He doesn't react to loud noises like clapping or whistling, even when he's awake. But sometimes it seems like he does react to noise, like I tested out the vacuum and he jumped at the sudden noise (could've been vibration startling him?) we're taking him to the vet next week to start on his vaccines and we'll ask them about it then, but we're just kinda confused. Like is he or is he not?
for the past few months, ive been questioning if two of my cats, basil (4, male) and smokey (17, female) are deaf.
we got smokey in 2009, alongside her brother. i dont think shes been deaf the whole time we’ve had her, im pretty sure she used to react to noises, especially noises like shaking a bag of treats or opening a can of wet food. im wondering if now that shes an older cat, shes lost some or all of her hearing.
its a bit harder to get her attention now unless shes looking at you, and ive noticed she hasnt reacted to some loud noise sometimes. i tried snapping my fingers right behind her ear, out of her view, with no reaction, which made me really question if she was deaf, and then when i turned on something quite noisy right behind her head, she didnt react at all. ive only started thinking about it more recently so i have investigated too much yet.
we got basil in 2022. i briefly questioned if he was deaf when we first got him, but i stopped questioning it when i thought i saw him react to the sound of a door closing. im thinking now he mightve been reacting to something other than the noise, but i didnt know that at the time.
its always been tough to get his attention by calling him. like smokey, he also doesnt react to me snapping or turning on noisy things right behind him. if i accidentally wake him up, he startles a bit, like he wasnt expecting it and lets out a cute meow and cuddles up to me. sometimes, he opens his mouth like hes meowing, but no sound comes out. (my other cat, everest, also does this sometimes, but he only started doing it after he got his teeth removed, so im guessing it’s because of that.)
hes also never come running when we fill the food bowl or pull out treats, only really showing up when he sees our other cats run over. he’s always been a weird and silly cat so i honestly thought it was just quirks, especially not running over when we pull out treats, as hes never been very interested in them.
i plan to bring them both to the vet to figure it out when i have the money
I’m thinking about adopting a 7-8 year old deaf white cat.
I called the humane society to ask some questions about her, and I was warned that the cat has a serious bite history. The cat has to be adopted out to an adult only single cat household.
The owners surrendered the cat due to financial hardship and didn’t report any biting pre-surrender. So it seems like the biting is happening mostly due to the overstimulating shelter environment. The lady on the phone said it’s not a question of if the cat will bite, but when.
This cat has been in the shelter for 5 months. Has anyone encountered a similar situation? Could the behavior change, or is that wishful thinking on my part? Does the biting just connect to the deafness or would it be a totally separate behavioral issue?
I’d appreciate any insight. Thank you!