A month ago I adopted a cat (I've named Mycroft) from a shelter. He is my first cat, so I don't have a lot of experience identifying the age of a cat by its appearance.
I was told by the shelter that the cat was given to them by his only owner, he had been an indoor cat his whole life, and that he was to years old (birthdate April 1, 2014).
Today I got him his first hair cut, and the groomer commented on how loose his skin is. I had originally noticed that his belly sagged a little, but when I research this online I found that this was normal. He has long hair normally, but now that it is cut his sagging skin is very apparent, and it isn't localized to his stomach. The groomer told me this is indicative of an older cat.
I should clarify that I love my cat, he's a wonderful friend and it doesn't really matter to me if he is older than what I thought. I would like to get an estimate on his age however, so that I'll have an idea if I should look out for issues relating to older cats (ie. switching to senior cat food and the like).
I was told by the shelter that the cat was given to them by his only owner, he had been an indoor cat his whole life, and that he was to years old (birthdate April 1, 2014).
Today I got him his first hair cut, and the groomer commented on how loose his skin is. I had originally noticed that his belly sagged a little, but when I research this online I found that this was normal. He has long hair normally, but now that it is cut his sagging skin is very apparent, and it isn't localized to his stomach. The groomer told me this is indicative of an older cat.
I should clarify that I love my cat, he's a wonderful friend and it doesn't really matter to me if he is older than what I thought. I would like to get an estimate on his age however, so that I'll have an idea if I should look out for issues relating to older cats (ie. switching to senior cat food and the like).