"St. Louis Cat Woman via CatKB.com" wrote in
message ...
Hi,

I recently adopted a 10 year old blind cat from the shelter..Just felt so
bad for the poor thing. I live in a quiet apartment, no kids or other pets
(well, a hermit crab). I'm a senior citizen, so I do not want a kitten
that
will live for 20 years! Now it's just us two old ladies.

She has detached retinas on both eyes. - they don't know how long she's
had
them, she was found in a yard. But she's very docile and cuddly - not
feral
at all. She also has cataracts on both eyes.

I don't know the answers to your various questions (below), although I have
heard of retinas reattaching if they haven't been detached for too long,
when treated promptly enough.

However, I *would* ask the vet about getting her blood pressure checked,
since hypertension/ high blood pressure is one reason for retinal
detachment. If it turns out that she has high blood pressure, she can be
treated w/ medication to lower it, just as people can. Not all vets are yet
equipped & trained to do cats' blood pressure readings. If your vet can't
do the reading, s/he could probably recommend the nearest vet, to get it
done.

Cathy


Funny thing is that her irises get larger and smaller with the light -
just
like she can see. Also, a friend was over and took a flash picture of me
holding her..And my friend said she did a long squint after the flash!
Like
the way people see "stars" after a flash.

I took a flash photo and she did the same thing..We stopped at that,
though
- didn't want to hurt/frighten her if she could see something. But she
does
not follow objects/fingers with her eyes..and she bumps into things..

Is it possible that she can see something? A glow? Shadows? What is her
vision after detached retinas. I've read that they can sometimes re-
attach...

Would it be possible for a vet to reverse the condition in at least one
eye...operate on one detached retina (don't know exactly what that
means...)
and cataract?

She gets around the apartment just great - even sits on the window sill
"looking" outside..Just wanted to see if there's hope - thinking of
"lending" her to a doctor's institute that trains eye surgeons!

thanks for help/advice

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