Age of your oldest cat

[NBChoice]

This is just a fun thread to see how old some of your cats have gotten!

My family has a cat that we got from a shelter when she was 2 years old. The shelter told my dad that if she isn’t taken by the end of the day then she was going to be put to sleep. So he brought her home. That was forever ago.

She is around 21 years old now. She is completely blind now, her hearing is awful unless you’re right in front of her. She sleeps most of the day, but wanders around the basement too. She still has lots of fight in her. The other day my Great Dane puppy thought she looked like a neat toy to play with, so she ran up to her and sniffed her head, well kitty didn’t like that and swatted at her face. We joke that she will never die.

Tell me about your geriatric kitty.

[ddashaq]

My geriatric is not nearly as old as yours-- he will be 16 in the fall. He is still active but he has gotten skinny the last couple of years. Has arthritis in his knees but is still willing to sumo wrestle with my much younger Siamese and chase my youngest drama queen cat. I think he may be going a bit senile as he likes to yodel at the walls, doors, or any other inanimate object that catches his fancy.

[atr]

Sybil is 20. A very vocal and demanding Siamese who thinks she is Queen Victoria. She’s in remarkably good shape. She needs a bit more help in the grooming department than she did in her younger days, but apart from that, not a lot different. We’ve had her since she was 6 weeks old.

[CindyB59]

Our oldest will be 18 August 1. Lost her sister last June at almost 17. Other 2 house cats are 14-1/2, barn cat is 12 this summer.

[re-runs]

The last one to pass was 20 of CKF.

The one before that was 19. CHF

The one before that 17. Lymphoma

The one before that, liver failure at 19.

My current housecat is 18 and acts like a kitten, beautiful coat, plays with her toys. I have had her since she was a kitten so I know her true age. I think her secret is, hardy feral genes, no worries, always a warm lap and good food available. She is always treated with the respect that she knows she deserves.

Barn cats are 12 and 10, both fished out of the town dumpster when they were 2 weeks and 2 days old and fed on a bottle.

[GoForAGallop]

I posted a similar thread last year: http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?410644-What-s-an-quot-old-quot-cat-to-you

It weirds me out to hear people say their 12 year old cat is “old.”

From the thread, of my “sample size” of 20+ cats:
I have had 7 cats who lived to what I consider “old” ages. Two lived to seventeen, one to eighteen, one to nineteen, one to 21, one to 22 and the grandest lady of them all lived to a 100% documented 24 years of age.

The 24 year old was a calico female, picked up off the street as a kitten by my mother’s brother on Halloween, in the early 80s.

[fredsaid2]

We have an 18 yr old tabby. OP, like yours he is still incredibly feisty. Recently I looked out the window to see the neighbor’s black lab streaking across the lawn like his tail was on fire. Mr. Doug, who has a bum front leg, was after him. He lurches rather than runs but doesn’t let something like that stop him from defending his property. He’s a pretty grand old man. : )

[ChristinaClarLuisa]

All the cat threads are helping with this grey, cold day:)
Current cats are just younguns’.
My Greatest and Best Cat, however, lived to 23 (at least). Jumping to the tops of bookcases into her last year. I rescued her as a young cat (maybe 9 months or a year old) from the cellar of the apartment building I lived in at the time, a run-down place. She had fallen, somehow, into a void behind the wall and it was tough getting her out. (Heard her crying for almost a day before I could figure out where she was.) She was very thin, very dehydrated, so who knows how long she was actually down there. She had injured a hind leg and it healed with a contracture, so the tip of that paw barely touched the ground when at rest, and she cantered on three legs. Nevertheless the most athletic cat ever!
She remained tiny, I suppose stunted. But boy was she smart and cute and all that…still tear up thinking about her.
Cats are important:yes:

[cloudyandcallie]

Spencer Endicott turned 21 yesterday. I got him and his 3 siblings and mother when the 4 kittens were 2 days old from Friends of Animals in Atlanta. 2 siblings and his mother lived to be 17 yoa, Veronica and Seymour and Cecelia, and one sibling Shannon lived to 19 yoa. I’ve had other cats who lived to be 18 yoa, but both Shannon Elizabeth who lived to be 19 and Spencer who is 21, are my oldest kitties ever. All rescued. All alley cats. (Did have one siamese son of my first siamese who made it to 18 too.)

