Monitoring Your Senior Cat For Signs Of Disease

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Note – as with all articles on this site, this page is general information and is not professional veterinary advice nor a substitute for professional evaluation. Please consult your vet if your cat shows symptoms of illness. Felines can really be adorable, but when they’re sick, it’s just so hard to tell. Cats can’t easily communicate how they feel, so we have to rely on symptoms and changes they manifest. To find out if your senior cat is ill, you can check for some physical and behavioral changes which your pet shows through time. While some changes are triggered by their aging, some are linked to diseases which may range from simple and less complicated conditions to more serious ones.

As cats reach their senior years, their ability to fend off foreign invaders tend to decline. Thus, their special needs need to be addressed earlier, in order to at least maintain the quality of their health. Early detection of the symptoms can be of great help in delaying or correcting the progression of a possible disease. ^[1]

Prior to sending your cats to vet’s, it would be valuable if you were to provide a list of changes which you have noticed in your cats, to give your vet a clearer understanding on your cat’s condition. We have here a short list of changes to look for, in order to have a grasp of understanding of what your cat is going through at the moment.

First, have you noticed any changes in your pet’s respiration, such as panting, sneezing or coughing? Well, it could be signs that they are suffering from asthma or other respiratory illness.

Check your feline’s food and water consumption. It could be of help when reporting your cat’s condition to the veterinarian. More often than not, food consumption changes are related to diabetes, kidney, and liver diseases. ^[2] In addition to its weight, be keen to any changes on your cat’s defecation and urination.

Never neglect any lumps or bumps you have noticed. This could help in detecting cancers or benign tumors. Also, try to examine the inside of your feline’s mouth. Check the color of the gums. Is there excessive drooling, or bad breath? If so, this could be a symptom to kidney, or dental disease, as well as oral cancer.

Providing the list of changes noticed over a span of time can help veterinarians in giving the most accurate diagnosis of your cat’s condition. Thus, better solution may be provided. ^[3]

What we have presented above is just a few changes which you could check for. Check http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=1+2140&aid=611 to see a more comprehensive list of changes and symptoms to watch for, as well as the diseases associated with those symptoms.

References:

[1] http://www.vet.cornell.edu/FHC/health_resources/SeniorCats.cfm
[2] http://www.wikihow.com/Know-if-Your-Cat-Is-Sick
[3] http://cats.about.com/od/behaviortraining/a/catbehaviorhisstest.htm

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