'She was just blind and frightened': Parent's "grumpy old cat" turns out to be an affection-starved fluffball after their child realizes she has suddenly gone blind

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    "My parents 'grumpy old cat'. Turns out she was just blind and frightened."

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    und ratio you bring k 1242
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    PAR ELL DR NANAM VSTY NAMO, C E 0010150010 08:22:40 0000001 (07) 1242 you bring to
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    I recently moved in with my parents. They said our old cat was just grumpy and avoided everyone, even though I remember her being very friendly when I was a teenager. It only took me a few days to realize that she could barely see anything. As soon as I started guiding her to her food and announcing my presence whenever I'm near her, she started acting like this to me. I will be doing more research on how to help her.
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    Vivid_Statement1820 That's beautiful and very thoughtful
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    imanpearl OP Thank you, I want to do more for her, I have a lot on my plate right now but having a being that needs my help is oddly comforting.
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    Edit for update: I got incredible advice here, and after some calling around I found out that I can, in fact, afford to at least get her an exam. Wish us luck. Thank you all so much. I will update again if anyone is interested.
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    Also, a lot of people asked me how I know she's blind. I noticed her trying to find her food by sniffing around, and having a lot of trouble even though she was about a foot away from it. She sticks close to the walls like guides. She gets scared when you walk near her, and acts like she's looking for where the person is, but she can't tell. So I googled tests and I tried a few. The most damning one was that when I shine a flash light in her eyes, her pupils barely dilate.
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    negasonic30yoWarhead Can you take her to the vet to see if there's anything that can be addressed there?
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    imanpearl OP I can't afford it right now and I know my parents won't take her for this. I will save up
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    dontknowoc Sweet girl. Just was lost and hungry.
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    imanpearl OP I know well she won't be ever again
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    spicemyrice Tips if this is helpful: add rugs on long hallways or stair tread for traction on hardwood floors. It's scary to not be able to see and not have traction! The rugs will be an external sensory feedback and orient her to where she is.
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    rechargeable motion sensor lights. Light helps with any visual loss, even if it's just to create shadows. Unless it's complete visual loss, they are usually still able to see shadows with light. I put these on the ground level at the top of the stairs, every few steps and at their fav hang outs spots for sleeping. • get a water fountain with continuous running water. Sound will direct her to water source and keep her hydrated • heating wet food (like 10 secs!) will increase its stinkyness to hel
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    Basically, tap into her other senses (ie: sound, vibrations, adding traction/grip to increase touch/feel, smell, etc) and maximize visual loss (ie: lights, shadows, etc) to help orient her :) Also try to keep her basics like food, water, litter, in the same place
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    imanpearl OP These tips are soo helpful and easy to implement thank you so much!!
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    Dapper-Ad-468 She grabbed your hand back for more scritches
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    Geetright I hate to see animals suffering, thank you for loving her
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    slimshadycatlady I do this too with my dog. She is also blind and when we are outside, I often make some noises so she knows in which direction she needs to go I often feel like a guide dog for my dog
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    angeltrash1965 Aw I'm glad you took the time to learn what she needs

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