Cat Only Wants To Stay In The 1 Spot On The Bed All Day

[CatServant91]

Lately our 13yr old cat is displaying behavior that may be signs of old age or cognitive decline, I'm not sure.

She will spend a lot of time sleeping in 1 corner of our bed. When it's dinner time, she will stay there, unless I get her and put her in front of food. She'll then eat just fine, so I'm not sure it's a case of losing appetite, it's almost as if she forgot to go eat. She's hardly refusing food like a cat might if they had some medical issue. However, she used to come get dinner on her own. After dinner, she will energetically run back to that spot on the bed at full speed.

Same thing with litter use; we have 2 cats, and I will notice when I clean in the evening that there's half the deposits as usual. If I get her and put her in front of the box, she will happily go without apparent discomfort or pain or straining. It's like she "forgot" to go potty. Once done, she'll run back to that spot on the bed again.

When she walks around, she does so briskly,so if's shes physically in pain or suffering from any mobility issues, it's not obvious. She's as light on her feet as she's ever been. It doesnt appear that the pain of moving is what is causing her to remain in her bed instead of getting up to eat or pee.

She used to sit on the couch with us and sleep as we watched TV. Now she prefers to stay in that 1 spot on the bed, by herself. If we go get her, bring her to the couch for cuddles, she'll sit there for a minute or 2, then get up and run back to that spot on the bed at full speed.

As she is getting older, might these behavior changes be a typical signs of mental issues in old age ?

 

[ArtNJ]

13 year old cats don't normally exhibit that type of behavior from normal aging no. It doesn't necessarily fit the classic signs of dementia either. Dementia (Geriatric) in Cats | petMD . Have you pushed the envelope a bit to see what happens if you don't bring her to the food bowl or the litterbox?

I can pretty much guaranty that everyone here will recommend the same thing, a vet visit, and I'm sure that is the right advice, but I'd sort of like to know what happens if you push the envelope, and the vet might want to also. Does she eventually eat & use the box, or not?

As far as not showing obvious signs of health issues, that is kind of a red herring, because cats are really good at not showing a lot of different things. So a vet checkup makes sense. It could perhaps be something easy, which would be good news.

 

[Furballsmom]

After dinner, she will energetically run back to that spot on the bed at full speed.

then get up and run back to that spot on the bed at full speed.

It almost sounds as though she thinks she HAS to get back to that spot, like having kittens or something, and then she gets there and just takes a nap.

I'm with A ArtNJ , what would happen if you literally move the bed, (just closing the door would cause a lot of upset and yelling, probably) but if you physically move the bed, or at least remove everything so that there's just the frame, that might jar her out of the need to be in that spot.

 

[CatServant91]

We havent' really "pushed the envelope" yet; when I first noticed was after a day or two of having less in the litterbox, and uneaten food in the bowl. I guess in a way we sort if accidentally pushed the envelope at first, and discovered that if we didnt take her out of that spot, she wasnt really inclined to leave to poop or eat.

She does act as if she HAS to be back in the spot. But her mobility, and ease with which does does eat or poop when you put her in front of it leads us to think its' not a physical discomfort thing that is keeping her there.

Being a 13yr old, she used to sleep a lot before, but it was in a variety of places; she used sleep next to the window to watch the birds on the feeder. Now she compulsively rushes back to the bed which is actually harder to get up on than the window spot.

I guess we should take her to the vet, even though maybe it seems she would be better off at a cat psychologist, if there was such a thing....

 

[Furballsmom]

I still am curious as to what she'd do if the bed/mattress wasn't there, but a vet checkup wouldn't be a bad thing. Let us know what happens

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. In the case of any behavioral change - and particularly so in an older cat - the first rule of thumb is a vet check up. And, in your case that would be a full senior check-up/blood panel. Rule out physical health issues before you go down the mental health issue path.

Also, what would happen if you place some blankets or towels over the area of the bed that she sleeps in all the time? Two things: 1.) would they stop her from going to just that specific spot, and 2.) if it doesn't, perhaps you could move the blanket(s) after she has used it a few times to other parts of the bed, and place her on it. If she then uses that spot as well, you could move the blanket(s) to some of her older sleeping spots, place her there, and see if she might go to those locations too to sleep. If any of this is successful, you could try buying a cat bed, place one of the blankets in it, and then locate the bed nearby the litter box. You could repeat all that with another bed/blanket and place it close by to the food.

