Sleeping all the time...

[mommytobuck]

My 15 year old cat is sleeping a lot lately. I would say he sleeps from about 7 am to 2 PM (Has lunch) goes back to bed until 7 pm (has dinner) and then goes back until.. I think 3 ish. I believe he gets up at 3 AM and could be up from 3 am until I get up. Sometimes he does wake me up for food then, but I really don't know how much he is up then. If he is awake from 3 to 7 am then he probably is up about 4 hours a day (roughly normal) but if he sleeps during that time, he is only up about 2 hours per day.

One of the problems is I now work from home and have for a year and I think even if he is "sleeping" he is being disturbed by my walking around the house during the day. He doesn't sort of "catch up" on quality sleep until 7 pm until 3 am.

He also seems to have "sleep eyes" most of the day. He isn't bright eyed and bushy tailed during the day, he largely looking exhausted. He does have bright eyes at 3 Am...

This sound ok? It is hard to tell how much he is really sleeping because of the change in work schedule.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Is this a different trend from before Covid? If anything has changed, then he should be seen by a Vet. Cats do normally sleep a LOT, but not 22 hours a day. (and they aren't normally in a deep sleep, but rather resting up for the next "kill".) If you try to engage him in play, does he participate? If he's just not interested in anything but eating and sleeping, and this is new for him, I would be concerned and get him a checkup. Older cats are prone to so many things. Has he gotten regular check-ups? When my cats turned "senior" I started getting them check-ups twice a year

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Cats typically sleep from 16-20 hours a day, with kitten and older cats generally at the upper end...however, along with @mrsgreenjeans, I think that 22 hours a day is a bit excessive. I would suggest a vet check for him. We just have to keep after the health of our seniors, and I have one. I monitor everything. Eating, sleeping, activity. I keep a log, so that I can recognize a change in patterns. I know that's a bit obsessive for most people, but it does help me.

 

[stephanietx]

My RB kitty would sleep more as she aged, but not to this extreme. I would definitely visit the vet and get a senior blood panel done as well as a good checkup. May even want to get an x-ray to make sure nothing else is going on. Has appetite changed at all?

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I monitor everything. Eating, sleeping, activity. I keep a log, so that I can recognize a change in patterns. I know that's a bit obsessive for most people, but it does help me.

I even monitor the amount of pee and poop of my guys. I use a small calendar and mark every day how many urine scoops are in the boxes and who has pooped! I don't think you're being obsessive at all

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Thank you, mrsgreenjeens ! At least we know when something changes! It's much easier to monitor the box with just one cat. If it's in there, she did it! Conversely, if it isn't, she didn't! But she pees like a racehorse (and sucks back water like a camel in August).

 

[mommytobuck]

Is this a different trend from before Covid? If anything has changed, then he should be seen by a Vet. Cats do normally sleep a LOT, but not 22 hours a day. (and they aren't normally in a deep sleep, but rather resting up for the next "kill".) If you try to engage him in play, does he participate? If he's just not interested in anything but eating and sleeping, and this is new for him, I would be concerned and get him a checkup. Older cats are prone to so many things. Has he gotten regular check-ups? When my cats turned "senior" I started getting them check-ups twice a year

He is fine to play as much as any elderly cat is. This is very different than before covid. Then (and for his entire life) he would get the house to himself from 7 AM until I arrived home at 6 PM. When I arrived home he was bright eyed and bushy tailed, because he had gotten a full uninterrupted sleep. But now, I am home walking around and making noise... all day long. He gets sleep but it is completely interrupted sleep. I fear he never catches up on his sleep because I am home every day now... he never gets a long break to catch up on his rest. And I live in a three floor townhome but if I am in my office and he knows I am there, he won't sleep. He will want to see what I am doing.

Poop and pee are fine. He is eating fine.

 

[maggie101]

My cats use the litterbox mostly when I get up in the morning and after dinner. Try and watch him when he pees/poops. You can also buy a pet camera though you have to pay extra if you want to watch videos.

 

[mommytobuck]

And, as I mentioned, I cannot be sure if he just has flipped his schedule. He appears to be up at 3 AM to about 7 AM now. But because I am sleeping I can't tell if he is awake that entire time. I just know sometimes when i get up at 3 AM to piddle he may be sitting at my bedroom door just creepily watching me sleep. It seems that is the time of day he gets up and does things but does he stay up from 3 AM until I get up at 6 AM or does he sleep during that time and just get up when he hears me.
So much about my cat's life has changed now it is very hard to tell if he has a problem or if it is just because of household changes.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Feeby is 16+ yo, and her sleeping pattern has changed. She sleeps most of the day, other than to get up and eat and use the litter box. Mostly all of her previous routines are gone, in that she used to sleep at my head all night long - no more. She is most active between 2AM and 6AM, wandering around our bed looking for - well, I don't know what. She does have hyperthyroidism and has lost a lot of weight in recent years. But, so far, no other diagnoses have been made to explain her change. It is hard to tell because there are so many variables, but some of the changes I attribute to aging - just like what so many humans go through. She eats fine (not as much as she used to) and seems otherwise OK. She is just changing - I expect due to age.

 

[mommytobuck]

Ugh my cat today was having a terrible lame leg. It was one of the worst I had ever seen. When I saw that I checked my cats cosequin dose and I don't think I have been giving him enough... I have been mistakingly only giving him one pill and I now see he needs two. Starting to wonder if all these little things add up to big things.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Ugh my cat today was having a terrible lame leg. It was one of the worst I had ever seen. When I saw that I checked my cats cosequin dose and I don't think I have been giving him enough... I have been mistakingly only giving him one pill and I now see he needs two. Starting to wonder if all these little things add up to big things.

If there is a way to gradually increase the dose, do that. I have heard of cases where Cosequin can cause diarrhea, so just be cautious. A gradual increase would likely be less to cause that reaction.

 

[mommytobuck]

If there is a way to gradually increase the dose, do that. I have heard of cases where Cosequin can cause diarrhea, so just be cautious. A gradual increase would likely be less to cause that reaction.

It tends to cause constipation in my guy.