Blindness in cats: causes of vision loss, signs, treatment

Serious impairment or complete loss of visual function – blindness. It develops in pets for a number of reasons - ranging from congenital anomalies to injuries and the development of malignant neoplasms. The ophthalmological problem has characteristic symptoms and does not go unnoticed by the owner.

Many types of amaurosis (absolute loss of vision) are reversible, and with proper treatment, the animal's vision returns. Things are more complicated with congenital blindness.

Causes of vision loss

In animals, vision loss can be sudden, for example, due to trauma, mechanical damage to the eyeball, stroke, or brain damage. Blindness can also develop gradually due to inflammatory processes in the optical system of the eye (ocular neuritis, development of diabetic cataracts, degenerative processes in the retina).

Veterinarians distinguish between congenital and acquired blindness in cats. Congenital anomalies account for 5 - 10% of all cases of treatment with the disease. The main share of visual pathology is acquired blindness due to injuries, eye diseases, and systemic diseases of internal organs.

Ophthalmological veterinary practice shows that among the many reasons leading to loss of vision in a domestic cat, the most common are:

Retinal tear
Anomalies associated with impaired development of the optical structures of the visual organs . As a rule, such defects are detected at a young age.
Increased intraocular pressure . Glaucoma, which is common in animals, usually leads to gradual loss of vision. The pet manages to adapt to decreased visual function and blindness.
Cataract. Destructive processes in the optical system of the eye (lens) are one of the common causes of amaurosis in a cat.
Inflammatory processes of the organs of vision. Keratitis, uveitis, and neuritis lead, as a rule, to a gradual deterioration of visual function.
Ophthalmic neoplasms.
Injuries and mechanical damage to the eyeball are a common cause of sudden blindness in a pet.
Retinal atrophy as a cause of gradual loss of visual function is most often hereditary.
Diseases, injuries, infections, neoplasms in the brain lead to the fact that the function of transmitting impulses from the organs of vision to the animal’s nervous system is disrupted or completely lost.

Accompanying illnesses. Diabetes mellitus in domestic cats is accompanied by the development of destructive processes and often leads to complete blindness. Pathogenic microorganisms - chlamydia - can cause a shutdown of visual function.

In rare cases, the cause of visual impairment is dietary errors caused by vitamin deficiencies . Old and weakened pets are susceptible to the disease. Blindness in old age is a common occurrence among felines.

We recommend reading about glaucoma in cats. You will learn about the causes and symptoms of glaucoma, types of disease, diagnosis and treatment. Find out more about cataracts in cats here.

How to find out if a cat can see?

Given the high adaptability of cats, problems with vision, which is lost gradually, can be identified at fairly advanced stages. The pet becomes less mobile, sleeps more, prefers to move exclusively on floor surfaces, which does not cause much concern for the owners. Blindness in a cat can be determined by a number of the following signs:

Refusal to jump.

Careful movement around the home.

It is difficult for a cat to control the sequence of steps; while walking, the animal stumbles into an amble and stops.

A large number of broken whiskers are observed. With complete or partial loss of vision, the cat “feels the world” and picks up air vibrations with its whiskers.

There is no reflection of the eyes in the dark, but in the light, the gaze is deconcentrated.

The animal crashes into objects that are not in their “usual” place.

Features of the cat’s central nervous system explain a number of nuances that can be mistaken for vision loss if the pet cannot see:

You, until you move - cats see objects in motion better, hence the freezing at the sight of a mouse, and jumping up in surprise.

Objects “under your nose” - the optimal distance for a cat’s visual perception ranges from 2 to 6 meters. The animal monitors all objects that are closer than 2 meters using smell and touch.

In complete darkness , the eyes of any mammal convert the image into a nerve impulse when light rays are refracted. A cat sees perfectly at dusk or in low light, but if there are no light sources, the animal goes blind.

Note! A breed feature of Siamese cats is “double” vision; images obtained from both eyes do not overlap each other. Visually, it is noticeable how the animal squints its eyes to “sharpness”.

Signs of blindness in cats

The owner can understand that a cat has lost its vision only in the event of a sudden onset of pathology. With a gradual decrease in the acuity of vision of the surrounding world, the animal’s body has time to adapt to the new situation. Hearing, smell, and whiskers come to the rescue, and it is quite difficult to understand that something is wrong with a striped pet.

