Older cat with changed miaow.

EmBeaR

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One of our 13yo moggies has developed a "broken" miaow over the last year or so. Instead of a single "Miaaaooow," he now says "Mia-a-ow." Is this anything to be concerned about? He has also increased his miaowing, and gets distracted from eating more easily, sometimes wants to eat in a different room from our other 3 cats (aged 13, 12 and 12 - he and our female 13yo are the parents of the two 12yos, so they are very familiar with each other), though otherwise seems happy, and is active.
 
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EmBeaR

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Not for a few months. We are temporarily without an income, so anything non-urgent will have to wait a month or so.
 

Furballsmom

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Margot Lane

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I worked at a library for 10 years with a cat. in her youth, she had a good strong miaow, and then in her later years it needed some oil. I am no expert but wonder if like some old people I know, the voice box just wears out.
 

iPappy

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I've read that a change in meow pitch can point to hyperthyroidism, but the fact he's not voraciously eating makes me wonder if that's a possibility or not because hyper-T cats "usually" (always many exceptions) eat anything in their path but drop weight. It could be something really benign like an irritated upper airway, but I would monitor him very closely. I have taken a notepad and kept a dated log, and jotted down anything I notice (in your case, more "croaking" meowing, less eating, more eating, more or less activity, any changes in breathing, etc.) until a vet visit. IDK how busy your vets are but if you anticipate a month or so is what you're thinking for finances, you might want to call the vet now and schedule a visit in advance so you don't have to wait yet another month or so. And keep that behavioral log so you can tell the vet about any changes and when they happened from then until now. And if he happens to get better on his own, you can always call and cancel the appointment in advance. (If that should happen, I would still monitor him just in case!!)
 

Alldara

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Dementia can happen during aging. It can increase meowing and distraction level.

Beginnings of deafness or blindness can increase distraction too. You can check responsiveness to movement, and high sounds (keys jingling) and low sounds (drum lightly on something you're holding - not touching the floor or surface where vibration would be felt by the cat).

What you can do, is call the vet office and talk to a vet tech over the phone and see if they would recommend a visit. If yes, you can request a quote.

If you're a smoking home, there's the risk of cancer of course.

Lastly, does it sound like he's copying any of your other cats? Sometimes they just do that.
 
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