Elderly cats

seven-day-weekend

My two cats are 18-year-old sisters. They are 19 in January. They are still able to jump, climb, groom and occasionally run, although they have stopped hunting. They are free-range, going in and out as they please, although I do shut them in at night. They spend a lot of time sleeping, as is usual for cats that age. They are quite healthy, although Mungo is now deaf and I think Rumple may be following her. Rumple also has a heart murmer and a cruciate ligament injury, both of which she has had for years and that the vet is aware of, and which cause her no trouble. I think Mungo may have a touch of arthritis. I am booking them both in for a check up at the vets next week.

I am an experienced cat owner, having owned them for over 45 years. However, I have never had any of this age before.

I have been feeding them on pouches (normally Morrisons or Aldi) and good quality dried food. However I have noticed that they more and more frequently do not eat the pouches. With my previous cats I would not worry about it, they would eat it eventually, but I don't think it is just fussiness with cats this age. I think it might be that they need a different diet, as old people often do.

So, I have bought some tinned tuna in spring water which they enjoy, and also cooked a load of cheap chicken up for them, they both love chicken. They still also have the hard food which is permanently available, as is fresh water, although like most cats, they prefer drinking from puddles

Anyway, just wanted to get some tips from experienced owners of very elderly cats, and comments re the diet, thanks .

tt07

We've an older cat we've had her around 17 years and she was a rescue so 17/18, she's never been a hunter so we so no change.

Food wise also no change still eats the same and also still enjoys non cat food like bacon, chicken, cod etc....

Changes she has gone a bit deaf or more selective deaf, still hears us get home and greats us, meows much more and is a touch arthritic in the colder months.

If there is older cat biscuits or food then we do tend to buy that, but we've not really changed anything and she still has little tit bits from us too and hasn't stopped enjoying that either.

So far changes we've seen are sleeping a bit more, bit deaf, and a bit thinner which brings her to a good weight ironically and her eyes of course look aged.

We spoke to vet about deafness and suggested when she is mewing away go and see her so she sees people, that said it maybe just attention seeking :rotfl:

donnac2558

My big boy was just under 18 in January when I found out he had cancer. In human years the vet he was in his 80s. Now he had cataracts and a bit deaf, lovely shiny coat and looked good until near the end when he got very thin. Oh constipation was also a bit of a problem so he had to take something for that.

He just slept a lot wanted cuddles, did chase my younger girl(she is 14), as he got miffed with her cleaning him all the time. She misses him like mad and it was quite bad for the first few months.

I was very anxious over him as I never had a cat so old, all the others over the years 12-13 life span. Again cancer and the other girl kidney failure. So was unsure what was normal behaviour and what wasn't? I did get his bloods done and all fine up to that point. Kidneys liver etc all fine. But then he was found to have a mass on the liver some months later.

seven-day-weekend

Thanks for your comments

Chicken and tuna going down a treat

catkins

My girl was 20 when she had to be pts earlier this year. She had got incredibly fussy as she got older. I found she quite liked Wilko cat food. It comes in small tins and I know one is tuna loin in sauce. The small tins were ideal for her as she didn't like eating the same food morning and evening or even the next day so the big tins would get wasted.

She also liked M&S cat food in pouches, Sheba and Gourmet. She wouldn't touch Whiskas or Felix.

She did drive me slightly mad with her fussiness but I gave in to her because of her age

GwylimT

Tuna should be a very rare treat, it is harmful on a regular basis. The chicken and tuna combined also shouldn't be more than 10% of the cats diet.

You only see age specific foods in the poor quality foods, they are purely a marketing gimmick.

donnac2558

GwylimT wrote: »

Tuna should be a very rare treat, it is harmful on a regular basis. The chicken and tuna combined also shouldn't be more than 10% of the cats diet.

You only see age specific foods in the poor quality foods, they are purely a marketing gimmick.

Agree, cats do not hunt fish in the wild(land hunters) it was people who decided to feed cats it. Fish have arsenic very low so not harmful to humans but can caught kidney problems in cats.

seven-day-weekend

GwylimT wrote: »

Tuna should be a very rare treat, it is harmful on a regular basis. The chicken and tuna combined also shouldn't be more than 10% of the cats diet.

You only see age specific foods in the poor quality foods, they are purely a marketing gimmick.

Thanks for that tip about the tuna. I will make sure t is udsed sparingly.

The chicken is not a 'brand', I have cooked it fresh.

What do you suggest for the other 90% of their food? I would have thought chicken was OK.

spirit

My 2 old girls like(d) (one of them died of heart failure recently) Gourmet perle. But even then they would turn up their nose occasionally.


I've just adopted 2 more cats, both quite young, mother and son at age 4 and 2. They were fed on Hills Science diet which I have bought for them here.


So my remaining old girl now likes Hills too. It'll make life easier for me going forwards. for sure their poo doesn't stink as bad as it does on wet food.

GwylimT

seven-day-weekend wrote: »

Thanks for that tip about the tuna. I will make sure t is udsed sparingly.

The chicken is not a 'brand', I have cooked it fresh.

What do you suggest for the other 90% of their food? I would have thought chicken was OK.

A complete cat food.

no1catman

My current cat likes Morrisons pouches (gravy), but she's only twelve! As a treat - she does sometimes get diced raw liver - slides down a treat!

My previous cat (PTS at 20.5) had CRF - found with that adding some hot water to the pouch - to make it more of a 'chunky soup' satisfied her thirst, and more likely to carry on into the chunks.
She also, got addicted to pet tuna clakes!!

Both though like cooked white fish.