Cataracts in cats – symptoms and treatment

Cataracts are a frequent eye problem in cats, especially when they age. A cataract is a pathology that consists of an alteration and a loss of transparency of the lens or intraocular lens that makes vision difficult.

Although some cats do not show signs of decreased vision, especially if only one eye is affected, in most advanced cases, the cats have vision deficiencies which can lead to blindness. Sometimes cataracts can be irritating and painful.

To be able to recognize a cataract in your cat we will explain in this article the symptoms and treatment of cataracts in cats.

The symptoms of cataracts in cats

If our cat suffers from cataract, the main symptom that we are going to observe is a blue-gray spot when looking at the cat’s pupil. Is opaque spot It may continue small or increase in size over time. Sometimes the cataracts evolve rapidly and cover the entire pupil, it is frequent to observe Sight loss as a result of the opacity of the lens.

The deterioration of vision can be variable, and the symptoms that you could observe are:

• Abnormally high steps
• Abnormal motion
• Insecurity when walking
• Trip with familiar objects
• Miscalculate the distances
• Does not recognize family members
• His eyes are abnormally wet
• Change of color in your eyes
• Change in the size or shape of the pupil

Cataracts can develop in only one eye or both. Many cataracts are congenital: they are present from the birth of the cat.

A nasal discharge in the form of discharge that may be cloudy or clear may appear. Actually this secretion comes from the eye, this occurs especially when the cause of the cataract is an infection, when the cataracts are caused by an underlying infection.

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The treatment of cataracts in cats

Un early diagnostic It is decisive to treat the primary causes and stop the progression of the cataract either in puppies or adult cats:

• Cataracts that affect cat puppies can improve spontaneously and may not need treatment.
• Cataracts in adults that present a slight opacity and that do not alter the vision of the cat do not necessarily need a treatment.

Even so, in those cases some anti-inflammatory eye drops can increase the comfort of our cat. There are also cataracts due to food shortages, the evolution and worsening of these cataracts can be stopped by balanced diets and food supplementation.

For cats with impaired vision, the Surgical resection of the affected lens It is the only treatment that is fully effective. Then it is replaced by an artificial crystalline lens, if an artificial lens is not implanted the cat will be able to see only from far and very badly.

The prognosis is best when the surgery is done early in the course of a cataract development, and the vet will make sure the cat is healthy before operating it.

This surgery must be performed by a veterinarian specialized in ophthalmology and its high cost It makes many owners decide that it is not necessary since their cats are able to adapt to their environment even with their loss of vision. Indeed our feline friends use their nose for most of their activities, and they do not originally have a very good view. Even so, for their safety and well-being, cats with partial or total loss of vision should be kept indoors.

If an owner decides not to operate his cat for his cataract it should ensure frequent monitoring by the veterinarian to monitor the progression of the cataract.

When losing vision, at some point, the cat could suffer pain, and then the best thing could be to surgically remove the affected eye from our friend on all fours to avoid unnecessary pain.

Do not forget to comment if you have advice or recommendations for other users who have a cat with cataracts!

This article is merely informative, in .com we do not have the faculty to prescribe veterinary treatments or make any kind of diagnosis. We invite you to take your pet to the veterinarian in case of any type of condition or discomfort.

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