I'm kind-of embarrassed to say that I've never fostered a blind kitten, although I've looked after kittens with severe eye infections before.
I got a call today from a plumbing business nearby that they had caught a feral kitten but that it's eyes were still closed. They didn't know how old it was but the head plumber guy said it was at least 8 inches long (which meant nothing to me as I only know centimetres lol). I went down there and was given a most beautiful kitten - a medium-hair tabby girl, about 10 weeks old. She had a very narrow face, a bit like an extreme Siamese. I took her off to the opthalmological vet who had a good look at her and said that either her eyeballs never developed properly (he could see tiny remnants of eyeball in each eye) and that her weird face shape might be part of a genetic problem, or her eyes became seriously infected and ruptured when she was a little kitten.
He is going to operate on her eyes tomorrow morning, remove the remaining tissue and then sew the eyelids together. She will come home with me tomorrow evening and will stay until she is well again. The I'll be finding a 'special needs kitten' home for her.
I have never had a blind cat or kitten, so I'd appreciate any tips you can give on caring for her. I've decided to nickname her Mouse (you know, 3 blind mice
) and she will be staying in the kitten pen. I know not to move her food, litter or bed around so that she gets to know where they are. When she's feeling better, can she play with toys? Do blind cats and kittens get bored and how would I help this? Any tips on dealing with a semi-feral blind kitten? (Apart from the usual things when dealing with ferals or semi-ferals.)
I will take some pics of her when she gets home tomorrow and post them in Fur Pictures.
I got a call today from a plumbing business nearby that they had caught a feral kitten but that it's eyes were still closed. They didn't know how old it was but the head plumber guy said it was at least 8 inches long (which meant nothing to me as I only know centimetres lol). I went down there and was given a most beautiful kitten - a medium-hair tabby girl, about 10 weeks old. She had a very narrow face, a bit like an extreme Siamese. I took her off to the opthalmological vet who had a good look at her and said that either her eyeballs never developed properly (he could see tiny remnants of eyeball in each eye) and that her weird face shape might be part of a genetic problem, or her eyes became seriously infected and ruptured when she was a little kitten.
He is going to operate on her eyes tomorrow morning, remove the remaining tissue and then sew the eyelids together. She will come home with me tomorrow evening and will stay until she is well again. The I'll be finding a 'special needs kitten' home for her.
I have never had a blind cat or kitten, so I'd appreciate any tips you can give on caring for her. I've decided to nickname her Mouse (you know, 3 blind mice
I will take some pics of her when she gets home tomorrow and post them in Fur Pictures.