The Senior Cat Years | Cat Ages and Stages 

Good on you :)

i dont think she cared for the counter, she probably liked messing with you. like little kids who like to play pranks just to see the other kid or the parent angry because they find it amusing.

My boy went 15 in august and I noticed that he couldn’t jump well either. Just recently he started jumping again.

Ok, I didnt wanna cry today

Oh your sweet to your cat. Thank you for sharing that!

Aww! That's lovely!

Nice

😻

Nice!!

Oh wow! Take a good care of your darling!❤️ so many years together

We have a similar thing going on in our home, we do only take one in at a time though. We sometimes refer to our elderly cat home as Himinbjörg (sky mountains). Himinbjörg is the home of the old Norse god Heimdall who gards Bifröst wich is what the old Norsemen called the rainbow, the rainbow was the bridge between the realm of men and the realm of the gods. 🐈 🌈 💜

Bless you Laura. When my 16 yr old recently passed away, I found a raggedy cat at the shelter of course she was there for ages no one saw what I saw. A lovely skinny elderly cat who lived in a feral colony. She is such a love, doesn't tear up my house like a young one. She sleeps where she wants and for how long she wants and has a healthy diet. I'm letting her live her life.

Oh my! Siamese cats are seriously one of the best companions ever 💗

Thank you

I just want to shake your hand real hard and thank you from the bottom of my ♥

Aww love this! 😆 Welcome! We're all about learning & sharing.. keep that up & you'll be a wonderful guardian when you are chosen one day 😁🐱

Same! I'm already planning how should I catify the house, although I don't think it would be the house I'm currently living in so those plans are a little more like a list of things and ideas I can or should include in the future

I am actually sooooo glad to see this!!!!! Pet owners in general tend not to do much research beforehand, and the animals suffer for it. Another common thing is getting an animal impulsively when your life/finances/living situation/etc are not situated to allow the best possible care of an animal. And that’s how pets cycle through shelters. It’s tragic. I really wish more people would wait until they have the ability and knowledge to care for the animal for its entire life span. Okay, rant over. My point is that you are awesome!!! And I really wish more people could follow this example!!!

Hello! What are you waiting for? Go for it my dear! Don’t waist your time! They’re full of love!

@@LiveLaughSmile that's... a little short-sighted. Me and my partner would absolutely agree that getting a cat is lovely and so on, but we will wait. Firstly, we do not live on our own, and secondly, we do not have necessary money to get our future cats the best care. Vets, good quality feed and safety nets (or catio as we would prefer to have) all cost.

My baby girl was just like that.. To say I miss her is an understatement. We had 18 amazing years together, even traveled cross-country ❤ She was my heart

@@amberlymayo319 I'm so sorry you lost her, but I'm glad you had such a long time with her. I know when my boy goes, it's going to feel as though my heart is ripped out, but I treasure, and always will treasure, every day I have with him.

I lost my boy to cancer this year. He was 15 years old. I miss him, but he doesn't hurt anymore, not that you could tell that he was in pain, of course. I tell myself that he ran over the rainbow 🌈 bridge like a kitten and he'll be there waiting for me.

My cat, Hunter, would have been 20 years old in September. He succumbed to kidney disease a few weeks ago. We had a powerful bond. I adopted him when he was 10 weeks old. I never spent a night without him. He moved across the country with me and he has been my closest companion all these years. Since he departed he has already connected with me several times via synchronistic events and through dreams. I know he did this to comfort me and let me know that he is okay. He was the most precious gift I ever received from the universe.

@@ripley2164 I'm so sorry for your loss! My first cat died in my arms and was just 12 years old, it was cancer and I had no choice but to have him put to sleep. I know it's an agonizing loss and how much you're hurting right now. Rest in peace, Hunter!

Beautifully stated; recently lost a bottle fed kitten and recently help him to let him goat age of 14💔🐾

@@theresa510mountain I hope you find comfort in the years you have together, but I know how much it hurts.

