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- We have lost two special animals this past month
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- $5 provides a box of Valentine’s cookies for a dog, or a box of heart-shaped treats for a cat
Retinal atrophy
My 12-year-old cat has retinal atrophy. My vet says she is completely blind, but a retinopathologist told me she responds to bright light. I believe she sees more than bright light. When I move my finger in front of her face, she moves her head to follow my finger. I don’t do this with a bright light behind my hand, but indoors with no lamps on. The room is not dark, but the light is not strong enough to read by.
I can tell her eyesight has deteriorated, because she moves more slowly and cautiously now; but I am sure she is not blind. What can you tell me about retinal atrophy in cats? Will her sight remain as it is now, or will it deteriorate further as she grows older?
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Progressive retinal atrophy or degeneration (PRA or PRD) is the name for several diseases that are progressive and lead to blindness. First recognized at the beginning of the 20th century in Gordon Setters. PRA is not very common in cats, although the Abyssinian breed seems to have a predilection. In cats, a deficiency of the amino acid taurine can result in PRA. This is one reason why cat foods and some feline nutritional supplements contain taurine. Normally, the photoreceptors in the retinas develop after birth to about 8 weeks of age. In PRA in cats, the photoreceptors develop in the kittens, but as the cat ages, the receptors degenerate. Progressive rod-cone degeneration (PRCD) is the most common form of PRA in cats, and starts with night blindness and progresses to total blindness at 3 to 5 years of age. Unfortunately, there is no treatment for PRA, nor a way to slow the progression of the disease. Animals with PRA usually become blind. Cats are remarkably adaptable to progressive blindness, and can often seem to perform normally in their customary environments. Evidence of the blindness is more pronounced if the furniture is rearranged or the animals are in unfamiliar surroundings.