Anyone know much about aged cats? Mine is nineteen and in the past week he has been shedding great tufts of fur. I haven't seen him scratching, I could understand it if he had fleas. I am wondering if this is common in very elderly cats, that he might be going bald!

He hates the vet so much that I don't feel inclined to take him as it will cause so much stress to him, and no doubt the vet if he behaves in the same way as his last visit - he wrecked the surgery.

He isn't drinking more than usual and is eating just fine.

I don't know much about cats but the following article gives a variety of reasons for baldness.

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/cats/27734

It has many reasons from ringworm to allergies to insect bites. I don't know if this is helpful but thought it might be worth looking at.

Thank you Trevor. I am not sure that any applies. He hardly goes out these days, he just sleeps all the time so can't have caught anything. He has only started shedding like this during the past week, it isn't hairs, it is tufts. He isn't scratching that I can see so unlikely to be fleas or mites.

I really don't want to put him through the ordeal of a trip to the vet. Perhaps I will pop into the vet and ask if it is just a sign of old age, for a cat he is very old

Your Quite Welcome. In the meantime if I stumble upon something else, I will let you know.

When mine started shedding great hanks of fur (in big bunches!) it was a sign of her diabetes. Is your cat extra thirsty, or hungry? Those tend to be signs, as is an excess of urination.

If it is diabetes, it is quite easily controlled with insulin injections, and they are not very expensive. We thought we would give it a try, with ours, and see how much trouble and expense it was. That was more than four years ago, and it hasn't been too much of a problem at all. The only problem is if all of us go away for several days - she can skip the odd shot, but really shouldn't be going three or four days without it. Even the kids can give her the shot, though, it couldn't be easier.

He tends to drink dirty rain water, he rarely if ever drinks the clean water from his bowl so I don't know how much he is drinking. As for urinating, he does that in the garden too so again I don't know how much he is doing. I don't think he has increased his food intake, I leave some dry food out as well as giving him wet food and he only picks, he doesn't empty the dish.

I am not sure he would take kindly to a needle each day and certainly wouldn't want to visit the vet, he hates the very idea. Last time the vet ended up wearing thick leather gauntlets when he tried to pull the cat out from under the computer desk, the cat had already ripped the wires out of the computer having already knocked things over and ended up in a sink of water. It was bedlam. When we went out of the surgery people in the waiting area were curious to see what had caused all the noise.

His next trip to the vet is likely to be his last, he is nineteen.

Sue, I think Agony could be correct, diabetes and kidney disease is extremely common in old--especially male--cats.

I must say, a trip to the vet even though he hates it (and I sympathize, I once had a cat that her vet referred to in his notes as 'intractable' ) may be the kinder option because kidney failure is a very unpleasant way to go.
He's quite old, so you might not want to do the shots, but the cats really don't seem to be bothered by them--you give the injection in the loose skin at the neck and they don't notice after the first time or two.

Then again hopefully we're wrong and it's something nice and simple like ringworm.

I sympathize - trips to the vet are very traumatic for us. She was supposed to stay for several days, several times, to get her insulin dosage just right. After the first stay, the vet said "We'll just go with a guess as to dosage - she won't eat, we can't take blood without sedating her, it just isn't worth it".

The injection was fine though - after the first couple of times, she came running for it (I think it made her feel better). I do it while she is eating, and she doesn't even look up.

I had a cat ill with kidney failure, he went downhill very fast, just days from him looking off-colour (he was jet black but you know what I mean) to him being so ill that the vet said there was no option but to have him put to sleep.

Then I had two cats ill with cancer who had to be put out of their misery.

He really isn't himself, he has almost stopped sitting on my knee, he just sleeps all the time. Perhaps it is almost time, poor old thing.

Oh Sue, how sad. I know he's been a real friend for all of those 19 years. Hopefully, as Taesma said, it is something simple.

I hope there is nothing wrong with your cat. I know what it is like in that I own a horse and it has become a good friend. You get attached to animals just like humans. They are a part of the family. Sorry to say but if the cat gets sicker, you may have no choice but to put it asleep. Hopefully, that won't happen. I know its hard because I have had my pet horses die or put to sleep. Again, I hope it's something very minor.

Elderly cats can have so many health conditions, just like humans. It could be anything. I had a 14 yr old Siamese who suddenly lost a lot of weight and hair;it turned out to be hyperthyroidism. She went on medication and lived happily for another 5 years. At 19 yrs old she had so many health issues it just wasn't fair to keep dragging her to the vet for more meds and procedures (she also HATED the vet visits), so I let her go. It was hard but I feel it was for the best. Still, if I were you I would talk to your vet and see if he has any ideas, but you know he's going to want to see the old guy. Best of wishes to you.

In June we had to have our 17 year old Pushkin put to sleep. She hadn't lost her fur, was nibbling her food, drinking a bit more than usual, and using the litterbox a bit more, but it was her regular behaviour which changed completely. She went from a lap-loving, sleep-as-close-as-possible, people-loving cat, to a cat who just wanted to sleep and be left alone. She was always good at the vet, so that last visit confirmed that her systems were closing down; heart, kidneys, lungs and that she would not last very much longer anyway. The vet, who had looked after Pushkin since she was a kitten had tears in her eyes while telling me that she could give x-rays and do more tests, but it would only confirm what she could see, and what we knew in our hearts was happening. And all this happened over a short period, perhaps 3 to 4 weeks.
Sue, I think you're old pal is trying to tell you he's very, very tired. So sad!

How is the cat today Sue? Did you call the vet for his opinion?

June

Sue,

Last year I had to have my 18 year cat put to sleep because of liver cancer. For the previous 5 years he had the signs, but they weren't all together...they were spread out over 5 years.

Chick, my cat, was shedding excessively, wasn't grooming himself and his fur had changed dramatically. We (the vet and I) thought it was due to the fact that Chick was fat (almost 17 pounds). To make sure, Chick had blood tests done for his organ levels, which came back fine.

Only in his last few months of life did I know anything was drastically wrong. He lost a lot of weight and was almost 6 pounds when I had him put to sleep.

Also, excessive shedding is a sign of renal failure (both acute and chronic) and is also a sign of hyperthyroidism.

I suggest you take your cat to the vet for blood work.

By the way, I don't know if you know this but cats are notorious for hiding their illnesses.

Knowing his absolute hatred and distress at being taken to the vet I am not prepared to subject him to that unless it is for his last trip. He is nineteen and is FIV+, the vet wouldn't suggest any treatment so why upset the cat? He is not in pain or distress, just making a mess on the carpet with the shedding.

Last time I took him, as I said, he went berserk, so much so that the vet said not to bother having him vacinated any more, that it wasn't worthwhile for the cat as he would no doubt not live much longer - and that was about five years ago!