Any cat people here?

So, my cat is at least 18 now (she was a young stray with the earliest vet records from 1994). She still acts the same, aside from not wanting to jump up quite so much as her youthful days, but she is sooo skinny now. She is an indoor cat and is free fed on a grain free kibble (which she still eats as normal), and she also gets one can of wet food per day. I've recently started giving her 2 cans just to try and bulk her up a bit. I know it's probably just because she's so old, but is there anything else anyone can recommend for an aging kitty? She gets extremely stressed at the vet so I don't really want to take her in and just have them say "well yeah she's ancient". lol

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Permalink Reply by Chris, Kadi & Brodie on May 12, 2012 at 9:21am

You're getting some good answers here. I would kind of echo Beth's sentiments. At that age, any type of treatment will probably only traumatize her and make her life miserable rather than enhancing her quality of life. With her being at least 18, she's already passed the life expectancy of most cats, except Siamese. They tend to live until about 20 and often turn into a 'yowling bag of bones'. If you already know she was in the early stages of renal failure, then that is probably the major source of this. I would just keep her as comfortable and happy as possible and enjoy whatever time she has left on this earth and hope she goes peacefully to sleep at some point instead of requiring a trip to the vet at the end of the road. I've had to take 3 of mine in to be euthanized, one of which had to be sedated first and carried in with a pillow case around her. Not a good experience. It's usually much more traumatic with cats than it is with dogs. Dogs tend to look at us with those trusting eyes and say "OK, Mom, whatever you want, I'm with you." Cats tend to fight it all to the last breath.

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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth, Hermione and Luna on May 14, 2012 at 6:48pm

I'm with everybody else here. Call, or get a house-visit vet, but at that age, I wouldn't force a trip on her.

That story about the kitty in the basement does not provoke horror in me, I had a dear friend who did almost exactly the same for her Socks kitty and it was very peaceful. Unless she really looks like she needs a helping hand to end serious suffering, I wouldn't do it.

Bless you and your kitty.

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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on May 15, 2012 at 8:38am

I have had cats all my life the longest lived one made it to 20. It seems like some fatten up as they age and some get thinner. It is important to keep up with the vet on managing kidney failure. It often happens very slowly and there are foods they can recommend that will help. I found out the hard way that some cats just shut down and don't show that they are in pain. However it is so hard to end things for them because it so often is a judgement call about what the quality of life is.