Deaf Cats

Who beside me has a deaf cat?

Silly question, but in your sig picture his eyes appear to be gold?

ETA: your page says green eyes. Do you know it's typically only blue eyed white animals that are deaf. Who decided that this kitten was actually deaf? What tests were done? Was it just guessed at because he doesn't pay attention? (kittens don't when they're young)

We've done anything and everything to him and nothing.

Unless from illness, he shouldn't have both sets of recessive genes that the deafness is tied to.

I have a test for you to try. Get some treats that come in a nice crinkly bag. Temptations tend to be ones most cats go crazy for. Open the bag in front of him, get the a treat out and after he eats it let him sniff the bag and hand him another. Do this 2-3 times one day.
The next day get that treat bag out but not within his sight - say, in another room. Make lots of noise crinkling it. If he can hear and has any sort of memory he should run into the room for treats.
Try the vacuum cleaner, too. Some hearing cats aren't scared to death of them but most cats will run from the noise.

Other wise talk to your vet about having special hearing tests done.

we tried the vacumn cleaner-nothing.

Strange. Did you test to see if it was both ears or just one? How old was he when you did the vacuum cleaner test?

Otherwise, if he truly is deaf, like with a deaf person - you have to provide visual and vibrations for cues. If he can't hear you talking to him, he could feel it when you hold him for example.

he is 4 months.....we tried it when we got him and today. PLUS my dad shot a sauquil outside and nothing from casper and the shot was load to.

Then I suggest you research for more tips, too.

Start working on some very simple visual cues, be consistent. I use a mix of them with my hearing cats and am so used to doing it that I didn't recognize a deaf cat when I saw it. (maybe because I'm a visual learner/thinker, too)
My signal to cats to "come here" for example is to lean and wiggle my fingers. Friendly strange cats always get their interest caught by the movement and come over. I pat stuff to signal "jump up" or "lay down".

Stomp to get him to back away from doors (I don't know why I do this with hearing cats, too ).

Originally Posted by strange_wings

Silly question, but in your sig picture his eyes appear to be gold?

ETA: your page says green eyes. Do you know it's typically only blue eyed white animals that are deaf. Who decided that this kitten was actually deaf? What tests were done? Was it just guessed at because he doesn't pay attention? (kittens don't when they're young)

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Actually - that is not true.

I have two deaf cats - one has blue eyes and the other has gold eyes.

I am Deaf myself so naturally my deaf cats are special to me.

Originally Posted by Kiwideus

Actually - that is not true.

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It can happen. It's just more common with the blue and white combo due to the genes involved being so close together and thus passed together.

And I never knew you were deaf. I must have really missed that detail about you. (I usually can keep track of the regulars)

I have two deaf cats - both white w/ blue eyes.

Originally Posted by Kiwideus

Actually - that is not true.

Click to expand...

Thanks for stepping in! I was starting to question my own knowledge!

Originally Posted by Kiwideus

I am Deaf myself so naturally my deaf cats are special to me.

Click to expand...

This is off-topic, but I've wondered about the deaf community as a culture, and why there's so much opposition to kids getting cochlear implants -- couldn't they be bi-cultural, just like, say, a kid raised in a Spanish-speaking community in NJ would be?
(I have an invisible other-ability of my own, and don't understand people with the same thing who want to form their own sub-culture rather than push for integration and accommodation. So maybe I just don't get it!)


Back to the topic: a friend's cat is deaf, and he's a rascal. Not sure if those factors are really connected, but her theory is that he's deprived of a whole mode of communication and information that occupies a large percentage of mind space in a hearing cat. So he channels his intelligence elsewhere, she says. He's done things like putting music CDs into the toaster.

RawVixen - the Deaf culture are afraid that the cochlear implants will take the culture away.

I do know that here in NZ when they implant the children at a young age, the parents are encouraged not to sign to the children, but that is changing because research has found that if they do sign to the children as well as speak, the language develops a lot better than if they do not sign at all.

I do believe that attitudes are changing towards cochlear implants - the Deaf community is starting to accept them because at the end of the day, you are still deaf - you take it off to go to bed, to go swimming, to play some sports - and therefore, are still deaf. There are some die-hard Deaf people who have the staunch belief that this is not the case - again, I don't agree with them.

I don't want to take the thread off topic, but if you want to ask me anything, just send a PM my way and I am happy to chat with you

i have a deaf girl -- she was found by someone in a tree when she was merely 6 weeks old. she looks to be pretty close to a purebred turkish angora - pure white with golden eyes. she's 8 and a half years old now -- and nuttier than nutty! she's also clumsier than clumsy -- not the best combo!
she's incredibly smart, though, and very sensitive to visual cues. a simple wag of my finger and a frown, and she knows she's being naughty, for instance! she's just a very special lady and actually requires very little accommodating.
i couldn't imagine our household without a deaf cat in it!