Hi there, our cats went to the vets yesterday for their boosters, and had a check up at the same time. Lucie, my 9 year old moggie, has progressive retinal atrophy (PRA). We had thought that she had early onset dementia, but luckily it appears that that is not the case. It looks like her night crying was due to her eyesight, as apparently their night vision goes first.

I wanted to see if anyone had any experience of this in cats (apparently it is more common in dogs than cats) and if there was anything they did to help make life easier? I know obviously to not move furniture etc as the eyesight worsens, but just wanted to see if anyone had any tips on this, and what to expect as it worsens?

I'm sorry to hear about Lucie.

PRA is an inherited condition in certain cat breeds but there is no reason why it shouldn't affect any breed, or moggies. There is a DNA test for the type of PRA found in Abyssinians and Somalis but I'm not sure it'd be valid for other breeds.

this is a useful link:

Cat Progressive Retinal Atrophy

__________________

Thanks for the link. Some good info, it seems that every site I go to about it has the same info! I was wondering if anyone has any experience of a cat with this? Also I am not sure its the same thing, as it says that they have sight early on, but once it starts to go, they are usually blind at 3-5 years of age. Lucie is 9, and we noticed a problem with her eyes about 9 months ago. She went to get checked out and we were told that there were fatty deposits building up in the aqeuous solution of the eyes, and that it will eventually cause a 'shattered glass' effect with her sight. I presume that it is to do with this?