❤️i hope your cat the best life in the rainbow bridge🥺

Amen 🙏🏻

The last sentence of your shared reply really got to me. It's beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

I. M. M. M. Hbbbbb I

This just made my day!!! I think of my Fluffbutt as a Pokémon all the time 🤣

My cat is very chatty while playing, so I joke sometimes that she's like a Pokemon, calling out her attacks lol

He was making a video about every stage of life of cats

I actually think that their perfection begins around 10 years old. Not that I don't love my young cats, too. I absolutely do. But by around 10 and up they truly are gold. My baby boy is 14. And I wouldn't trade him for anything in all the world. 💖🐾💖🐾

I let my old cats train my kittens. Its a legacy system that has really paid off in decades of sweet cats.

@@Laura-mi3nv Yes, I've done that, too. Well, really my kitties have done that for me. My 14 year old Amour is currently training my 2 year old Marina-Bunny, who we've had since she was a tiny fuzzling. He was trained by Sergei who was trained by Levi. Marina-Bunny is very sweet, too, largely due to the guidance of Amour. She still looks to him for guidance every day. We would be lost without him. 💖🐾💖🐾

I totally agree!!!!

I have a 15 yr old who has had Diabetes for 12 of those years, every moment with him is so important to me now.

@Robin Kirves Every cat is different. I had this siamese that died when she was like 16 and she was still jumping on things and running around.

@@Solo_Traveling yes my cat is also 9 and he is so energetic and playful that everyone thinks he’s closer to 2

My girl just turned 8. Just in the last year she had moved from Michigan to Texas from a house to an apartment. In February of this year we were displaced due to the winter storm and stayed in a hotel for over 4 months and now we moved to a different apartment and my Quinn has adjusted very well so far. So many changes in such a short time. I cherish every day I get with her. She has been my rock 🪨 through this whole ordeal. From me adjusting to living in a new state after 37 years and also hotel life for four months to finally settling into our new place. She is such a blessing to my husband and I.

My cat was born with a crooked femur. He’s been using stairs, ramps, and stools since he was 5 months. He’s the sweetest little guy 💕

How did she fare on the flight? I'm considering moving US to Spain but by the time I'll be ready she'll be around 15. She travels well by car but never taken her on a flight.

@@Celeste-.-marie It was a long trip for her, but she did great. I don't think she really ate or drank on the flight, though. Be careful about the season. We flew in November, which was perfect because it wasn't too hot or cold at any of the airports we used. I don't recommend moving with a pet when the temperatures are either extreme because their cage might be set outside for an hour or so while the plane is being prepared.

We brought our cat from the UK to New Zealand last year😅❤

Wow how insensitive ! I certainly wouldn't be using that vet again. I'm so sorry for the loss of your fur baby.

This year I lost my 15 year old boy to cancer. The only other thing the vet said was: "It's $85.00 for us to put him down and dispose of him." He's buried in our back garden.

What?!? What a bunch of assholes.

Those “vets” should be reviewed

Sometimes vets aren’t in their business for the animals, or they favor large animals over domestics. Its Still ok to let them know- even today if they’re still practicing, how what they said and did made you feel. I am a registered intensive care nurse. Familiar with pre-arrest emergency and rapid response protocols. One of my cats got into water in a planter dish that I unknowingly had snail bait in. It. I didn’t know what had happened but l couldn’t find her anywhere- searched for her all night and could not find her until the next morning when she was just barely alive, in respiratory distress, with extreme lethargy. I grabbed her up & raced to the vet, called them enroute and told them she needed to be into intubated, (they know I’m a registered nurse) yet when I arrived Nothing was set up at all period for resuscitation efforts. They even had surgery scheduled for that morning. The Vet attending to my cat did not seem to think it was that great of an emergency. He told me they would put a nasogastric tube down pump her stomach give her some charcoal and for me to call back in a little while, to see how she was doing. I only made it to the parking lot before they came running out to tell me she had died in my vets arms. I had to go back in and get her in their little coffin box that they gave me to carry her home. I carried her out to my car. I was parked in front by the glass front doors. As I went to put her in the passenger side of my car, I broke down sobbing and hugging her box. As I turned to put her down on the sea, I saw that vet looking at me out of the doors to the clinic. He never seem to be “available” to me again after that, and I actually preferred to go to others that were in the same clinic. But for the most part they are all large animal vets and they don’t seem to have the compassion and empathy that is so necessary for our kitties and doggies that we have at home. So I learned a valuable lesson, And I hope you will learn from my experience. Get a vet that feels about animals the same way you do.

