Natural strabismus in non-Siamese cats: lack of binocularity in the striate cortex

Cats with a natural convergent squint were discovered within a colony of normal Mill Hill cats. In two of them single unit recording was undertaken in area 17. The ocular dominance distribution showed a clear disruption of binocularity in both hemispheres. This lack of binocular units was comparable to cats with artificial, surgically-induced strabismus and differed significantly from the ocular dominance distribution of a normal control group. The existence of these natural, non-albino squinters strengthens the use of cats as an animal model for strabismic amblyopia.