left them to decompress while I spent time with my three amazing hosts. I am beyond proud of them all.
 

lorie d.

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Our Habanero went blind but was so able to function that we didn't know it for a while. As long as we didn't make changes, like moving furniture, she was as good as a seeing cat. She jumped up onto the top the bed, onto furniture, into our laps, and easily made her way around the house. The one problem she had was that she couldn't see what she was jumping down onto and she jumped onto my face a couple of times.
I totally agree with leaving everything in one place. Many years ago I had a cat named Midnight who went totally blind due to glaucoma in both eyes. Midnight was familiar with her environment and able to function like a cat with sight. One thing I noticed was that she used her whiskers as feelers so she didn't run into things like walls and furniture. And for that reason RenM I wouldn't recommend trying to have a blind cat go up and down stairs. That might be one thing the cat just isn't capable of coping with.
 

sassea

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My Abby has very bad cataracts since 6 months old.
She does pretty well now. At first she acted blind as a bat and we thought she was. I think she is adjusting/compensating to how she sees. When she is trying to judge distance to jump or do stairs I say her name and then tap the step to help. She has a climbing tree with three shelves that I made the top shelf lower. She goes up that full speed and then gets mad because she can't go higher. I think for her partial sight is more of a handicap than being completely blind would be.

You will be amazed.
 
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