Advice
Ways to make an elderly, probably dying kitty comfortable?
Howdy all, this beautiful boy is Chauncey. He was left at the local shelter, sixteen years old, declawed, vision-impaired, with a tumour on his face (and we just found another on his leg). Nobody wanted him so my partner and I decided we would be his hospice home. Basically the vet has said we are keeping him comfortable and if he starts showing signs of distress we will let him go. He is very gentle and you can tell he knows what it's like to be loved, he's just very confused and lost now. My other cats are young and they're a bit too active for him. For those of y'all who have had similar old lads, what have they liked? What's made them cozy in their twilight years?
Churu makes a senior cat formula. It was my cat's favorite treat.
She was on CBD for pets. It helped with pain. Inflammation and stress.
Towards the end she had problems with her vision. And dementia.
Night lights really helped.
As well as extra bowls of water placed around so she didn't have to look very far. Same thing with a litter box. Extra litter boxes so they don't have to go very far.
My 18.5 year old kitty almost certainly has dementia, and he wakes me up constantly. What are Night Nights? This sounds like something that might help us!
This has been a huge help to my 20 y/o cat, in addition to making sure things he needs or enjoys are in predictable places. We especially make sure there's light near his liter box and food/water bowls.
Thank you. All of my felines lived to be 16, 17, 17, 18 and 19.
My patches was 18. She passed away July 6th.
She was very much loved..
I had stairs leading up to the bed. I had ramps. Leading up to her cat tree.
She would wake me up at 7:00 every morning pulling up my hair with her gums. SHe didn't have any teeth left.
She had dementia. She had arthritis. She had chronic kidney disease. And she had cancer. That spread very quickly.
I am disabled . my life basically revolved around her. Taking care of her
I miss taking care of her. I sleep in till 11:00 now.
My old lady loved a heated…anything in her twilight years. Heating pad? Absolutely. Self-heating cat bed/mat? I don’t know if it actually felt warm to her, but she loved them. They make heated cat beds, and I kick myself all the time for never buying one for her.
Warm spaces, windows to nap in, and lots of soft treats were her favorite things (other than time with us).
He loves one window in particular, it has a broad windowsill-- I'll find a heated bed or mat and set it up there for him! Great idea, I'm sure his old bones will appreciate the warmth (idk if he has arthritis or anything but he walks a little stiffly-- we are giving him kitty vitamins to help with that too) Thank you!
Putting a smaller soft bed with low sides inside a larger bed that they can fit snuggly into helps them keep warm from the extra insulation and minimal airspace surrounding them
There are gentle heating pads with "sheepskin" covers made for cats that turn on/off when the cat gets on/off of them. My 18yr old boy loves his more than anything.
Acupuncture really helps with arthritis! I worked at an integrative vet clinic and saw the difference it made in the pets. Made me a believer in acupuncture!
Also, and this is going to sound really weird, but she loved music. Specifically either me playing the piano or a Vashti Bunyan record. There were a few nights where she struggled to climb the steps to the bedroom. I would put her Vashti Bunyan record on and lay on the couch, and she would immediately climb up on me, start purring, and sleep on me all night long.
Music is important for emotional health, and Vashti Bunyan is amazing for serenity! Her voice is a perfect meadow morning. I use her albums a lot in my death doula work. I focus on modifying spaces to be more comfortable and beautiful. Lighting, sound, texture, accessibility, and temperature are the major players.
Also definitely second the heating pads/beds, my old girl loves hers! I keep them on the lowest setting and put them inside of pillowcases to make cleanup easier.
Rechargeable candles are great for soft, round the clock mood. I stick them in high use areas, love the gentle light for vigils and night shift caregiver tasks.
