To consider homing a blind cat

[Bethditto1]

As in it has no eyes.
It's an elderly cat and had its eyes removed due illness. I already have a middle aged female cat who spends a lot of time outside, this cat would understandably need to be kept indoors.

Has anyone got any experience with blind cats? I just want to give a home to one that's vulnerable like that as I know they're also hard to rehome when elderly. Just not sure if I have the right setup?
It's only me who lives there, I had a foster for a short time and my existing cat was fine and didn't bother it.

I had a nearly blind cat for nearly three years. He had a great life.

I don't have any advice but bless you OP for being so kind as to be considering rehoming this pussy cat.

That's great to hear. Was he able to find his way around ok? Did you have any other cats? Im in a ground floor flat which is very small.

No harm in trying it out I guess? Friend had a cat that went blind without them realising and it cried constantly ( during Covid). The vet recommended PTS straight away due to the distress.

That's very kind, thank you. I wonder if they would need some sort of adapted home.

That's sad to hear :(

No advice but wishing you and your (hopefully) new puss the best.

Do you think your home is big enough for a cat that can't go outside and also has to share the space with another cat?

We had a virtually blind cat for 11 years, I'd definitely take in a fully blind one. Ours was an absolute star and I still miss him.

Just a word of warning, once they know the layout of their home you won't dare move furniture. We changed bed to a new one a couple of inches higher and our cat jumped the same height as before, and face planted into the side. Funny and horrifying at the same time - but he got the height right second time round.

It's a 1 bed flat, I'm not sure. My other cat is out most of the time, I guess the charity would advise after a home night.

You sound like a wonderful person OP. If only there were more people like you.

I had adopted an elderly kitty who had to have both her eyes removed due to illness. Kitties can adapt incredibly well to being blind. So long as you’ve no major changes planned and your house is secure then I’m sure she’ll be fine with you. One thing to remember is not to move furniture etc around once the kitty learns her way around. They kind of mind-map the layout so they need the security of having everything in the ‘right’ place.

Would they let you use a pop up catio if you have some outside space?

This is my blind cat, she had one eye removed and the other is all glazed over vet thinks she has no vision I do think she can see a little.
i adopted her at 14weeks old, she’s just like a normal cat, she steals food, jumps snd plays but uses her mouth lots, she bites and nibbles her way around the house. She loves being carried. I let her in the garden, she can’t escape but it would be too dangerous to let her out. She likes to sunbathe and catch noisy buzzy flys!

we have another cat we adopted who can see perfect, she washes my blind cat and my blind cat follows her around all the time. They have a great little friendship!

nobody wants a blind cat but they are so loving and no different to a normal cat once they get used to their new surroundings.

We had a blind cat, she was blind from birth so didn't know any different though. She coped so well that we didn't realise for over a year! The only sign was that she sometimes went to go up a step before she was actually quite AT the step and sometimes climbed up places and couldn't get down as she couldn't see where the ground was.

I'm in a small first floor flat and it was just the two of us. It was amazing how he found his way around, however I think he could see light and movement.

He was a darling boy - obligatory pic! Good luck OP.

@JohnnyRememberMe
and @Favouritefruits

What beautiful wee souls!

Blind cats do map the house and cope very well. I’m not sure why pp thinks a large home is required, how much running around is a blind cat going to do?

My old lady cat was blind for the last 8 or 9 months of her life. It was slightly different in that she already knew the house, so could find her way around just fine, but she was absolutely fine with being blind. The only difference I noticed was that she was a little bit more tentative jumping off the bed, and that she wanted more physical contact with me after going blind, she wanted to sleep next to me with physical contact, which she had rarely done before. But otherwise she seemed quite happy, and managed just fine with food and litter tray and jumping up on the bed etc. She even went outside sometimes too, and still enjoyed lying in the sun, although she preferred it if I was there with her.

I think you might need to have a think about how you're going to keep it inside while still letting your other cat come and go as they please? I'd also be a little wary of introducing an old blind cat to another cat, depending on whether they're used to sharing space, as it can be a bit intimidating for them.

That said, if you've worked that out then go ahead!

The moggies here are melting my black old heart

That's the worry, having one indoors only and one outdoors :( might be too risky?
Does anyone else have this setup?

This might sound daft but would my other cat be able to tell that the new cat has no eyes, and would it be fearful of this?

My friend has a blind cat, and a secure balcony the cat likes to sunbathe on
he turned his back for one second and the cat had a pigeon by the throat
he manages very well and loves playing!

My friend has a blind cat. He was blind from birth and she took him in with his brother who could see, as kittens. They both go in and out and he copes fine although chooses not to go far. You wouldn't realise he was blind a lot of the time although he does occasionally bump into things that are new or have moved. His seeing brother is actually more tentative and easily scared. Another seeing cat later got added to the household and they all got used to each other with no issues.

Edited for typo...

I adopted a senior cat. Once we got him we realized that his sight and hearing were suspect.

He failed most of the kitty hearing tests and I’m pretty sure he has advanced cataracts as in I think he can see vague shapes but not sure on full scope if you know what I mean. He was 14+ yo when we adopted him and we’ve had him for 5 years. We have 3 other indoor cats. It’s been a nonissue. You’ll surely get advice on acclimating him. (I’ve heard of using deodorant on stair step edges for a blind dog as an example).

He’s just happy to be a cat… he wants a warm bed, a full belly, and love. The rest are details.