How Old Was Your Cat When It Passed Away?

[Paris Pluto]

Hi everyone,

My oldest cat is 11 and I know that is not old for a cat but it got me thinking about inevitable things like her health deteriorating as a result of getting older or even the fact that something could happen to her as she is an indoor/outdoor cat etc.

So my question is;

How old was your cat when it passed away? Was it due to old age? Illness? Accident?

 

[denice]

The cat that I have now is 16, will be 17 in August. She has been in the early stages of CKD for about two years but it is under control with just a prescription food for the time being. I had a cat euthanized about 2 1/2 years ago and he was almost 15. He had severe bouts of IBD starting when he was only 18 months old. I did the vet hopping thing until he was 7 1/2 and he went into hepatic lipidosis. I found a vet that properly diagnosed him. He was on a steroid the remainder of his life until he started having issues again. I chose to let him go.

 

[Furballsmom]

My boy is 15, and an illness could easily have killed him last year except for a heck of a team working on his behalf and his own toughness. He gets supervised outside time so as to keep him safer while still giving him the mental and physical exercise .
Our Maine coon died when she was around 14 or so from kidney issues.
My other heart kitty when I was a kid died young, we didn't know better at the time and let him go outside

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Tawny was 15 when he succumbed to FIP. Gracie was 12 when she died from cancer.

Feeby is now 15+ and as far as I know her biggest current issue is a bit of arthritis. She did have bladder surgery for oxalate stones at the age of 5, but knock-on-wood, has been stone free since. Not too long ago, she went through a couple of years of frequent UTIs - also, knock-on-wood, a past issue. I hope she will be with me for many years to come - and, if I have to mention her dying, I hope it is from old, old, old age!!

 

[betsygee]

Over the years, I've lost two around the age of 11 from IBD or lymphoma, one at 14 or 15 from IBD, two at 16-17 years old from kidney disease, one at 19 mostly from old age--no diagnosed illness, anyway.

They're all so different. I have two healthy eleven year olds at this point and hoping they stay that way for a good long time.

 

[kittenmittens84]

My two previous cats died at 14 from kidney disease, and 21 from...old age I guess? He had a small liver tumor at the time but the vet was fairly certain it was benign. I think he knew it was his time to go, he went under the stoop and just laid down to nap and never got up.

 

[sidneykitty]

My first kitty, Sidney, was sick when I adopted her (hyperthyroid) and was also extremely anxious. I believe she probably also had IBD looking back, but I didn't know at the time. Within 1.5 years, she got cancer that was incurable by the time we caught it (spread to her lungs), so I chose to euthanize her when I felt her quality of life was no longer good. She was approximately 12 then, though we don't really know. I will love her forever.

My current kitty Amber will be 16 in August. She has cataracts and a heart murmur, likely arthritis and gets constipated, but otherwise, is healthy despite having a varying appetite (knock on wood). We're investigating that with the vet now, but so far all tests have returned normal.

 

[fionasmom]

My oldest was 17 and the youngest was about 2. Both died of illnesses, not accidents. You can take some steps now to be proactive like geriatric panels to see if your cat needs any special attention.

 

[neely]

The youngest was a darling Persian who was only 3 yrs. old and had FIP. There were many others in between but the oldest was another Persian who was almost 14 yrs. old and eventually had renal failure.

 

[mama africa]

My first cat, Eefje, was about 3 when she was killed by a buckshot.
"Cat of my Life" Lotje, was almost 21 when she died of kidney failure.
Lotje's daughter, Ciske, was about 10 when she died. We were on holiday by then and my neighbor was looking after her. She told us that Ciske refused to eat and drink and that she died of liver failure.

Missy is 4 years and 9 months and she has no health issues, apart from being a fussy eater.

 

[goingpostal]

I'm not 100% sure how old my first cat was, she was a young adult when we got her and I had her for 16 years so likely around 20. She had hypothyroidism the last two years of her life and failing kidneys in the last year. My current cats are only 3 and 6.

 

[golondrina]

I lost Cucumella 2 and a half years ago from lung cancer when she was about 16 years old, I don't know exactly. I had adopted her after she had been abandoned in one of my daughter's garden as a young kitten. She was adorable, very gentle and affectionate. Always in my heart and thoughts.
My cat Sombra is about 6 years old and in good health. I adopted her 2 years ago. She is a naughty rascal but very gentle and affectionate, just like Cucumella was.

 

[Jem]

Our cat as a child was 17 when she was pts. I was a kid and wasn't part of the decision making, so I don't know specific details, only that she peed on herself and around the house.
Fritz was 14. He passed at home from cardiac arrest, due to complications from his thyroid condition.
Hank was 10 when he was pts. He had cardiomyopathy / congestive heart failure, and despite our exhaustive efforts, he threw a blood clot and we could not save him.
Toby was 20. He had kidney disease - I assume age related, and eventually they just shut down. We had him pts when we knew he was done fighting after over 4 years of medical intervention.
Chewy was 18. He got a very rare and aggressive form of cancer. We only found out what it was after our vet asked if she could do an autopsy (no charge) because even she (vet of over 30 years) had never seen it before. We had him pts when our last ditch effort of exploratory/unknown mass removal surgery was unsuccessful.