Almost blind stray kitten has sight restored

A stray cat named Harvey has a little extra spring in his step after a life-changing surgery.

He arrived at the Washington Humane Society almost completely blind. Now, he can see again.

"He did not seem to be visual. He seemed to be blind,” said veterinarian Dr. Elizabeth Goldsmith. “He could probably distinguish shapes but really didn't have any vision that was substantial.”



Harvey was found at a D.C. apartment complex in late April and shelter staff quickly discovered his vision problem.

Goldsmith conducted Harvey's 10-minute surgery. As a stray kitten with no vet care, he probably developed a respiratory infection that lead to corneal scarring in both eyes, she said.

"He had a substantial amount of scarring," Goldsmith said. "He had a membrane covering one of his corneas, and that's what we were able to snip away and remove, and over the last 10 days or so, the residual scarring has really diminished." But if you look into his eyes now, and you can see Harvey is recovering pretty well.

With news video.