Caring for Blind Cats and Dogs

The animal welfare community has to deal with many highly charged and emotional situations during the course of their everyday working lives and one that is particularly hard on humans and animals alike is the intake of blind animals.

While blind cats and dogs can live happy and fulfilling lives as part of a family in their own home, the entry of a blind animal into a shelter is particularly overwhelming. At intake blind animals do not know where they are or who they are with, it is more than likely to be very noisy for their sensitive ears and their fear may turn to aggression if not handled properly. In many cases the animal will calm down quickly once given their own safe space within the organization.

Cats and dogs may be born blind or may lose their sight due to an accident or illness including glaucoma, cataracts and untreated entropion (inturned eyelashes), brain damage or poisoning. Similar to humans the degree of animal blindness ranges from total blindness to partial blindness (cloudy sight, ability to differentiate between light and shade and tunnel vision). You may be able to tell that an animal is blind by examining their eyes; the eyes of a blind animal will often be cloudy or their pupils may remain dilated even in bright light.

Often the reasons for blind cats and dogs ending up in the care of the animal welfare community are heartbreaking: animals that have illnesses that have been left untreated, animals that have been wounded by abusive humans and breeders that cannot sell a blind puppy/kitten and so do not want it. Whatever the cause of the animal's blindness or the reason that it has ended up in your care, it will take a special adopter to provide a truly Forever Home.

The kindest and safest home for a blind animal is usually one in which there are no children and where the owner is well prepared for the special needs of their newly adopted pet. We have prepared a short tip sheet that all are welcome to download and give to new adopters of blind cats and dogs to help them cope with their special needs and to give the animals a better chance of finding their Forever Home [click here to download].