Veterinary ophthalmologists advise owners to pay attention to the following clinical signs of a developing disease:

The animal's movements in a familiar room become cautious.
In an unfamiliar place, a cat sits in place for a long time, without exploring the space. When trying to move, he bumps into objects, his movements are uncertain and clumsy.
The animal does not jump.
The gait changes, becomes cautious and uncertain.
The gaze may be cloudy, without concentrating on a bright moving object.
With one-sided blindness, a cat turns its head more often, trying to look at an object with its healthy eye.
The animal begins to lead an inactive lifestyle: sleeps a lot, reluctantly takes part in games.
When playing, the cat misses and misses the “prey.”
Stops hunting mice and birds.
The animal becomes timid, timidity and nervousness develop.
Constantly monitoring the space with the help of its whiskers, a cat with poor vision often breaks them off.

When keeping a pet in an apartment without access to the street, it is very difficult to notice oddities in behavior. This is due to the fact that in a familiar and familiar space, animals remember well the location of furniture and objects and, with the help of other senses, are well oriented in their own walls.

Symptoms of a cat having difficulty seeing

Here are a number of signs that should raise alarm bells when a cat looks at you.

Hitting furniture : this is the most common of symptoms that affects us too. What nearsighted person has never had to look for glasses somewhere that are resting, knocking all over the place? It’s a bit the same with a cat, which is accustomed to using its vision to navigate among various pieces of furniture;
Cat on guard : a look makes a cat safer; if suddenly everything goes dark, the animal, which is already so cautious in itself, will be more afraid of any suspicious noise, the origin of which it does not understand;
The cat no longer plays : this is a natural consequence of the first two symptoms. A cat that no longer sees us is more afraid and, above all, it cannot play if it cannot avoid obstacles and get injured. In addition to playing, he will tend to move less, which has important consequences for mood and health;
Walks slowly : Of course, the cat will move less, even if in some cases it cannot do without it, for example, for nutrition or to satisfy needs. Most likely, you will see that he will move slowly, as if he is scanning the air and the obstacles that stand in front of him.

Diagnosis of the condition

If you suspect vision problems, your cat should be seen by an ophthalmologist. In a specialized institution, a veterinary specialist will conduct a series of ophthalmological diagnostics to determine the cause of blindness. First of all, the doctor will do a visual examination using lighting and magnification . At this stage, disturbances in the retina, changes in the transparency of the media, and disturbances in the optic nerve can be detected.

After a visual examination, the doctor will use an ophthalmoscope to examine the internal structures of the animal’s eyes, provided they are transparent. Some modern clinics have video ophthalmoscopy , which documents the results of a study of the intraocular structures of the eye.

The research method allows us to identify the following causes of blindness: detachment and degenerative changes in the retina, including atrophy, neuritis, optic nerve tumor, arterial hypertension. To exclude glaucoma, the animal must undergo tonometry.

Modern methods for diagnosing ophthalmological diseases include electroretinography , which allows one to study the functions of the retina. The examination is especially informative if the ophthalmoscopic picture of the fundus is normal.

If necessary, the specialist will prescribe an ultrasound examination of the eyeball . The method is used to determine the position of the lens, the presence of various formations in the anterior chamber of the eye and the vitreous body, and damage to the retina.

Magnetic resonance imaging is often used as an additional diagnostic method . The study allows us to identify the presence of neoplasms and inflammatory processes in intraocular structures, as well as obtain a visual picture of brain tissue.

For the purpose of differential diagnosis, laboratory and biochemical methods of studying blood and urine are used to exclude diabetes mellitus, chronic renal failure and other concomitant diseases.

Treatment of a blind animal

Therapeutic measures when detecting loss of vision in a pet entirely and

completely depend on the cause of the pathological condition.

If the root cause of loss of visual function is hypertension, then the main efforts will be aimed at returning intraocular pressure parameters to normal levels. The animal is prescribed a salt-free diet.

In case of inflammatory processes, the pet will be prescribed a course of antibacterial and anti-inflammatory drugs for general and local use.