The other thing you could try is to remove the bedspread/comforter (after having another blanket with her scent on it) to another location she used to sleep in and leaving the blanket on the bed where she is used to sleeping now. Maybe she would try to use the area with the bedspread/comforter where ever you relocate it.

If any of this works, you have just 're-expanded' her areas a bit, and that might just be enough for her to resume some of her older routines.

 

[kittyluv387]

I wonder if she might have arthtitis too.

 

[Furballsmom]

I saw this and thought of you...
Need Help With Anxious/vocal Senior Cat (no Medical Issues)

 

[CatServant91]

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Last night after we fed her, we tried closing the door to the bedroom so she couldnt get in the room to access her spot on the bed. She just sat in front of the door staring at it. If I walked over there she would meow at me, but didnt seem too frantic or panicked. Wasnt picking at the door to try and open it, like she used to do if I closed the door to my office so I could work without a cat on the keyboard... However, getting in there to sit on her spot on the bed was certainly the only thing on her mind.

She just sat there for a good hour waiting for us to open it. I went and brought her into the living room to sit next to me on the couch while I brushed her. She normally loves getting brushed, and normally prefers being with us to sitting in another room by herself. She put up with that for a minute, but then jumped down to run over and sit in front of the bedroom door again. This happened a couple more times over several hours before she finally gave up and realized she wasnt going to get in there, so she reluctantly sat with us in the living room until it was bedtime, and she ran to that spot on the bed again.

It's not like she was trying to get away from humans because she wasnt feeling well, she was happy to be next to us in the bedroom as long as she could be on her spot. I'm a restless sleeper so neither cat usually stays on the bed at night, but she was still in that same spot in the morning.

If she does have arthritis, it seems odd that she would be suddenly so fixated in getting to a spot that is more physically challenging to access than other spots she used to like that are more accessible...

Not sure how a blood test at a vet could explain this sort of compulsive need to be in a particular spot, but I guess it doesnt hurt to try and take her in.

 

[Furballsmom]

I'd still be interested in what she'll do if the mattress is either moved, or cleaned - did she have a urine accident there (you could check with a blacklight), or was something spilled right there that she just LOVES the smell of?

 

[FeebysOwner]

It isn't that a blood test is going to answer why she is acting this way, it is to rule out any health issues that might be attributing to this behavior. She is 13 after all, and at that age she should be seen by a vet with a full senior check up annually - possibly more if there are health issues identified. There are health issues that can exist and not be seen/recognized by a human until they are severe. The health check up is just one way to identify a possible illness before it gets bad.

Things change with cats, especially older ones. My Feeby (14+) used to sleep with me every night for years, years, and years - and then stopped. Now it is only occasionally that she does. But, most of her other activities are not a whole lot different. And, no, so far, I do not know of a reason that is related to her health. But, she is none-the-less going in for her senior check-up in the immediate future.

Your case is a bit more extreme with the eating and litterbox issues, and while there may be nothing of a specific related health issue, most vets would still recommend that before going further.

 

[Kflowers]

Did she have kittens on your bed long ago? If so it might be a memory loop. But when she gets there and there are no kittens she just goes to sleep.

Is the spot on the bed under the heat vent or in line to be warmed by a heat vent?

Is she getting deaf? maybe not completely but enough that it's easy to sleep through the sound of the can opener?

 

[CatServant91]

According to the rescue shelter we got her from many years ago, she did have a litter of kittens at one point when she was very young, but not since we got her. It does seem like her behavior is like a mom cat who wants to race back to watch over her babies, if they were on the spot on the bed....

I dont think she's deaf. I can shake a bag of treats, and she used to come running for it. Now if I do that near the bed, she'll turn her head to look, and she can see the bag. She gets that exited look in her eyes, yet shes super reluctant to come get it if it means leaving her spot on the bed. If I put the treats on the bed, she'll gladly eat them up, so it's not like she has no appetite.

If I pick her off the bed, carry her to another room and set her down next to treats, she'll eat them, then race back to the bed at full speed.

There are other spots in the house with nice warm blankets and cat beds that are just as warm as the bed. Most are easier to get to than jumping up on the bed. She used to walk at a normal pace to go use a variety of those to sleep until the odd fixation started.

