There are ways to give your handicapped pet a good quality of life. The key is to make her feel safe and secure in your home.

By Ilene Springer

Our cat Gracie Allen appeared normal as a kitten,” says Stefanie Schwartz, DVM, “except that she seemed unusually calm for a kitten. She didn’t explore a lot and wasn’t especially playful. Then when she was about four or five months old, she started bumping into things. That’s when we brought her to a veterinary ophthalmologist and my suspicions were confirmed.” Dr. Schwartz is director of behavior services at the VCA South Shore Animal Hospital in Weymouth, Massachusetts.

Gracie, a long-haired calico now eight years old, was blind from congenital retinal atrophy — an eye disease in which the retina is dysfunctional. “She must have had some vision in the beginning that…

Purchase Selection or begin your FREE 14-day trial subscription to CatWatchNewsletter.com