Blind cats - Life with handicapped cats

How did you find out that your cat is blind?

We found Liah on the street outside our holiday flat at night and therefore didn't immediately realise that she was blind. When we arrived at our flat, we realised that she unfortunately no longer had any eyes.
Liah had probably lost her eyes due to a bad cat flu infection. Unfortunately, cat flu pathogens are particularly widespread among cats living on the street. If left untreated, it can lead to loss of the eyes. When I found Liah, she was given an antibiotic ointment for her eye sockets as they were slightly inflamed. Since the operation to close her eyes, she no longer needs any medicine. Luna had a chlamydia infection in her eye, which is common in cats but is usually easily treatable. Unfortunately, due to her weakened immune system at the time, all treatments did not work and her eye ultimately had to be removed.

How did you deal with it when you found out?

When we found out that Liah had no eyes, we felt terribly sorry for her at first. We had no experience with blind cats and didn't know exactly what to expect. However, we soon realised that her blindness was no obstacle for her. She quickly understood where the furniture and walls were and was soon romping around our holiday flat, playing happily and finding her way around.

Do the cats have to go to the vet more often than other cats?

They are no different from other cats when it comes to visits to the vet and there are no special check-ups for them. Their regular check-ups are exactly the same as for other cats.

How did you teach the cats where to find their toilet or food?

That was very easy. As soon as she moved in, I showed Liah where the toilets and food bowls were. Thanks to her good sense of direction, she has since been able to navigate unerringly to both and has never missed anything.

How do the cats find out where to jump up? Is there anything the cats need to feel, smell or hear?

As Liah is very curious, she usually finds out surprisingly quickly that there are new things to climb in our flat. At first, she always uses her paws to find out where and how high she needs to jump. Sometimes she also follows Luna's lead. On our climbing wall, for example, she heard from Luna's movements that there was another climbing step above her and climbed up without further ado. Initially, I provided her with small aids, such as a cardboard box as a step to the sofa. But after just a few days she had memorised the height and from then on jumped from and onto the sofa next to the box. The more often she climbs up and down, the better she learns to judge the height and the more confident she becomes.

However, there is one small limitation: Liah is a great climber and uses the full length of her body to do so. However, once she has reached the top, she sometimes finds it difficult to find her way back down on her own. For example, she calls me to help her down when she is sitting in the sink again. Surprisingly, however, this only happens when I am actually at home.

How do you play with the cats?

The way I play with both of them is not so different from other cat parents. With one-eyed Luna, it can happen from time to time that she misses her target slightly when she chases "her prey". I suspect that her spatial vision is limited due to her lack of eyes.

Liah has very good hearing and loves to chase after game fishing rods. It is important that the fishing rod touches the ground so that Liah can hear where her target is. However, it also works to move the toy back and forth over her a little more so that she can feel the movement of the air with her whiskers.
They also both love playing football. Initially, I got Liah lots of balls that make noises, e.g. with a little bell or a rattle. However, it has since turned out that she prefers to play with felt balls that roll almost silently through our flat.

Are your cats anxious?

Luna really is a little scaredy-cat and likes to hide under the sofa when the doorbell rings and visitors arrive. She is particularly scared of men. Unfortunately, I don't know anything about her time on the streets in Romania, but I suspect that she had some bad experiences there.

Liah, on the other hand, is very brave and curious. Everything new is immediately sniffed out and explored. When visitors arrive, Liah is happy to join in after her initial shyness. Even with loud noises - apart from the absolutely unpopular hoover - Liah remains relaxed, while Luna prefers to look for a place to hide.

Are there many cats that are not accepted by humans as a result?

I think that a lot of people are actually put off by a cat handicap. Some time ago we started a survey together with another Handicat account here on Instagram about what prejudices there are towards cats with disabilities and we came up with a pretty long list. For example, it is assumed that they cannot lead a happy life, that they have difficulty getting along, that they need a lot of support, that they cannot play, or that they incur higher veterinary costs. This is why it is certainly more difficult for cats with disabilities to find homes. I hope that with our account we can show how well they both get along and that there are almost no restrictions for them. Maybe we can encourage some people to give kittens with disabilities a chance.

_You can find more about the lives of the two Handicats and Caro on Instagram below

@liah_und_luna