Our 17, nearly 18 year old tortishell cat called Daisy is eating normally and seems relatively happy, but there have been a few things that have concerned me lately.
The first thing is that she seems to have lost a lot of her hearing, and although she can hear some pitches, usually she doesn't even notice me approach her until I'm standing next to her or touch her and she often gets a fright when she notices, no matter how much warning I try to give her.
She has begun to get what we think is arthritis and has difficulty jumping up high and she groans when she washes herself.
She has also started to walk behind the sofa or DVD stand and then seems to get stuck and meows in confusion or suddenly realises where she is if I approach her and she sees me. We have another cat and she usually keeps her distance from her and is often aggressive towards her, but yesterday she walked right up to Sugar and actually sniffed her on the bum and then seemed to get confused when Sugar hissed back at her in surprise.
Then this morning I was concerned because she drank an entire bowl of water and then went looking for more. She sometimes gets thirsty in the morning because she sits in front of the heater but I have only ever seen her drink a couple of laps at a time in all the time we have had her. Could she have just become really thirsty for some reason or could it be more serious?
The biggest problem with her is that she is quite frail and gets stressed really easily and my parents are refusing to take her to the vet to get her checked because they think it will just harm her more to put her through all the stress. Do you think it's worth taking her to the vet to get checked out? I'm started to get worried about her because her complaints are started to increase.
Elderly cat acting strangely and has physical complaints
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mamabear
- Formerly mamaof4soon
- Posts: 589
- Joined: Wed Apr 18, 2007 10:39 pm
- Location: The Garden State
Re: Elderly cat acting strangely and has physical complaints
YES! Absolutely take her to your vet. Yes it can be stressful for ANY animal to go to vet. BUT the stress of going to the vet for a short period is far less than the torture of not going and being in pain.
Your parents have a responsibility toward her to bring her in to the vet and saying that she will be stressed is a cop out. Please be gentle when speaking to your parents as they might not want to bring her in because they are afraid of what they will find.
She is 17/18 years old, yes she might have arthritis at this point, yes she might not clean herself as well as she did when she was 7 , she might have something wrong with her kidneys or liver BUT they wont know unless they take her.
Here are some tips for them to do to try to make it less stressful on her. Make sure they have a small cat carrier. The big dog cages are no good for cats that are older because they bounce around and that is not what we want to do.
put her favorite blanket in there to comfort her, if she does not have one then put moms or dads tshirt in there. Something familiar. BUT once at the vet do not take the item out and put it on something so it doesnt get the smell to badly of the office.
THey themselves have to no be too stressed as well, cats young and old pick up on that very much. While at vet they can stay in the room with her and stroke her fur that will have a calming affect on both mom and dad and of course kitty will be a little more relaxed.
My friend has a kitty named Tatiana she is 21 years old. she is very thin no longer with any muscle tone at all, she walks very slowly and doesnt jump like she use to either. She eats and plays very slowly. But she is healthy from what the vet says. Since she is 21 vet sees her twice a year instead of once.
Kittys that are older can have a great life but in order to do so they have to go to vet to find out what is wrong and if medicine needs to be given then give it. Your Vet as long as they are good one is your greatest source of information. You might want to tag along as well just in case.
Let us know what the vet says about her hearing and water in take.
good luck.
Your parents have a responsibility toward her to bring her in to the vet and saying that she will be stressed is a cop out. Please be gentle when speaking to your parents as they might not want to bring her in because they are afraid of what they will find.
She is 17/18 years old, yes she might have arthritis at this point, yes she might not clean herself as well as she did when she was 7 , she might have something wrong with her kidneys or liver BUT they wont know unless they take her.
Here are some tips for them to do to try to make it less stressful on her. Make sure they have a small cat carrier. The big dog cages are no good for cats that are older because they bounce around and that is not what we want to do.
put her favorite blanket in there to comfort her, if she does not have one then put moms or dads tshirt in there. Something familiar. BUT once at the vet do not take the item out and put it on something so it doesnt get the smell to badly of the office.
THey themselves have to no be too stressed as well, cats young and old pick up on that very much. While at vet they can stay in the room with her and stroke her fur that will have a calming affect on both mom and dad and of course kitty will be a little more relaxed.
My friend has a kitty named Tatiana she is 21 years old. she is very thin no longer with any muscle tone at all, she walks very slowly and doesnt jump like she use to either. She eats and plays very slowly. But she is healthy from what the vet says. Since she is 21 vet sees her twice a year instead of once.
Kittys that are older can have a great life but in order to do so they have to go to vet to find out what is wrong and if medicine needs to be given then give it. Your Vet as long as they are good one is your greatest source of information. You might want to tag along as well just in case.