it must be even more stressful to experience such a hard time with their responsibility. i appreciate you so much for not letting them go, most people dont or cant do that unfortunately in similar situations. also, what a great friend you have there! i know even my family wouldnt accept me with my cats if i was in need, let alone friends. from the bottom of my heart, i wish you an even better life than before... stability, health, a new house and a long life together💜💜💜

@@leylayasar86 Thank you Leyla. We will push through but I won't let them go. Even when I don't have anything to eat, I always make sure they do. Blessings to you. ❤❤🛐

Hang in there Karen! I hope your cats are doing well.

@@IamSquirrel Thank you. It's genuinely tough! 🛐

God bless you and your babies. l hope all of you prosper and thrive!

I’m sorry

My lovely 14yo Amadeus' demise was torture due to bad veterinarian advice. My heart was broken when he starved and was shocked into death. I still cry for him every day.

@@nyxbellatrix011 I am deeply sorry for your loss

I can relate. My cat was very sick months before he passed, but it seemed like he was on the mend when he passed away that night.

@@jaimieconroy36 : My heart goes out to you. I am 65 years old and my orange and white tabby cat, Peanut is 11 years. My sons are worried that I will die of a broken heart when he dies. I actually fear that day. Blessings and peace of heart to you.

Could you tell me how you pick him up? My cat has some arthritis in her hip and i used to scoop her up from under her butt and legs, until she screamed in pain twice in a week about it. Which is how I learned that she has it now.

Cats are the best

You're sooo lucky!Most of furballs die at about 15. I wish they would have lived longer but they all got really, really sick and there was no way to make them better.Every time one of them dies I lose another part of my heart.

I am so sorry for your loss. I couldn’t imagine losing either of my 2 cats. We got them only 6 months ago. They are both around 2 years old. I want them to as long as yours, at least.

I do too! They make the best pets

I’m so sorry 😞 I know how this feels

You gave him a good life ❤️

Im so sorry for your loss sunshine, you did everything to make his senior years the best possible!

💔

I hope by now you have recovered from that immediate grief of losing your fur baby and begun the process of opening your heart and home to another elder cat. The love you shared was so appreciated and should be shared again to another fur baby. Love is never easy😭

Yes to this! I had a kitten that my other cats all loved and took turns babysitting in shifts throughout the day. Then the kitten got cat covid. It was awful. We had a vet come to the house to put the kitten down. The cats were all depressed. One cat died a month and a half later. He just stopped eating and would cry why the clock rolled around to his babysitting shift time. Another cat stopped doing things he once enjoyed doing when the kitten was still alive like playing with qtips (and he is terrified of anyone comes inside which he never did before but seeing the vet put he kitten to sleep really did a number on him).

I totally understand! My boy howled for 3 days after his mom died.He would carry her teddy bear around and look for her. It killed me to see him in that state (I was grieving for both of them).

💔When a sibling of one of my cats passed away she went into a deep depression. I held her constantly and kept her close to me as much as possible, but she withdrew and began hiding. I tried everything l could think of to help her. Finally, l had waited a short while, but she wasn’t improving much. So then l went ahead and adopted a gentle loving cat about the same age, & slowly introduced them. They slowly bonded with each other, curious and fearful at first, but both needing the other. She slowly came around; & today they’re still inseparable.

