Tired Old Cat

Mist, doing what she does best.

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What a lovely, peaceful pic

I adore her little pooch tummy. She still looks great actually.

Glad she has so much love.

catwoman707 said:

 
What a lovely, peaceful pic

I adore her little pooch tummy. She still looks great actually.

Glad she has so much love.

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She does look great doesn't she!     But what's that about a 'pooch tummy'!     

Actually @Catapault, looking more closely at the photo - who's the chewing artist in your home?  That box bed is well decorated! 

Domino is the cadboard chewing cat. Doesn't eat it, mind you. just rips off a chunk, flings it aside, chews off another. There is a box - or what used to be a box - in the kitchen that is just about reduced to a flat piece of cardboard. He hasn't figured out how to chew the bottom, you see. Silly boy.

I pray that Mist gives you lots of love. I had a cat, Mischief who never purred. Well, didn't, till he was dying. My MIL was like, 'OMG, he's so happy!' Hubby, looked at her, "Mom, he's dying." I'm happy he said something, cause I was furious. I'm jealous of you guys. I've NEVER had a cat live past 14... and I take them to the vet regularly, give best food I can, and they are spoiled rotten! I feel like I feel like I'm cursed! It isn't for a lack of caring! My oldest cat was 13 and she died last August. Give Mist some love from me please.

Meowzart said:

I pray that Mist gives you lots of love. I had a cat, Mischief who never purred. Well, didn't, till he was dying. My MIL was like, 'OMG, he's so happy!' Hubby, looked at her, "Mom, he's dying." I'm happy he said something, cause I was furious. I'm jealous of you guys. I've NEVER had a cat live past 14... and I take them to the vet regularly, give best food I can, and they are spoiled rotten! I feel like I feel like I'm cursed! It isn't for a lack of caring! My oldest cat was 13 and she died last August.

Give Mist some love from me please.

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I took it as pure luck with my tabby girls, they must have good genes because I certainly didn't know much about cat care when I got them and it took me a long time learning the lessons they set me.

Do you have any photos of your 13 year old as 13 is a very respectable age to join in here.?  I'm sure you miss them loads and I for one would love to see a picture here. 

Unfortunately my laptop where the pictures are stored is busted, I gotta get the lagtop to my BIL to make it somewhat useable, so I can get the pictures off of it. Smokey & Sugar were Russian Blue/ Persian- according to the base vet. Stripey & Tiger were tabby and died at 12 and 13 (died with months of eachother last year) Mischief was my baby boy at 8- read my post- he was the only boy in a litter of calicos. Braveheart- my new one is 100% ragdoll and 100% coward! lol! Like I said, its not I mistreat my kitties, I love them far too much!

Mist has an upset tummy. Yesterday she was vomiting mostly small amounts of white foamy liquid. Our vet is away for the weekend. Alternate is 45 minutes away. Off we went. Good exam. Temp normal, somewhat dehydrated, weight down to 6 1/4 pounds! I knew she'd lost weight but yikes! Suggested a thorough blood panel and would keep her over the weekend. (This vet hospital is also emergency facility, someone there 24/7.) I said I thought she would do better at home and let's just treat the symptoms for now. They gave her sub-Q fluids, and an injection of metrodiazole. Sent me home with a bag of fluids and metrrodiazole, dose with the antibiotic 2X / day for 10 days and be sure to have her take it with food - feed a little, dose, offer more food.

She looks a little brighter this morning. Eating a little better, no diarrhea, not vomited today. Last night I poached some chicken breast, cooked rice, pureed in a Magic Bullet - and she turned up her nose. Off to store to buy some more chicken baby food. Has me well trained, doesn't she.

So send her good wishes, send them to me too.

Sounds like a worrying time - hoping this is something quick to get out of her system and she is able to build herself back up again.  Being at home with you will be much less stressful for her and she is lucky you are able to manage her fluids and food.  Bucket loads of postive    for you both.  

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Mist is still chugging along. Skinny old cat (6 1/2 pounds) prefers to only eat the gravy. Checked with veterinarian who said that at this point she can have anything she's willing to eat. Someone suggested FF Gravy Lovers so I got some. She liked it (still mostly licking the gravy and not fond of the solid bits - which she will eat if confined in her room overnight where the boys cannot polish it off in short order.) BUT - after a day and a half which equaled three 3-oz cans - she had diarrhea and vomited. Too rich for her old digestive system, I think. She's what? 19 years and 6 months by now.

So, in my spare time (hah!) I am puree-ing Pro Plan in a Magic Bullet with a teaspoon of water. So far, so good.

to Mist

Without reading through this thread so I am taking a stab in the dark actually, have you tried Soulistics from Petco?

