Life expectancy and dry food??

GemsGem said:

Garfield looks like a female from the photo

Gorgeous cat I would love to see more photos of her

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 I agree with both of those statements!

jessika said:

I asked the vet in Singapore, he told me I cannot expect a tropical cat to live beyond 20 years old.

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I don't think you can expect very many cats to live beyond 20 years old, no matter where they live :dk:. Average seems to be about 17, from what I've seen. Sorry for your loss .

I would say the average age of kitties is probably about 14 however I have known several who have lived into their upper teens & twenties.  Myself, I am hoping my kitty DeeJay who is 14 lives to be 50 LOL.

Thanks @Willowy n cprcheetah. I think for a cat who is Strictly on dry biscuits, my Smokey should considered good age. Coz my elder brother used to have a Burmese n Persian cats. Both of them ate canned food n Fishes. Both lived upto 18, but my brother told me before his cat will find dark corners n cry terribly at nights for months!! I am glad my brave Smokey did not let me go through this agony.. .

Willowy said:

I don't think you can expect very many cats to live beyond 20 years old, no matter where they live

. Average seems to be about 17, from what I've seen. Sorry for your loss

.

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Re  the title of this thread.  Dry food and life lengh expectancy.

I did visited our animal burial yard in our town, to visit the grave of a cat I found run over, and whom I did buried there and wept over.   At this here occasion I looked over all the other graves/thombs too.  Nobody of the deceased died older than 16 years!  Quite a few were 12-14, the others still younger.

And here we are talking about loved cats.  Where the owners did payed for the burial (me perhaps the only one who was allowed to bury for free).  Where the owners made up these basic thombs, and held them in shape.  They surely payed for insurances too, and gave vet care when necessary.   And of course the best food they could get.

Yet, NONE of the cats lived into old seniority.  None.

Reason?  I dunno, but my theory is it was the very common dry food which is the factor they all had in common.

I'm so, so sorry for your loss!  It's soooo hard to watch them suffer, especially to see them not eat!  I recently went through this before we lost an 18-year old to kidney disease in early December.  Her disease progressed faster than the vet expected; then again, our vet prescribes a dehydrated kitty *dry* food and says continued weight loss is normal... I'm convinced that's part of why it did get worse quickly.   Regardless I will know better next time and we already have our 2-year old kitty on mostly wet and high-protein/low carb dry.  Anyway, there is not much coming back from major kidney damage and sometimes it does happen quickly.  Don't blame yourself and know that you gave her a wonderful home and obviously lots of love.  It is always too soon for our hearts no matter the age.

Thanks P pezkat .Smokey passed away in 3 rd December last year too. At times I feel at peace at she is no longer in pain silently. But sadness do comes back when I look at her empty basket.

StefanZ , Smokey is a cat that don't eat fish or pinch on my food. She was strictly on dry biscuits from friskie then to Iams ocean fish flavors. Ofcoz I would like to have her by my side for few years more but it will make me hurt if she struggles to live..

Some day you'll be ready Jessika. You'll let another kitty love into your heart and into that empty basket. They won't ever take your sweet Smokey's place, but can be a treasured companion just the same. Take your time, but when it's right, don't be afraid.

I want to sends hugs to you! Smokey was beautiful and sounds so so so sweet! You are such an amazing "pet parent" and sounds like you have smokey the best life possible. I have never lost a pet as my oldest is only 5 years old but I can only imagine how painful it is and heart breaking. I cried as I read your story and posts. Hugs from me to you and Garfield!

Thanks allmomskitties . I just wondering why I didn't notice she has kidney problems much earlier. I did notice she did not poo well n sent her to her regular vet. She was given some medicine to be put on her hand for her to lick, but apparently she didn't like it at all

Hey susank521 , how are you? Nice to see you pop by. I am getting stronger each day. I am sure that's what Smokey wants me to do.

Aww I am sorry for your losses of cute Buster at such young age, allmomskitties . I think I am much fortunate to have Smokey with me for the past 15 years and moved five times. she doesn't has a cage as 15 years ago when I tried to bring her out inside a pet taxi cage, within a minute after I locked the door, her whole nose turned Black!! I think she has a phobia of cage, since her previous owner left her in a shelter up for adoption. Ever since then, she will goes to the car in my hands hugging real tight. A very homely, toilet trained cat without needing any cat litter box.

I live in Florida (NE Florida) and we are not as subtropical as South Florida. 

I have had many cats over the years, and for the most part have fed a good quality dry food.  I do give them canned food for a treat, and whenever the weather descends into the freezing zone.  They have had the choice to go outside, or inside as they wished.  We live on a farm.

My two longest-lived buddies, Tooogie and Angel, both lived to be 18 years old.  Toogie developed non-insulin dependent diabetes.  There was nothing I could do for him, except carry him to the vet so they could drain the excess fluid off of his stomach.  When this became twice a week, and he looked more miserable than ever, I had to let him go.  This was my Mother's cat, and by having him put down, I felt like I was losing a contact with her.  She had died in 1987.  Toogie died in 1993.  Hopefully treatment for non-insulin dependent diabetes has improve since then.

Angel, on the other hand, died of a heart attack May 15, 2003.  She was also 18, but you would never have guessed.  Though a short-hair Tortie, she had an oriental cat in her ancestry..  She was very talkative and long and slender like some of the orientals.  She ran and played and flew up the trees, all of her life.  So it was a shock when she keeled over in the bedroom on her way to her spot on our bed.

I don't mean to make a downer post; I'm just letting you know what my experience has been.

Hi AllMomsKitties:

That is a beautiful looking lady you have there.  I am so sorry you lost her.

Here is a picture of Toogie and Angel.  This picture would have been taken shortly after we moved into our new house in 1989.

allmomskitties , was the picture taken months before she passed? Coz Smokey also has the sad look, I guess she knows she has to go n I still insist that she will get well since she was a fighter.

angelinacat , Smokey was the only cat I had that lived with me for the past 15 years. So parting was Never easy for me as she is a good listener..