After work tonight I'll try and move the comforter off the bed to see if she follows that in case there is some smell there that she is fixated with.

 

[CatServant91]

I tried moving the comforter off the bed last night, and put it on the couch in the living room. I took extra care to ensure the exact spot she likes was not covered up or folded under, so she could still sit directly on it if she wanted.

I put her on it, and for some reason she didnt want to have anything to do with it. Wouldn't stay on the comforter, or even next to it. At least she wasn't as fixated with rushing back to the bedroom immediately either, she was OK with staying in the living room with us for a while, but not near the comforter.

We did find her later in the evening, back on the bed, but laying on a pillow instead of her usual spot near the foot of the bed, so I dont think there's some smell on a spot on the mattress.

This morning I took her to her food bowl, and she did eat, but then she ran right back to the bed again.

Mysterious creatures, cats are.....

 

[FeebysOwner]

So, this morning what part of the bed did she run back to - the pillow or her 'old' spot?? Just curious.

 

[CatServant91]

Neither the old spot nor the pillow. Just in the middle. It seems like moving the comforter has slightly broken the fixation with that particular spot on the bed, but not with the idea that she has to be somewhere on the bed as much as possible.

After breakfast, she ran like her life depended on it, to get back to the bed.

 

[neely]

It isn't that a blood test is going to answer why she is acting this way, it is to rule out any health issues that might be attributing to this behavior. She is 13 after all, and at that age she should be seen by a vet with a full senior check up annually - possibly more if there are health issues identified.

Ditto!

I'm also curious about her teeth. When is the last time she had a dental check since senior cats can be more likely to have a tooth infection or gum disease?
This Article that discusses health concerns in aging cats may be helpful for you:
Health Concerns In Aging Cats

 

[ArtNJ]

Just one example of a health issue that you couldn't possibly see would be a problem with one of the sources of hormones, such as a cyst on the thyroid, pituitary or ovaries. Given the theory discussed above, maybe the ovaries are the most likely. Anyway, I hope its not that, but it is certainly a possibility.

 

[jen]

When was her last vet visit? She should have a full senior blood panel done asap. This is not normal behavior for a cat, let alone when they show ANY behavior changes something is likely wrong. Please get your cat to the vet asap for a senior check up and bloodwork.

 

[CatServant91]

It's been a VERY frustrating week of vet visits. We took her for a check up, and the vet could feel some kind of abdominal mass. Multiple Xrays confirmed that something was there, a mass near intestines. This is probably what is affecting her appetite.

Took blood sample for full testing. He said it's probably cancer, maybe lymphoma, yet he didnt want to even schedule an ultrasound for further clarification, until those blood results were back. He was really evasive when we asked about what specifically he was looking for in the bloodwork that would cause him to not do an ultrasound. "Lets just wait and see". Wouldnt give me straight answers to my questions.

Bloodwork came back with nothing too alarming as far as I can tell based on what he told us. High lymphocyte levels that would be a marker for lymphoma were not present. No signs of Feline leukemia virus or anything. So we do an ultrasound. Gets a fine needle aspirate sample to send to the lab. He says he still thinks it's cancer, but wait for lab results.

Lab results finally come back inconclusive. The slides only contained blood cells. Now he says he thinks still it may be cancer, hemangiosarcoma. I asked "if that is true, then wouldnt there be cancerous cells in the sample, not just blood cells ?" Once again was evasive, didnt give me a straight answer. It's like he wants it to be cancer, and is annoyed that I'm bringing up valid points that the limited evidence he is choosing to share with me does not support his theory. I think he's really not used to folks who ask questions and do their own research.

I asked what the options were, can we try and shrink with chemo? He said chemo is not an option for hemangiosarcoma, it doesnt work. According to research that I've done since, chemo IS an option for hemangiosarcoma. I really dont feel he's being straight with me. I've spent over $1000 on xrays, bloodwork, ultrasounds and Fine needle aspirates, and he still cant explain why he thinks it is what it is, despite no conclusive answers in test results.

I said what is next step then, operate to remove? No, he thinks its too risky. Come back in 2 weeks, we re-measure the mass to see if it's getting bigger. If it is, then what? "Lets wait and see". Very frustrating and stressful. I want to find a new vet, not sure if we can afford another 1000 dollars of tests to bring that vet up to speed.