My cat's eyes

[amc80]

Hi all! I have two Ragdolls. My male, Zack, has always been just a bit cross-eyed. Also, his eyes "shake." I'm not sure how to describe it but if you look at his eyes when he is looking at something, they sort of rattle back and forth really quickly. His eyes also glow red a lot, much more than my other cat. In certain lighting conditions, he's eyes will be almost totally red, while hers still look blue. He's been this way since I got him as a kitten. His vision seems to be fine, he can chase a laser beam and sneak attack his sister just fine. Any thoughts on what might be causing this?

 

[radiantquest]

I cant comment on the shaking, but my Siamese was googly eyed when she was little. They corrected for the most part, but still aren't as straight as my other cats eyes. Her blue eyes have that red look too. I had a white bunny when I was younger and her eyes were red sometimes too. I really don't think its something serious since he seems to see just fine. As always if you have a concern about a pet make an appointment with the vet.

I learned on animal planet that most cats that have blue eyes are deaf or cant hear as well as cats without blue eyes.

 

[Matata]

The eye shaking could be nystagmus. I have a deaf cat, due to vestibular disease, and his eyes do the shaky think when he is having a dizzy spell. Talk to your vet about it.

 

[Okie_girl]

I have 2 rescue cats that I suspect have some rag doll in them. One is cross eyed as can be, and the other has nystagmus (the eye shaking thing). Rocky (mr. crossed eyes) doesn't seem to have any problems other than at times his depth perception seems to be a bit off. Of course, when he is tired, his eyes are more crossed than usual, but in general, it hasn't hindered him at all. Little Man (nystagmus boy) also seems to have no ill effects. Both of these boys had a pretty rough first few weeks, and were very sick when I got them. I don't know if the illness caused the eye issues, or if that's just the way they were born.

amc80, if you are concerned, definitely get Zack checked out, but more than likely, it's not a big concern, especially since it's not a new issue and he's been that way all along.

 

[asscherisme]

Hi,
I also have 2 ragdolls. They are such an awesome breed! So loving and sweet. They are my first ever cats so can't compare to other breeds, but I have had them for 1 1/2 years since they were 3 months old. Neither is cross eyed at all.

YES on the glowing red. When they are kittens and I first brought them home, it FREAKED me out when i was up late and they would look at me with their glowing eyes whe nthe light hit a certain way. My son's 2 closest friends also have cats and they also commented to my son at how often my cats eyes are red at night. I think its because their eyes are so light in color and its part of the blue eyes and how the light reflects off them. I think of my blue eyed friends and in photos, their eyes tend to be more red eyed than my friends with brown eyes in flash pictures. My vet says their eyes are healthy.

Don't know about the shaking though. One of my girls had the cat equivalent of pink eye 2 times during her kitten year but thats a different problem and was cleared up with drops.

If you think something is off, I would go the vet.

 

[tammy77]

My Chloe had nystagmus as well. It didn't really slow her down much until she was older. For her, the symptoms beyond eye quivering didn't show up until she was 10+ and it was just frequent vomiting from being dizzy, poor girl.

 

[amc80]

Thanks to everyone for the stories and suggestions. I really don't think it's anything to worry or rush to the vet about, but it is still concerning. Like I said, he's always had it, and the vet has never said anything about it before. I'll just keep an eye on him for any apparently changes in vision or behavior.

 

[amc80]

I also have 2 ragdolls. They are such an awesome breed! So loving and sweet. They are my first ever cats so can't compare to other breeds, but I have had them for 1 1/2 years since they were 3 months old. Neither is cross eyed at all.

Agreed! I will never own another breed. Their personalities are just amazing.