I'd love to hear more on this. We just lost our 15 year old kitty last week and my 17 year old is constantly on my lap now. They never really played together (polar opposite personalities) but they've been together for 15 years. We're all taking it hard and I don't know how to comfort her.

My Yuki had similar issues when my Mew passed and even worse issues when my Wife, the one she's most bonded to, was in and out of hospital and rehab for months this last year. She was basically failing to thrive through everything we did until my Wife got back. Not sure if this would help, but I would suggest the following. Adding blankets and things that he loves to cuddle on, including cardboard boxes, cat carriers with a towel in them, or shelves and things to sit on that he's drawn to. Spraying a stress relieve spray, like Feliaway onto all the areas he goes to in order to cuddle and play can do wonders. These types of sprays have a hormone in them that aid cats in calming down and feeling more secure. I've also added catnip spray to these areas, including plush toys, as well as sprinkling catnip on them. Giving him more personal attention between you and him can help, as well. This can include pets, cuddling, giving treats, playing with him, giving him his favorite cat foods, verbal praises, working on getting him to relax so that you can leave the house in a calm manner. (The sprays and treats helped my Yuki a lot with the stress of any of us leaving.) You could also try allowing him to sleep in your room with you, calling to him when he's calling for his lost friend in order to pet and sooth him, as well as distracting him to help him calm down. Just don't force him into cuddles and attention if he doesn't come to you for them after trying to coax him. The main thing is just letting him know you're there and are an option to go to if he feels and when it's needed. Can even try having guests pay attention to him when they are in your house in order to aid teaching him that he can have more relationships with others in his life. Maybe even play music that seems to sooth him or put certain cat-TV shows on for him to watch. (I've noticed my cats tend to enjoy different genres of music that might annoy the other. So, you'd have to experiment.) Then, once he gets to a point where he seems to have settled down to the point that he is comfortable most of the time, then, maybe, try adopting another cat for him to create another relationship with. That may also help him get through his grief. But, I will say that you don't want to just drop a new cat into the mix as they will not just "get over" the grieving period. Just like with humans, cats grieve in their own way. So, the main things are to help him stay as calm as possible and having your whole support with his social needs until he gets to a point where he feels more comfortable not only in his surroundings, but with himself. Only then would he, most likely, be able to take on the stress of meeting another cat as every Cat's bond with another cat is, and will be, different just as some can bounce back from certain stressors, and even grief differently.

So sad 😰❤️🙏🏼 Thank you for the love you gave her 🐾

So sorry, I know how hard it is.😢

I just lost my 19 year old girl earlier this year (kidney failure) so I hope you get good news because losing her was rough. Despite what I felt right after she passed I ended up adopting two boys last month. Well, one is eight, but they my boys, though I still miss my girl.

Accept it and go for a new one

Let us know how it goes! I hope it's not bad news.

Hope she’s ok and I wish you the best! I really hope my guy makes it to see 19, he’s 9 now and ten more years would be awesome!

@@emmasanimals3x8x Im so sorry for your loss! What was her name? I have to younger cats, 4 and 2 years, so they'll take care of me. It's going to be rough losing my baby girl.

I second this! Many are “hard to adopt” even though many don’t need that many extra considerations at all.