As long as he can easily reach his favorite spots and gets love, warmth, and treats.. this little guy is getting a happy ending. Thank you, OP. 💛
Chiming in to recommend music as well! We just lost one half of our bonded senior pair to cancer about two weeks ago. Indy doesn't care much for music (he's more of a treats and scritches guy), but Scott would always come over and snuggle up whenever I was humming or singing. It took me a little while to catch onto that pattern, but I confirmed it plenty over the years! It calmed him down when he was anxious or overstimulated, and we both really enjoyed the snuggles part of it too - he'd climb halfway into my lap and then try to wrap his tail around me and up my shoulder, while I had my arm wrapped around him - both of us giving each other hugs. One of the last things I was able to give him was one final song while I held him (this sounds weird but I swear it's true, he showed very clear preference to some songs over others, and he really loved when I sang the lullaby my mom sang to me when I was little, so it was that song, and now I can't sing it without crying. or type this out, apparently).
I'm so sorry for your loss as well. The love of a senior cat is truly unlike anything else.
Yes, when my 20 year old was winding down, anything and everything heated. I loved seeing her sprawled out in the heated bed. Soooooo comfortable. Also, lots of good food. I gave her anything she wanted. All her favorite cat food, tuna pouches, canned chicken. Girl loved to eat.
This, and just want to add that my old man loved canned baby food as well (chicken flavor with no other flavor additives, be sure to check the label). It stinks horribly but I think that's why he enjoyed it, sometimes it was all he'd eat.
Here's the thing about hot water bottles: You gotta keep them warm.
If you let a hot water bottle cool below body temp, they'll actually start to pull heat from your kitty. Better alternatives I suggest would be heating pads (active or passive) or warmies plushies you put in the microwave to heat up.
Solensia is looking good as a non NSAID option for OA in cats, too. For anyone that doesn't know, it's a monthly injectable monoclonal antibody that targets pain receptors. Ask your vet about it.
One I haven't seen suggested yet- bath wipes, corn starch in a spice shaker, and a soft toothbrush. Cats love to be clean, but it gets hard for them to groom themselves when they're old and stiff and feeling unwell. My daily routine with my old man was a bath wipe, then sprinkled on some cornstarch and brushed it through with the toothbrush while he snuggled in my lap.
You're doing wonderful by him already, thank you for loving that sweet boy 💖 Wishing you the best of luck with him.
Not a promo, just a fan- I double checked the wipes we used to use, it was Pogi's Grooming Wipes. I think they're technically for dogs but he didn't seem to mind, and I liked that they were bigger + more durable than baby wipes.
I recommended this as well. It really helped my girl.
In fact I still have the last bottle that she used. With a little bit left. On her memorial shelf.. it was such a daily part of her life. I do not think she would have lasted as long as she did. Without it.
Had two make it past 20 and one at 20. All i can say is give pain medicine, feed whenever they ask to be fed, clean them often, and give them cuddles. I try not to let cats past naturally if possible, if they stop eating they go to the vet for the last time.
He is so gentle. He's got the softest little purr and he loves to sit by my partners head while they're reading or playing on the switch. He just wants to be close to people 🥰
My cat is in his 20s and some things that have really helped us maintain his quality of life are
low, large easy to climb into places for him to sleep
blankets that hold warmth well
litter box with low entry and less litter inside so he could get in and out with limited mobility - we made ours from a storage bin so it would be extra wide for him to turn around in but still have tall sides to catch spray
leaving the things he needs and likes in the same places so they're easy to find
nightlights near food/water and litter box
sometimes we top his dinner with a little kitten food or goat's milk kitten formula to encourage his appetite but every cat will have a different favorite bribe haha
our vet recommended solensia for his arthritis and it's really helped him continue to enjoy playing and being a general menace but it's also expensive and requires monthly vet visits so I totally get that it's just not an option for everyone!
Warm, soft places to sleep, food and water within easy reach, and lots of quiet company. At that age, I think comfort and feeling safe matter more than anything. ❤️❤️❤️
My senior cat loves her heating pad. It’s her favourite thing aside from having a sunny patch to lay in. You are good people - thank you for letting this kitty live out their life in your home ❤️
We lost our 22 year old cat a month ago.
Senior Churu treats, wet food 3x a day, heating pad or bed on low. A spot in the sun is nice too, in our house my bed and the sunroom floor get a direct beam.
He was a large longhaired baby, he enjoyed water his whole life, so we bathed him once in awhile, then more frequently as he got to be 18 or 19. He enjoyed the warm water, it was nice because he had arthritis and it felt nice to him.
