Blind Kitty

We went to a meeting for the Luna's House Rescue group Friday night after work. When we left, everyone was being their usual whiny, grumpy, play-with-me-now selves. We were gone about 2.5-3 hours and, when we returned, we noticed something was wrong with Boulder. He is usually the first one to the food bowl when I go to feed the cats, but he didn't show up at all. I called him, thinking he might be downstairs or accidentally shut into a closet (hey, it happens - they wander in when we're not looking). He finally appeared on the other side of the baby gate, but he wouldn't jump it and just seemed "off". Misty heard me asking him what was wrong and she came to look at him. Turns out, he's now blind!

We kept an eye on him all night, but none of us (including Boulder) could sleep. He was obviously upset by this sudden turn of events - he could see one minute; the next, he's blind. At least when an animal gradually loses sight, it is easier to adapt. We took him to Misty's vet before her morning appointments on Saturday. The vet commented on how tolerant and nice Boulder was for the exam. The optic nerve was okay, no signs of neurological damage (like what you might see if he fell or was hit/bit), but he was definitely blind. His blood pressure was slightly elevated, so they suspect it may have spiked on Friday night, rupturing both retinas. They had actually seen it in a cat the week before, though that cat had only ruptured one of its retinas and could still see out of the other one.

So, the plan of action is to obviously cater to Boulder's whims. Aside from that, we have medication to lower his blood pressure, which *might* allow him a tiny bit of sight back...though it is doubtful. He is getting his blood pressure re-checked today, as well as finding out the results of his blood tests (to see if he has a thyroid problem). He already had a heart murmur, but it was small and probably not related to any of this. We set Boulder up with a brand new bed that has very low sides (so he can crawl in easily) and catnip (so he can smell his way to it) - he seems to like it. We will also have to put him on a leash to get him to walk around the town house to re-learn where everything is by steps, smells, and sounds instead of sight. Poor guy.