A cat with eye ulcer may have a cataract. Then, not every cat with an eye ulcer have cataracts. Not all cataracts lead to surgery or blindness.

Awareness for the symptoms of cataracts is the first step to proper cat eye care diagnosis. Understanding your options for a cat with an eye ulcer is the first step to proper treatment.

Understanding the impact of a cat with eye ulcer or cataract on your cat’s eyesight is part of a solid cat eye care program. Cataract problems are relatively rare in cats and are usually related to complications from diabetes. Some breeds inherit a tendency for developing cataracts: Birmans, Himalayans, Persians and British Shorthairs. The incidence is low and the cataract tends to remain small, often small enough to be ignored. 

Of those cats with eye ulcers that do cause or threaten blindness, many are treated with surgery. If blindness does result from an inoperable cataract, your feline should live a safe life if she is kept indoors. The cataract itself is not painful.

Its hard to think that something with such intense clarity could cloud over with a blinding glaze.

Java Jungle, a Tonkinese has perfectly clear eyes...no eye ulcers here. Photo by trusted  partner  Barb Henry

Recognizing Problems

It pays to catch the problem early. A long-term cataract is denser and harder to remove with longer surgeries tending to involve more complications. A cat owner should suspect a problem and seek veterinary attention whenever the eye appears different than it usually does.

Don’t just think your cat’s eyes are getting older when you notice a distinct disparity in eye clarity, increased opacity, cloudiness or a change in pupil size. These changes indicate a real problem. 

Normal aging does change the look of the lens. The cells in the eye are renewed just like  skin cells. The difference is that the eye fibers aren’t sloughed off like skin cells. They remain in the eye accumulating in the center. The center of the lens gets denser resulting in a blue-gray appearance to the eye.  

This condition is called nuclear lenticular sclerosis and it does not interfere with the vision. You can distinguish between nuclear lenticular sclerosis and cataracts by examining the color.  Nuclear lenticular sclerosis looks blue-gray, while a cataract is white. 

Causes

Diabetes is the most common cause of cataracts in cats. The second most common cause is an inflammatory disease, like uveitis. You can readily recognize the signs of uveitis:   the eye color changes, the surface of the eye is roughened and the pupil becomes smaller. This condition is painful to your cat. He may squint, have watery eyes, and eyelid spasms.  

The most common causes of uveitis are the feline leukemia virus, feline infectious peritonitis, toxoplasmosis, or feline immunodeficiency virus. Early treatment of the cause can prevent a cataract or minimize the effect of one that has already formed.  

Another cause of cataracts is an eye trauma. If your cat’s eye is punctured in a cat fight or other incident and the outer layer of the lens is damaged, your veterinarian may talk with you about removing the lens. This is because damaged lenses tend to develop cancer in cats. Removing the lens negates the chance of cancer.

If your cat’s eyes look cloudy, watery, squinty or just don’t look normal, it’s time for a visit to your veterinarian. If uveitis is suspected, your veterinarian might run tests for the underlying causes and prescribe a medicated eye drop to bring the inflammation under control. If a cataract is formed or there has been eye trauma, you will probably be referred to an eye specialist, a veterinary ophthalmologist.

Treatment

Just because a cataract is present, it doesn’t necessarily mean surgery. The size and location of the cataract are factors in treatment. If the cataract is small, then during regular daytime light or at night your cat’s pupil will dilate (grow larger) and he can see around the cataract. In a brightly lit room or if he is outdoors on a particularly bright day, his pupil contracts (grows smaller) and he’ll have a harder time seeing. In this case, surgery isn’t necessary.

If the cataract is large or very dense, then complications can be controlled with medications. It is completely reasonable to expect your cat to have a good life even if he becomes blind. Keeping him indoors helps protect him as well as keeping things in the same place so he can learn the paths to his toys, litter box, food and favorite areas. Keep the lights dim helps him see better with what eyesight he has left. 

Cataracts that go untreated can lead to glaucoma, which is a painful disease.

Surgery

A puncture to the eye lens or larger congenital cataracts are more likely candidates for surgery. Some cat owners forego cataract surgery that is caused by uveitis. Uveitis already causes inflammation to the eye, so surgery can just lead to more inflammation, complications and pain. 

The retina, the tissue in the back of the eye that receives light, must be functioning in order for your pet to benefit from surgery. The retina is like the film in a camera. If it’s not there, then there won’t be a picture. Therefore, assessment of the retinal function is necessary.  There isn’t any sense in performing surgery on an eye that won’t recover vision.  

The biggest risk in cataract surgery on a cat eye ulcer is the first four to six hours after surgery. This is usually minimized with medication. The long-term vision risk is retinal detachment and that happens to about 5% of  post-surgery patients. 

Other Considerations

Surgery may or may not include lens implants. Humans rely on their close-up vision for reading, sewing, and seeing the speedometer, so cataract surgery usually includes lens implants to normalize our vision. A cat eye without the lens is farsighted, so they see far well, but close-up is a problem. They can do well without a lens implant, but it’s better with it. 

Of course, including a lens implant increases the cost of the surgery. The pre-op analysis, surgery and post-surgery checkups run from $1,500 to $3,000. Then there is the post-op medication. Opting for a small monthly cat health care insurance program helps with the financial burden. It certainly reduces the necessity of a cat eye care decision based upon limited financial resources.

A cat with eye ulcer may indicate that he has a cataract. Cataracts in cats are rare. If you notice cloudiness, watery eyes, squinting or a significant change in your cat’s eyes or navigation, look to your veterinarian for guidance. Not all cataracts warrant surgery. A blind cat can lead a normal, happy life indoors and with proper eye medications.

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