Caring for Your Senior Cat

I have had two cats that lived to be eighteen years old. One was an indoor Siamese cat. Trisha was an outdoor calico Siamese mix cat. She had a heater in the building she had lived in for the last few years. Trisha was always a very active cat. She chased a rabbit down when she was 17 and almost,t catch it. She kept hunting up until the time of her death. Ginger, my Siamese house cat, got relatively thin toward the end of her life. She was very active until about the last month of her life.

Kohl, one of my house cats, is ten years old now. He was born with a respiratory problem. The respiratory problem causes him to sneeze often. My vet recommended giving him two distemper shots a year instead of just one a year. The different picture seems to have helped his sneezing attacks somewhat.

It is a good idea to have your cat’s teeth cleaned. Bad teeth can lead to poor health down the road. Most of my cats have had their teeth cleaned for the first time at around age eight or nine. Regular checkups with your vet are a must for a long-lived cat. I take my older cats to my vet the minute I notice anything wrong with them. A small problem in a senior cat can quickly lead to a big problem. As the old saying goes, an ounce of prevention is a pound of cure. Make sure you keep all of their shots up to date and have them wormed regularly. Worms can take a healthy cat down very quickly.

I like to have heated beds available for all of my cats. A heated bed is a must for an older cat. They have more trouble getting around in their old age, just as we do. The heat helps them stay more limber. Some older cats have trouble chewing their dry cat food. I feed them canned cat food or tuna canned in water.

Remember, your older cat still loves to play with a cat toy now and then. They still love to sit on your lap and relax. You will notice as your cat ages; he will sleep much more than he used to.

I hope you and your cat age gracefully together. You and your cat should have regular checkups to live to a healthy, ripe old age. Remember to keep your cat as active as they can for their period.

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