Medical history…

As mentioned above, I did have a poorly (left) eye when I arrived here at the sanctuary. The vets think it was most likely an injury, possibly from fighting with another unneutered male. (You should have seen the other guy!) At first, my eye was treated with eye drops and anti-inflammatory medication with pain relief. This did seem to help and my carers and the vets thought it had healed well, but sadly after a few weeks my eye began to get poorly again- it began to cloud over and my carers knew this wasn’t right. I was booked in to see the eye specialist who had a good look at my eye. He wasn’t too concerned about the cloudiness that had appeared, but discovered that the other cat’s claw had actually penetrated my eye! This meant that there was damage to the cornea, which was the reason it looked cloudy as the eye was trying to fix itself.

I was told that cats eyes are very sensitive and when damage like this occurs, even if the eye heals well, unfortunately it can cause real problems in the future. The vet told me (and my carer) that although there was no signs of any tumour at the time, it can be common in cats who have had eye injuries for tumours to form in or behind the eye. These can be cancerous. With this information, my carers had a big discussion and decided that it was in my best interests for the eye to be removed. As there was a chance that cancer could form from the trauma to my eye, it was the safest option for me to completely remove the eye and the worry of this happening.

My carer was a little worried about how I would cope after having my eye removed as I am such a sensitive boy, but she says I have been a very brave boy and have taken it all in my stride. I am no different to when I had two eyes, other than having one less eye of course! But I am the same Arthur and have adjusted very well.

As my eye was completely removed, I should have no further issues in the future and as it was only the one eye affected, my other eye should still be covered under pet insurance. However, my carer told me to tell you that you should check this with insurance companies, as some of them may not cover me for any eye issues now. I am a very healthy boy though and have no other health concerns meaning I would be covered for everything else, so please don’t let this put you off giving me a home! As I said, hopefully I will have no more eye issues for the rest of my life.

As I was a little stressed here at the sanctuary due to not liking the other cats, I am currently on some calming supplements. These and the fact that I was moved into my very own room (my carer says maybe that was my plan all along hehe) are helping me. I am happier now that I have my own space and don’t have to look at the other cats as much. My carer does advise that I be kept on these calming supplements for a while once I go to my new home to help me settle in, but I should be okay to be slowly weaned off them once I am fully settled in and happy. You could perhaps keep some at home though to use during any stressful periods in the future. The supplements are easily purchased online and aren’t too expensive, my carer is happy to discuss this further with anyone who wants to give me a home.