Do cats get more vocal when they are getting old?

*Beki*

We had 2 cats who were brothers and recently one of them had to be PTS The other is now a lot more vocal, yowling all the time- we think it might be because he now doesn't have another cat to talk to. Plus his brother was always the more noisy one so now it's left up to him to shout about food/cuddles!

Shoshannah

Just a note - if your older cat is getting more vocal, it is worth having a chat with your vet. Unusual vocalisation can be a sign of discomfort, or may be linked to certain medical conditions such as hyperthyroidism or cognitive dysfunction (dementia).

Slinky

Our cat, who is 20 this year, has become a lot more vocal in the past 18 months. Really, really shouty. He's gone very deaf, not totally, but obviously can't hear as well as he used to. He's taken to randomly shouting outside, particularly in my neighbour's garden. When we were away for the weekend, they were looking after him. Their back door was open as it was a nice day, and apparently the husband nearly injured himself getting downstairs as he thought there was something majorly wrong with our cat as he was just sitting shouting outside their back door.

I work from home and sometimes when he comes in and yells whilst I'm on the phone it causes some amusement with my customers. Fortunately he's quietened down a bit recently, but he seems happy enough within himslef.