Caring for Deaf Cats

A genetic anomaly causes blue-eyed white cats to be born deaf. Odd-eyed whites are often deaf on the same side as they are blue eyed. This anomaly is present in all breeds in which blue-eyed white cats occur, from Persian to Oriental to the Turkish Van.

In general, deaf cats are able to cope very well with their disability. For their comfort, however, there are a few things that you should keep in mind.

First, it can be very helpful to work out a language that both you and your cat can understand. This doesn’t have to be as difficult as it sounds. You can develop hand signals similar to those used with dogs. Keep in mind that your hands will be meant as a positive tool. Because of that you should never hit a deaf cat or kitten as this will only teach them that human hands are negative and they will do their best to avoid humans and their hands.

You can teach cats and kittens not to do inappropriate things like jumping on tables by using a water gun. With hearing cats, you typically reinforce this by saying ‘off’, but with deaf kittens and cats your body language will usually work just as well.

More about caring for a deaf cat.