Their chicken and pumpkin is pretty popular, along with several others.

Thank you for the update @Catapault  , it is lovely to hear Mist is holding her own with those hungry boys (even if it does mean shutting them out while she gets her choice gravy licked up).  

My vets said the same thing for my pensioner girls - give them what ever they want.  The main thing was to keep their weight up once they got to a certain age.   Long may Mist lap up her favourite gravies, Pro Plan and what ever else she has a diva-cat notion to get you to prepare for her.  I hope she is still purring loudly and sleeping happily in all the comfiest places around your home.  

@catwoman707   I know she's good with FF Classic Tender Beef Feast & Turkey and Giblets. Also the ProPlan chicken and rice. Her weight is down to 6 1/2 pounds so there's not much wiggle room before she becomes dehydrated. She does eat both of these foods whizzed up in the Magic Bullet, two 3-ounce cans a day divided into 4 meals. She had a touch of diarrhea and vomited when fed the FF Gravy Lovers. So I want to stay with what I know won't upset her stomach.

She's old. Her metabolism isn't what it used to be. Her hindquarters are weak - when she's walking and stops she tends to sink down on her hocks. Cannot jump - I made a "staircase" from a little wooden stool and stack of plastic boxes from which she can get up on my computer desk.

I also think she's deaf. Sleeps most of the day.

On the bright side - she loves to be petted, purrs while I pet her, imperiously meows at me to put her food dish down. Uses a different step stool to get onto a bed in my study for another place to nap, to sit by the open window next to the bed, enjoys herself.

Thanks for all the kind wishes. She's an old lady and I am cherishing whatever time we have left together.

Have you heard of a very wet food called 'Recovery' by royal canin. It's for cats and you can tell by the name what it's for. The last few months of my lotto I was feeding him it by hand. He also nibbled at kibble. He wasn't drinking but this food gave him plenty of liquid. See if you can get it. It's a very tasty pate.
It's good for all cats under the weather. I highly recommend it.

I used to give Pal little drinks of tuna spring water and slivers of tuna from time to time to keep her going too, which the vet said was fine for a kitty of such fine years - just as Mist is now.

Pal too had wasted muscles in her hind quarters and would wobble a bit sometimes.  For the last year or so she couldn't manage to climb up steps or ramps so she would meow (very loudly of course) for me to pick her up and lift her on to where ever her nose was pointing - she was virtually blind by then too due to retina damage from high blood pressure.   She had lots of nice, soft sheepskin pads around the floors so she could rest up nice and comfy if I wasn't around to lift her up on to furniture and she was happy with those.  Reading this some might think it sounded cruel to let her go on for so long but living with her she looked happy and content, and was soaking up every once of love and affection while she wanted to enjoy life.   She made it very clear to me the day she didn't have the energy and wasn't happy any more - @Catapault   Mist sounds very happy and content with you and I wish you many more loving and happy months and years together.  Your descriptions remind me so much of Pal over her last 3 or 4 years and strangely I think those years were the happiest of her life.     Mist is lucky to be cherrished so much.  

Funny reading this... I am spending tonight worried about my scrawny 19-and-a-half year old senior as well. I think she eats less than yours does... which now has me worried...

It's hard to watch them, knowing their time could be any moment... I keep telling her she'll make it to 25. Hopefully yours will too. They just might!

@ladybug What seems to have made a difference for Mist is pureeing up her food in a Magic Bullet. Even the Fancy Feast Classic - which is a pate - is more appealing to her when smooshed with just one spoonful of water. I think she prefers to lap it up. I used to mash the pate with a spoonful of water but the Magic Bullet which gives it a smooth, even texture is what she prefers.

I tell her that if she makes it until the ground freezes she'll have to keep on going until it thaws out in Spring.

Good luck with your old fur baby.

Mist is still chugging along. Sleeps about 22 hours a day. She's now missing two canines on the same side. Is eating her Magic Bullet pureed pate canned food with a 4-piece kibble topping at each of 4X / day servings. She's eating about 2 1/2 three-ounce cans / day. Her weight is down but I attribute that to old age metabolism. Edit to add that I'm pretty sure she is deaf.

Just got a reminder card from the vet to bring her in for rabies shot and an exam. I'm of two minds about this. No way will I have her given a rabies shot, even if it is the law. She's urinating and defecating just fine. Eyes a little "teary" especially in the morning. Very sweet. Purrs. Love pets. It will seriously distress her to bring her in. Thoughts?

Please send hugs and good wishes to my sweet old lady. I'll take some too <grin>