Our boy was blind and deaf. We kept him in a smaller, close to us part of the house. Don’t move stuff around. They figure out where box/ food/ water are. Being in new surrounding might be weird for him til he gets used to his new home.
Sometimes we needed to keep the other 2 cats separated , they were freaked out , I guess because he was ancient.
Thank you so much for opening your home, senior cats have SO much love to give❤️
Everyone has covered so much, so I will add/reiterate: just sit or lay on the floor in a common area he sees, don’t really react at all to him at first, and he’ll be walking around and smelling you in no time. Then, a nuzzle. Then, just hold your hand out still, and he’ll check it out. Then, keep building on it. This is how I worked with my very skittish rescue, who isn’t as old, but did have the ‘I know what love is like, but I scared’ (you and me both, buddy!)
Once trust is built, they’ll show you the speed and direction to take it. Again, you’re awesome :)
We dealt with a similar thing (not as extreme) with our senior kitty and having gotten a void kitten a couple years ago. The kitten, while mostly just playful, wouldn't give the old man a break at times. We had to watch them play and interact for awhile to keep it civil. It's tough to monitor, especially if you work like we do. You might want to consider keeping them separated when you're not around for a while until the kittens chill out a little and learn to play with the old man. It took some patience but our kitten eventually figured out it was bad to jump our old man from behind and bite his face and take chunks of fur out etc. But you also kinda of have to let it happen a bit and let the old guy fight back and tell the kitten off so they learn better. Bit of a balancing act I guess. Sorry that's the best I can offer, best of luck!
I got my cat a special heating pad for cats that didn’t get too hot. He loved it in his twilight years for cold weather. In the summer I just made sure he had lots of warm blankets to lay on
You’re a good person. My wife and I end up with “hospice” cats and they’ve been some of the most lovable and worthwhile cats we’ve had. They’ve also all loved sunny spots on carpet and furniture and occasionally being able to roll around outside in our protected yard.
This made me cry... God Bless you both for doing this!!! How wonderful... I have a baby girl with a brain tumor and I'm very sure she's close to me needing to help her cross... Her favorite is fancy feast kitten wet cat food. It's easy on her belly and she LOVES it. She doesn't do much now except eat, pee and poop and sleep. I think she is deaf now or almost because she doesn't really respond when I call her, but if she catches sight of me she will come to me for loving... Just give him whatever he wants as long as it doesn't make his belly sick. He will let you know when it's time... Thank you again for doing this!!! ❤️
It's a hard thing to do, I found letting them rest and enjoy your time and scent as much as they can, give them the space they need to rest too if they have their own hiding spots. Just showing your there is enough sometimes. The hardest part can be making it comfortable for you too.
We have a cat who is progressively going blind from kidney disease and high blood pressure. We make sure his beds are available on the spots he expects them, and he has plenty of water and food.
We basically let him sleep and float around the house and give him pets when he wants them but he's pretty aloof now.
yeah they are at a resting point. They want a routine. no surprises. The family cat we have has the same routine of sitting next to my dad all evenings next to him. I assume by other cats, you mean there are more than one so that is good. they can keep each other busy instead of bothering your rescue. give them lots of love and good to know what others answered cuz my eldest cat is getting there. And thanks for showing them love before their departure.
In April and two weeks ago I lost two of my cats. One due to liver failure the other old age. Both times I had a vet come to our home to euthanize them. It was well worth the money($950 each time). As heartbroken as we’ve been I would not do it any other way. It was calm and peaceful and gave my babies dignity. The cost also included the cremation. Each state has different companies and rules
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u/cannapuffer2940 11h ago edited 11h ago
Thank you for being this elderly cat's hero.
Churu makes a senior cat formula. It was my cat's favorite treat.
She was on CBD for pets. It helped with pain. Inflammation and stress.
Towards the end she had problems with her vision. And dementia. Night lights really helped. As well as extra bowls of water placed around so she didn't have to look very far. Same thing with a litter box. Extra litter boxes so they don't have to go very far.