[jenm]

My eldest is also 21. I have had her for years, even though she originally came to me on a “temporary” basis after she was abandoned when her original people left her behind when they moved.

She’s still quite vocal and lets me know what she wants and she even chases cats out of “her” yard.

She will also smack my dog upside the head, just because she can!

[Coyoteco]

I got my mother’s old cats at one point. One lived to 25 (possibly a little more). She had come up to my brother’s house as a young adult stray, ultimately went to live with my mother and then with me. The others (all rescues) were in their 20’s also when they died about 22, maybe the last of those died at 23 but I’m not certain about the ages on these as I am with the 25 yo, but it’s pretty close. The last one who died was interesting. She had always eaten dry food. About a year before she died we thought she might have diabetes and she suddenly, on her own changed over to eating only wet food. It was not her teeth, but she just changed. Her symptoms went away and she was back to normal. The first thing she would do each morning would be to take a walk around the house, very much like a person taking his morning health walk. One of them had had cancer after she came to live with me but we were lucky and it didn’t come back after the tumor was removed. They all had some kidney disease and I was always prepared to start antibiotics as soon as symptoms occurred and then get the test to confirm that the infection was cleared. (I worked closely with an excellent vet on all of these - but getting the antibiotics started immediately was critical in keeping these cats healthy.)
I agree that I don’t think a cat is old until the very late teens.

[Louise]

This thread does my heart good. My oldest, at 17, is still relatively young, when compared to the others. That makes me happy because she is an absolute sweetheart - my “good” cat - and it is a joy having her around. She was just in for her yearly checkup and the vet was amazed at how healthy she is. She can run, jump and play with the best of them. I do think that she is getting a little senile. She talks a lot more now than she ever has, and she forgets that she has just eaten, and begs for food over and over. I was so worried about the food thing that I had her tested for overactive thyroid, but the results came back completely normal.

[stolen_virtue]

We had Simone, a torti who was a strange cat. She lived until she was 23 and died in my arms. I knew she was dying and because she could not be handled enough to go to the vets, I just stayed with her until she was gone.

I hope of your kitties live long happy lives !

[NBChoice]

Louise, our oldie talks a lot more now too! She never shuts up when people are around actually. She also begs for food a lot as well. Even if she has food right in front of her.

[Laurierace]

No idea really. I got her in 2004 and she was adult then. The vet’s only guess to her age was that her uterus was “well used” when he spayed her.

[TWH_Girl]

My girl is 14. Her name is Lilly and she’s a super sweet, friendly, and cuddly orange tabby with short little legs. We’ve had her for 10 yrs and got her from the humane society. She loves going outside for a stroll (not an outdoor kitty though), licking people, eating, sleeping and doing burnouts on her catnip mouse. She was recently diagnosed with a thyroid tumor, though all her bloodwork was spot on. She’s awesome and I adore her.

[HunterBranded]

Our oldest was 19.5 years old, had her from a kitten! She was reasonably healthy right up until her health suddenly declinded and it was decided it was her time. My mom’s current kitty is now going on 18, but in pretty good shape for her age. My current guys our youngins. I hope they do as well as the above kitties!

[Sailboats]

She’s 16 now and I’ve had her since she was weaned. She’s very sweet and friendly toward people, but hates the kitty who showed up needing some TLC and never left, though he adores her. She also hates treats and refuses anything that isn’t cat food. She won’t play with string or toys, but will cuddle a person forever. I love my little tortoiseshell kitty, even though her face makes her look stern.

[chestnutmarebeware]

Cowboy turned 17 last month. I’ve had him since he was 7 weeks old.

He’s gotten quite skinny despite getting canned food 4x a day, but recently got a blood test, exam and clean bill of health from the vet. No arthritis (he continues to jump up and down from great heights), and he still likes to patrol the property for hours on sunny days.

[Appsolute]

My “fatty cat” was just under 20 years old when we let her go after her kidneys started to fail.

Right up until the last week she was still playing - was still a sucker for a piece of string and loved sitting on a perch and swatting at passing cats and dogs! She could still jump up on the couches and bed etc. Sight and hearing seemed basically intact, weight was very good - okay fatty was a little fat despite many years of dieting.

Her kidneys took a turn for the worse, and she hated injections. We opted to keep her as hydrated and comfortable as we could until it was “time”. She was ready, and passed very peacefully at home with my vet’s assistance.