Newly-blind cat: bored/depressed

Hi all,

I'm new to these boards but am in need of advice since one of our cats, Matilda, unexpectedly went blind. Matilda has had chronic eye problems for over three years now, and the biggest one at the root of the other problems is uveitis. It began in her right eye and we treated it, thought it was cured, and eased off her medication. She then got an ulcer in the same eye, which we treated, then the uveitis flared up again. Treated that, backed off, more ulcers, etc. ad infinitum. She kept getting ulcers and uveitis flare-ups, and since those medicines are incompatible with one another, we finally ended up having to have her eye removed a year and a half ago. Oh, all this is going on with a feline ophthalmologist, by the way, the closest of which to where we live is a three-hour round trip. All these meds and trips did not make for a happy cat, and though we were heartbroken that we couldn't save her eye, we knew that ultimately it would improve her quality of life.

And then her uveitis cropped up in her remaining eye. We had finally seemed to have found a cocktail of eyedrops that kept it mostly at bay, with just a handful of scares when her pressure got very high. A couple of months ago she began a bad flare-up, but otherwise seemed okay. My husband took her to her semi-regular ophthalmologist appointment a month ago, where he assured him that though the protein deposits were there, her pressures were good, and it would probably abate after a few weeks.

Cut to Monday, two weeks ago, when I came home from school and realized that Matilda couldn't see anything. We packed up the cat and headed off to the ophthalmologist, who confirmed that her pressure was sky-high. He said that the retina and the optic nerve didn't look shot, so there was a chance some of her vision could be restored, but we had to get the pressure down fast. They pricked her cornea to release some fluid, put her on different drugs, and sent us home. She's had her pressure checked three times since then and it's been in the normal range each time. We are taking her back to the ophthalmologist on Wednesday. She is still completely blind.

I know at this point it's foolish to keep my hopes up that her vision might come back, and I'm trying not to be completely heartbroken that this happened. I can't help but feel that we failed her, even though I know we've done everything humanly possible to prevent this. I'm trying to chin up and move on and adapt, which is why I'm here. I'm finding that since she went blind, Matilda has adapted okay--she still grooms, finds her litter box and food, etc.--but overall she seems so bored and perhaps even depressed. She was never much of a cat who liked to play with toys--she always entertained herself by looking out windows, wandering around the apartment seeing what we or our other cat were up to, etc.--so the new toys I've gotten (crinkle balls, balls/mice with bells, wand with a ribbon and bell attached, etc.) don't interest her. If I sprinkle some catnip on something, she's only interested in it as long as it takes to lick the catnip off the toy. She used to talk to us constantly, or flop on the ground for some belly rubs, or come up to our desks while we worked to meow incessantly until we made our laps free. I was always amazed by how loudly she always purred. She doesn't do any of those things any more--now she spends her days on our bed, rarely venturing off it. I know she needs time to adjust, but I want to do everything I can to help her. Any suggestions? I know I'm largely writing out of selfish motivations because it breaks my heart that our formerly happy, outgoing cat just isn't herself anymore

Aw, bless your heart and Matilda's heart. :heart3: :rub: You are not writing out of selfish reasons, hun. you are writing because you love you kitty so very much and want support here and some possible suggestions to make your Matilda happy once again. I would think that right now, since this is such a new and scary way of life for her that she is still adjusting and trying to figure out what has gone wrong. Also, if that remaining eye is causing some pain, she is reacting to that and feeling depressed and frightened. How very difficult for you, I can only imagine. I wish I had some great tips to offer you and Matilda. Since she never really liked to play before going blind then playing with toys now might be hard pressed to do so we need to find a way to get her feeling better in another way. I do hope that maybe someone who has gone through this before will come along soon. I will try to see what I can dig up for you as far as older threads with members who have gone through this. In the meantime, just know I am sending you and Matilda mega vibes that she will find a way through this with your love. She is lucky to have you, hun. Your love will bring her some comfort. Maybe all she needs is some time to figure out this new dark world. I am very sorry, though, for this difficult process.

