Memories have me worried

Our oldest kitty was 19 and he died Dec. 5, 2008. Well I look back at it and saw things I should have noticed (well not really cause he dieid of old age and I couldnt have stoped his death anyway) Anyway, some things were he started peeing everywhere whcih was not like him. He was over 20 pounds and I watched his weight go down rapidly, his one eye clouded over I think he was blind. Anyway the reason i brought all this up is our next oldest, he is probably in his middle teens not real sure. He has also beeen a really big kitty, not as big as Nosey was but pretty big. Anyway, he has been peeing on everything for a while now. I thought nothing of it, but I just noticed today he has lost a lot of weight. I am worrying myself to death!!

First thing I would do is call the vet and make an appointment for a senior check up and blood panel. The peeing could be a UTI, and if so, he's uncomfortable to say the least, and if he gets blocked, it could be fatal. Tell the staff about the peeing - that should get you in quickly.

If nothing else, a blood panel will give you a baseline to work with. These days, if at all possible, most vets like to see senior kitties twice a year, in order to catch ailments early and treat them as much as possible. And, cost-wise, it can be cheaper to get a check-up and treat early, than wait til there's definitely something wrong.

Good luck - and hopefully the vet will be able to relieve your mind a little bit, and make your guy more comfortable.

Cats don't die of old age. They die of diseases that come with age. Most of these diseases are manageable for a time, and can prolong a kitty's quality of life for quite some time.

Your other cat might have had kidney disease and possibly hyperthyroid disease, or even diabetes. These diseases can cause a lot of peeing and wight loss. They are treatable. Not curable, but treatable.

This time around, you can take charge of things, by getting your beloved kitty to the vet for a check up including blood work and a urinalysis. What ever is found can then be dealt with. The sooner illnesses are found, the better the chance the kitty has.

Please let us know how he is.

I'm living with 6 seniors right now. Peeing out of the box always concerns me, but a lot of weight loss worries me even more. Either condition would have me running to the vet. Weight loss can occur from a lot of different conditions and like others have said, it could be very easily treatable. Ask for a geriatric blood panel - it will identify many different illnesses.

I know, it stinks when they get old. Learn from your previous experiences and we are always here for support and advice.