Let us know what the vet says about her hearing and water in take.
good luck.
Almost 7 years in remission from Graves disease and no meds!
Re: Elderly cat acting strangely and has physical complaints
Your parents owe it to your kitty to get her to a vet TODAY, and to get bloodwork done for her to detect disease that may be easily treatable. Older cats are susceptible to numerous health conditions such as renal disease, liver disease, heart conditions, GI tract disturbances, diabetes, etc.
The increased water consumption is a red flag that she is dehydrated, whether she has a mild infection somewhere or is developing diabetes or may have decreased renal function, only your vet can determine with proper bloodwork to check vital organ function. Renal disease is common in older cats, but can be treated/managed well if the cat is diagnosed early on and treated appropriately at the start! Although renal disease cannot be cured, it can be treated to slow the progression, many cats with renal disease can live a long, comfortable life with appropriate treatment!
The weakness could be related to renal disease, or any other health issue, and she may indeed be arthritic, but your vet has treatment available for arthritis.
Diminished hearing or sight needs to be determined by your vet, and to what extent. It wouldn't be uncommon for an older kitty to lose a part of hearing or sight, but regular exams will help your vet treat whatever might be necessary. At home, you and your parents need to accomodate her so that her environment is safe, calm, secure. This means keeping her daily routine consistent, NOT changing anything in the environment, not moving furniture around, etc because she needs familiarity to navigate her environment etc. Litterboxes need to be kept in an area that are easily accessible to her, NOT down or up stairs, etc. Food and water dishes must be easily accessible to her, and night lights should be kept on in rooms at night so she can see better at night. Lots of love and attention and quality time spent with her are crucial if she cannot hear or see well. Hearing loss or sight loss can cause fear and disorientation, so you and your parents need to give her lots of love and attention on a daily basis. Keep most of her necessities in a close proximity to her favorite area (sleeping, toys, etc), and again, her food/water dishes must be easily accessible, and litterbox easily accessible (do not put them close together) To approach her without startling her, either tap on the floor a few feet away from her so she can feel the vibration, or, gently blow a puff of air next to her and calmly approach her with a soothing voice.
First things first, she needs a complete vet exam and bloodwork IMMEDIATELY, if she's dehydrated or diabetic or renal impaired, she needs vital fluids support and nutritional support NOW!! Dehydration can seriously damage vital organs, you cannot wait on this!! She's given you and your parents years of comfort, joy and unconditional love, your parents owe it to her to give her the best care possible from your vet!!
The increased water consumption is a red flag that she is dehydrated, whether she has a mild infection somewhere or is developing diabetes or may have decreased renal function, only your vet can determine with proper bloodwork to check vital organ function. Renal disease is common in older cats, but can be treated/managed well if the cat is diagnosed early on and treated appropriately at the start! Although renal disease cannot be cured, it can be treated to slow the progression, many cats with renal disease can live a long, comfortable life with appropriate treatment!
The weakness could be related to renal disease, or any other health issue, and she may indeed be arthritic, but your vet has treatment available for arthritis.
Diminished hearing or sight needs to be determined by your vet, and to what extent. It wouldn't be uncommon for an older kitty to lose a part of hearing or sight, but regular exams will help your vet treat whatever might be necessary. At home, you and your parents need to accomodate her so that her environment is safe, calm, secure. This means keeping her daily routine consistent, NOT changing anything in the environment, not moving furniture around, etc because she needs familiarity to navigate her environment etc. Litterboxes need to be kept in an area that are easily accessible to her, NOT down or up stairs, etc. Food and water dishes must be easily accessible to her, and night lights should be kept on in rooms at night so she can see better at night. Lots of love and attention and quality time spent with her are crucial if she cannot hear or see well. Hearing loss or sight loss can cause fear and disorientation, so you and your parents need to give her lots of love and attention on a daily basis. Keep most of her necessities in a close proximity to her favorite area (sleeping, toys, etc), and again, her food/water dishes must be easily accessible, and litterbox easily accessible (do not put them close together) To approach her without startling her, either tap on the floor a few feet away from her so she can feel the vibration, or, gently blow a puff of air next to her and calmly approach her with a soothing voice.
First things first, she needs a complete vet exam and bloodwork IMMEDIATELY, if she's dehydrated or diabetic or renal impaired, she needs vital fluids support and nutritional support NOW!! Dehydration can seriously damage vital organs, you cannot wait on this!! She's given you and your parents years of comfort, joy and unconditional love, your parents owe it to her to give her the best care possible from your vet!!
..........Traci