Senior cat suddenly overly clingy

akat

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Our family cat is around 15 years old, and he’s recently gotten so *extremely* clingy that it’s becoming concerning. If he wants someone near him, he meows to a point that it’s near screaming. We can’t close doors, can’t leave his side, and can’t go on a computer or phone without him putting his face in front of it — and he doesn’t leave.
The part that’s most odd and unlike him is that he’s constantly been sitting on the kitchen table. He’s never been outgoing in the slightest and almost never goes near our table or has any interest in human food, but recently he’s made it so we can hardly eat. He pokes his head in front of our plates, tries to sniff everything we’re eating, and will just sit on the table doing nothing until someone sits down, and he will do this at any time of day.
Essentially, he just constantly needs our attention and needs to be near us. We figured it could be some form of dementia from his age, but his being on the table all the time seems to have no explanation.
Has anyone else experienced something like this?
(I should also note that he eats, drinks, and goes to the bathroom normally with no changes in diet or environment, and no visible ailments.)

TL;DR: Family cat is 15 and suddenly needs constant attention, spends all his time sitting on the kitchen table, and acts odd in general.
 

sidneykitty

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Hello! What's your cat's name?

Have you taken your cat in for a full check up with senior blood work at all in the last 6 months - year? I'm wondering if it could be some kind of health change as he is aging and its good to get them regular check ups at this age to keep an eye on things. 15 is almost 80 in human years, so a lot can change pretty quickly for older kitties... could be hyperthyroidism or high blood pressure (often cats with high BP yowl and meow a lot). But there's no way to know without the labs to tell us and it could also be just behavioral.

Is there something he seems to particularly want? Food as he is on the table? Or mostly attention?

I can say that I have had my 15 year old cat since she was 11 and I noticed she has certainly become much more clingy to us even in just the last year. Perhaps it it something cats do when they get older. Any new changes at home? (like new people or pets living in the house??)
 

Jemima Lucca

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My 16 year old cat definitely had dementia and he was how you described your cat. Beju would howl and meow, follow me everywhere and meow for food even though he had some. He also had kidney failure so he started to feel unwell 🤒. I’m sorry about your kitty. It does worry us when they have new behaviors...
 

Etarre

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I definitely second the recommendation for a full senior blood panel. When my 15 year old cat started acting similarly, she had a thyroid problem that had gotten out of control despite the fact that she was on medication.

She may just be feeling old and creaky, but my sense is that she's feeling unwell in some way and is seeking comfort/help.
 

FeebysOwner

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Ditto about the senior health check up. Full blood panel - CBC, Chemistry Profile, and thyroid. Rule out health issues first with a cat that age.

It could be a form of dementia, but from my personal experience with Feeby (15+ yo), recent strange behaviors that I thought might be dementia turned out to be a most unexpected flea infestation (her first ever!), followed by some health related issues as the fleas certainly took a toll on her. She can be verbal anyway, but there was incessant random squawking (she doesn't meow) which I now believe was her tying to tell me she had fleas. Not suggesting your boy has fleas, but I am pretty sure he is telling you something is "off".

Feeby has become a bit more clingy with age, but there was something different about her behavior when all of this started. Now, that her health has improved and the fleas are relatively under control, she has gone back to just being our needy little old lady!

Feeby gets semi-annual senior check ups just so we can monitor her for any changes that might suggest an issue and allow us to react to it early on.
 
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