Here is one so far, an article. I will keep looking though! http://www.thecatsite.com/a/blind-cats

From what I am reading, it seems you have to find a way to reach out to here and teach her to tune into her sense of smell and her other senses. http://www.knowyourcat.info/getcat/blindcat.htm She needs time and I think she will adapt beautifully in time with your love and care.

Thank you so much for your kind reply, Lauren--you can't imagine what an impact it had. And thank you for those links. I will look into them immediately and hope to find something that helps!

Yes, thank you so much for caring for and about Matilda.

"Homers Odessy" is a wonderful (true) book about a blind cat.  Although Homer was born blind, you might get some tips (and hope) from the story.

To get him interested in playing, try toys that make noises--balls with bells inside, feather wands with bells on them.

My cat Billy has been blind since birth so we haven't had to have an adjustment period but if you have any questions about blind cats please feel free to message me. I absolutely love my blind kitty and he is amazing in every way...he can do things even my sighted cats cant (such as jump from the table onto mine or my husbands arms/shoulders when he wants to go outside!!)

As for your kitty...she might be bored and depressed but overall I would bet she is scared. She went from being able to see to not being able to see, it is a hard transition for a human and will be a hard one for a cat also.  Keep making her life easy by not moving things around too much and making sure she has clear access to all her favorite things. Billy still runs into things a lot and it is sad for me but he shakes it off and keeps going. He has his favorite path....from the floor, along the back of the couch, to the counter, or on the kitchen table.

Even though she was never big on playing with toys, have you tried bell toys? Just something that makes noise that she knows is there if she wants it? Billy loves bell toys and will chase them around the house at all hours. He also loves his cat tree and finds his own ways of climbing up and down. For now it just sounds like she needs some adjusting time...those times you said she used to come beg to be in your lap, can you go get her and bring her to your lap? Pet her and talk softly to her and just keep reminding her that you're still there even though she can't see you.  We talk to Billy constantly because aside from him smelling us and feeling for us, he LOVES being talked to. We also make click noises w/ our tongues and say his name when trying to help him find us..it seems to help when he becomes confused as to which direction we are in. We want to rush to just pick him up sometimes but know it's best if he learns on his own. If he gets stuck or needs help or can't find us, or is trying to find us, he will let out a half coo/meow sound and we know that we need to talk to him more so he can figure out where we are at. She will learn her way around losing her sight, cats are very adaptable, but it may take some extra love & care from you to help her with this transition (not that youre not already giving her love & care!!)  )  Please feel free to message me!

Good news is, IMO, I think she is just feeling down because she is in pain, and not because she is bored or depressed. I say that is good news because once you get this eye taken care of, I think her good spirits will return. :-)

Wishing you luck!

Poor kitty! Yeah, pain and such are really more distressing for a cat than loss of eyesight...

I'll tell you something I know, from having a real life disability--Most of the suffering associated with disability doesn't actually come from the disability itself, but from the way society looks at you; you know, the fear, pity, stupid ideas about incompetence or inferiority. That's hard to deal with. If you hear it often enough and start to believe it, you can start to hate yourself. People who acquire a disability often go through a period of mourning before their perceived quality of life goes back to its former usual level. (Some studies have actually been done that confirmed this: Beyond the initial period of mourning, disabled people are as happy as non-disabled people. But that initial period is not easy.)

Cats are lucky: They don't have that kind of stew of culture to soak up. To them, being blind isn't a tragedy; it's more like an annoying problem. They don't see it like we do, because they don't have this miasma of fear-pity-hate that we do, because they're cats and they don't have a language or much of a culture. Sometimes being a simpler creature is an advantage. They don't have to deal with all the baggage that humans do when we become disabled.

So remember that your cat is a cat, and does not see blindness the way you might see it if you were to suddenly become blind yourself. She will adjust and she will be as happy as she always was.