Expert: Dear Tabbi - 5/23/2008

Question
My cat of 16 yrs. has always been an indoor cat and used her litter box religiously. It is cleaned morning and is the covered type that she has always used. She always urinates in the litter, but lately has taken to pooping at different areas of my home. Not all the time but at least once a week she does it, and sometimes I find that she has done part of it in the litter and then there is a trail of poop leading up to the box, or away from it whatever the case maybe. Nothing has changed in this cat's life except that her litter mate died last July, they never, never got along and the other cat was sort of the bully, never letting this one on the bed, etc. Now she sleeps with me everynight, her eating habits and food have not changed at all, so I'm at a loss. She does seem to cry every morning when she gets up and I took it that she was calling for the other cat. I might mentioned that she was declawed(something I would never do again) when she was a baby and hasn't seemed to have any problems all these years. She gets a lot more attention now that the other cat is gone so I'm at a loss. I never see her doing the deed, even in her litter box. Please help!!!

Answer
Joan,

Your cat is approximately 80 years old in human years and unfortunately her behavior is due to aging and the problems that come with it. At that age things start going out. She may have arthritis which is causing her pain, which would make her cry and make it hard to get in and out of the litterbox. She may also be losing some control of her bowels and can't get to the litterbox in time. Geriatric cats can also get a form of kitty Alzheimers. They frequently get more vocal because they are confused about the changes in their body and mind. Give the cats LOTS of reassurance and love. Don't ever get upset at the cat for getting old and any behavior or health related issues that results from it.

You should take her to a vet that is knowledgeable about geriatric cats for an "older cat checkup" to check the function of her kidneys, thyroid, liver, etc. If she has arthritis he can give her pain medication to make her comfortable.

Being prepared and knowledgable about elderly cats will make things easier for the cat and for you. I am including some very good links about elderly cats. Copy and paste, or type, the whole links into your address bar:

http://www.sniksnak.com/resources/geriatric.html

http://www.messybeast.com/towards-end.htm

http://www.2ndchance.info/oldcat.htm

I hope this helps.

Tabbi