I third this! I have a 6-year old that is deaf, although we have sorted out how to live happily (he is the only boy, I also have 4 girls). We communicate through touch and a sort of sign language we made up. What is so cute about him, is that he learned not just what I am saying, but how to communicate back to me by repeating his own version of what I do to him. For instance, when I learned that a really light blow on his fur when he is sleeping, will wake him up gently, as opposed to just touching him and startling him awake. He started to wake me by gently touching my face his whiskers by ever so gently touching me with his nose, and brushing his whiskers on my face. It is literally the cutest thing to wake up to (even at 5 AM LOL!) When I want to give him food or a treat I often have to wake him up, to let him know its dinner time, or what I call "treat o'clock", as the other 4 come running when I shake the treats - and are usually the ones hanging in the kitchen with me when they know its dinner time, he typically is doing his "job" and watching the sunrise or napping hehe. I won't feed any of them until all 5 are with me. So I go to wherever he is and I will catch his attention and look at him a certain way and wave my arm, as if to say "come on, come on" and I visually get excited for him - that makes him jump up and run after me... if he doesn't I will start to walk towards the kitchen and then turn back and do the same thing, after 2 or maybe 3 times doing that, he knows that I want him to follow me! If I walk a few steps in the direction of the kitchen and he *thinks* it is food/treat time, he won't take his eyes off me, he stares at me to see if I come back (I always do) So, when I am in my office (I work from home) and he wants something he acts in the same way! He will sit on the floor next to my chair, put both paws on the arm of the chair and literally tap me a few times, just like a little kid would do to get your attention, it's so cute! Then he will start walking out of the room and if I don't follow he will do it again, and then I know, I just have to get up to see what he wants to show me. It is absolutely adorable, he is usually taking me to his food dish to let me know it's empty! LOL! I admit, it was harder to train the hooman than the kitteh in kitteh sign language, but we did it and I am always looking for a new way to talk to my little buddy - I am positive Jackson Galaxy has some wisdom to share with us!

@@StarleneBreiter You're an awesome cat Mom! Many blessings to you!

My boy Eli is missing an eye, but I never think of him as disabled. He has a good life.

that’s so thoughtful it really is.

P

Have loved cats all my life. Had one for 29 years(1957-86) when I was 8-37. Was absolutely heartbroken when he died(kidney failure) and didn't go to work for three days-just didn't want to deal with humanity...have seven cats now and have made provisions for them to be taken care of when I die(73, so who knows how many years left for me).

sounds like time to consider making catio (cat patio). Your senior seems like a lovely one

You might want to have the vet check him for diabetes since he's drinking more water than usual. My vet told me that was one sign of the illness.

What Valerie Galvan says. Drinking lots of water can be a sign of diabetes or of badly functioning kidneys (ask me how I know either 😭). A urinary check will tell, and you don't even need to take him to the vet for it, just get a urine sample.

Thanks for sharing, sorry about your cat. Our cat is going on 14 years. We picked him as he was the runt of the litter. He ran out and was missing for 2 nights in the cold. I was sure he was gone gone. We live in a rural area. Owls, coyotes and other dogs could've easily taken him. But we found him. Unfortunately, he's different now. Weak and walks very slow. I'm just hopeful that he just needs to rest and recharge. No visible injuries. I'd imagine my legs would hurt from being out in the freezing cold for 2 nights without food and water.

Good for you!

Thank you for giving an older cat love

Live every day with him with love.

@@jacquelynpowell7964 I do and I will, Thank you 💜

That's great :D

I love your words. I wish everyone felt like that. I volunteer at a shelter and see cruelity and sickness and cry alot.

The Assisi Loop might help your cat with his arthritis, also look into acupuncture. CBD oil might help too. My cats eat Primal Pet Foods raw diet, plus they get their Nordic Naturals Omega 3 Pet fish oils daily. I have four cats, three of whom are seniors, and I have never had older cats who were this healthy before. The cats I had before only ate kibble because I didn't know anything about healthy cat food then. I will always regret not knowing about healthy cat food to help my kitties live a long and healthy life. Best of luck to you and your sweet kitty.

Treasure these moments with your cat and try to make him comfortable. Senior cats need love and attention, but they return it ten times more.

Judy Morgan DVM just uploaded a RU-vid video on Cat Pain Management. Judy Morgan is a holistic veterinarian.

Is that human aspirin I’m in Australia

I hope she's still enjoying your love ❤️