Hello cat lovers,
We're looking for some input from experienced cat owners. Our Maya is almost 18 years old. She still seems to enjoy life but she's showing a lot of signs of her age. We've never had another pet, so we're wondering if and when might be the right time to say goodbye. We know we need to make this choice together with our vet, but I'm hoping that's other folks on here might have some perspective for us based on their experience. We want to keep Maya going for as long as she can, but we don't want to let her suffer needlessly. And we're not sure if she might be suffering in ways that maybe we don't understand.
So here's a bit about Maya. She used to be an indoor-outdoor cat in her early years, but for the last 10 years she's lived inside since we moved into an apartment. 3 years ago she had a stroke and we thought we were losing her. But she recovered fairly well. She got a little wobbly and frail, but she could still do pretty much all her activities. About a year ago she had another incident. She fell in a weird way and we think she may have cracked or broken a spinal vertebra. The vet was ready to call her in for euthanasia, but again she made a recovery and got back on her feet. She's a lot more wobbly than before and has trouble jumping on high surfaces and coming down. Sometimes she gets brief seizures while walking and twists and turns a bit, though usually she can stay on her feet. At first she lost her voice and her meows basically got down to a whisper, but since then it's come back more or less. She isn't grooming herself as much because it's hard for her to twist and keep her balance. She's still going at her litter box, though for a few years she doesn't go pee inside the box but around it, so we put disposable pads. This is not a new issue and we don't think it's bladder related.
So these are the negatives. I figure some (or a lot) of this is a normal part of aging. But we're wondering if it may be making her quality of life unbearable. On the positive side, she can still do most of the things that she enjoys. She likes to sleep in the sun during the day in her favorite spots in the apartment. She wobbles and goes slow but can still reach them okay. She is eating fine and going to the bathroom regularly. She rarely throws up. She still gets excited about treats and will chase the laser pointer to get them. She got her voice back and will tell us if she wants in or out of a room. She's not meowing a lot and doesn't seem to be in constant pain (though walking is definitely uncomfortable & disorienting for her). And when any of us are coming back home, she still gets near the door and waits. All of these seem to us like good reasons to keep kitty going into her super-old age. But again we're wondering if there may be something we're missing. Could it be that she feels a lot worse than it looks to us? What signs should we look for that would tell us that it may be time to say goodbye? Any perspective from experienced cat folks would be most appreciated.
Thanks,
Maya's family
We're looking for some input from experienced cat owners. Our Maya is almost 18 years old. She still seems to enjoy life but she's showing a lot of signs of her age. We've never had another pet, so we're wondering if and when might be the right time to say goodbye. We know we need to make this choice together with our vet, but I'm hoping that's other folks on here might have some perspective for us based on their experience. We want to keep Maya going for as long as she can, but we don't want to let her suffer needlessly. And we're not sure if she might be suffering in ways that maybe we don't understand.
So here's a bit about Maya. She used to be an indoor-outdoor cat in her early years, but for the last 10 years she's lived inside since we moved into an apartment. 3 years ago she had a stroke and we thought we were losing her. But she recovered fairly well. She got a little wobbly and frail, but she could still do pretty much all her activities. About a year ago she had another incident. She fell in a weird way and we think she may have cracked or broken a spinal vertebra. The vet was ready to call her in for euthanasia, but again she made a recovery and got back on her feet. She's a lot more wobbly than before and has trouble jumping on high surfaces and coming down. Sometimes she gets brief seizures while walking and twists and turns a bit, though usually she can stay on her feet. At first she lost her voice and her meows basically got down to a whisper, but since then it's come back more or less. She isn't grooming herself as much because it's hard for her to twist and keep her balance. She's still going at her litter box, though for a few years she doesn't go pee inside the box but around it, so we put disposable pads. This is not a new issue and we don't think it's bladder related.
So these are the negatives. I figure some (or a lot) of this is a normal part of aging. But we're wondering if it may be making her quality of life unbearable. On the positive side, she can still do most of the things that she enjoys. She likes to sleep in the sun during the day in her favorite spots in the apartment. She wobbles and goes slow but can still reach them okay. She is eating fine and going to the bathroom regularly. She rarely throws up. She still gets excited about treats and will chase the laser pointer to get them. She got her voice back and will tell us if she wants in or out of a room. She's not meowing a lot and doesn't seem to be in constant pain (though walking is definitely uncomfortable & disorienting for her). And when any of us are coming back home, she still gets near the door and waits. All of these seem to us like good reasons to keep kitty going into her super-old age. But again we're wondering if there may be something we're missing. Could it be that she feels a lot worse than it looks to us? What signs should we look for that would tell us that it may be time to say goodbye? Any perspective from experienced cat folks would be most appreciated.
Thanks,
Maya's family