Treatment of concomitant diseases (diabetes mellitus, kidney disease) often leads to restoration of visual acuity. In the treatment of the disease, immunomodulatory and vitamin preparations are used.

For some types of cataracts, surgery involving artificial lens transplantation is prescribed. The intraocular lens facilitates the penetration of light into the retina and enhances vision. Ophthalmic surgery often offers a chance to restore vision in some neoplasms.

We recommend reading about conjunctivitis in cats and dogs. You will learn about the causes of the disease, classification, symptoms, diagnosis, prevention. And here is more information about why a cat’s eyes are watery.

Factors influencing the opening of the eyes

Existing deadline standards are quite subjective, as they depend on many factors:

Breed affiliation. Sphynxes and Siamese kittens open their eyes as early as 3-5 days, but Maine Coons, Bobtails and Ragdolls can remain blind for up to 15-17 days.
Conditions of detention. Kittens kept in a brightly lit room may open their eyes up to a week later than their counterparts kept in a darkened room.
Length of gestation. Premature kittens' eyes may open several days later than expected. The number of kittens in the litter and their size also matter.
Gender of the kitten. It has been noticed that females open their eyes 1-2 days earlier than males.

However, all the presented norms are quite conditional and depend on the individual characteristics of the children’s body. After all, even in the same litter, not all kittens’ eyes open on the same day.

Is there a chance for a newborn blind kitten?

Faced with an animal's blindness at a young age, the owner wonders how

a kitten will exist without such a vital sense organ.

When kept in a city apartment, there will be no problems with a blind pet, provided that certain rules are followed and boundless love for the animal.

Having gone blind early, the kitten will perfectly navigate familiar surroundings using other senses.

Of course, there can be no talk of any free walking on the street, where the animal faces many dangers. A disabled cat should only be taken for a walk on a harness under close supervision. It is also advisable not to rearrange the furniture in the room, so as not to disorient the animal.

From pets that become blind at an early age, companion cats grow up, following their owner always and everywhere. Having good hearing, blind animals actively respond to the owner's voice. A disabled cat will be happy to take part in active games. For this purpose, it is necessary to use toys with a sound signal.

Blindness in a domestic cat can occur for many reasons. In this case, acquired vision loss is most often diagnosed in veterinary practice. When blindness develops, the first thing that changes is the behavior of the animal.

An ophthalmological examination using modern diagnostic methods will not only reveal the fact of the pathological condition, but also determine the cause and treatment strategy. For domestic cats, blindness is not a death sentence and, with proper care, does not cause problems for the owner.

What to do if a kitten does not open one eye

Owners need to know what to do when kittens do not open their eyes after all acceptable periods have passed. If only one eye of the kitten is open, then this is a signal for immediate action, since the baby has obvious problems, and he cannot solve them on his own.

At home, kittens' eyes can be washed with chamomile decoction, saline solution or a strong infusion of black tea without additives. Next you need to act according to the following algorithm:

moisten a cotton pad (napkin) in the prepared warm liquid;
fix the kitten's head by turning its belly towards you;
Apply the tissue to your eye for a few seconds;
gently (without pressure) move it in the direction from the outer to the inner corner of the eye;
if necessary, repeat the last step 2-3 times.

If this does not help or the eyes, after washing, stick together again and stop opening, then you need to contact a veterinarian.

Important! It is forbidden to use antibacterial, antiviral or antifungal solutions yourself to help the kitten open its eyes.

Do not use force to open the kitten's eyes, as this can lead to injury and further development of blindness.

Useful video

Watch how the blind kitten reacted and started playing with his first toy in this video:

Problems with coordination

A lack of coordination may indicate that the animal has become blind or has become much worse in vision. In scientific circles, loss of coordination of movements is called ataxia. This phenomenon does not affect the intellectual abilities of the animal, but characterizes damage to the tissues of the nervous system.

It is very important to monitor your pet if the owner notices the animal has problems with coordination. In addition to problems with the visual organs, ataxia can occur with:

Cerebellar injuries due to falls. In addition to impaired coordination of movements, the cat develops tremors during any movements.
Damage to the structures of the inner ear. Vestibular ataxia in cats can be caused by otitis media or tumor processes in the inner ear.