How long do cats live, and how do you care for an old cat?

The average pet cat lives about 12 to 14 years, depending on the study. With good care many cats reach their late teens and some their twenties. Indoor cats often reach 15 to 17 or more. The share of old cats is growing, thanks to better vet care, better food and more cats living indoors.

Cats that live only outdoors live shorter lives on average, because of traffic, fights, infections and parasites. In one large study, cats with both indoor and outdoor access did not live clearly shorter than indoor cats. Old figures of only a few years describe strays without care, not a pet cat with a garden.

Neutering is linked to a longer life. Female cats live a little longer than males on average, and cats at a healthy weight live longer than very thin or very heavy ones. No breed is simply healthier than another, but some inherited diseases shorten life, such as polycystic kidney disease in Persians and related breeds. Reliable lifespans per breed are scarce.

The oldest cat with a verified age, Creme Puff, lived 38 years and 3 days. That shows what is possible, not what to expect. Regular check-ups, the advised vaccines and parasite control, a healthy weight and a safe home go with a long life.

There is no fixed age. The 2021 AAHA/AAFP guidelines call a cat of 7 to 10 a mature adult and a cat over 10 a senior. International Cat Care uses senior for 11 to 14 and super senior from 15. Some clinics speak of an older cat from 7.

In practice: start thinking about older-cat care around 7, see your cat as senior from about 10 or 11 and as super senior from 15. Age is only a guide: some cats over 10 are in excellent health, and a cat can move from one stage to the next quickly. Most cats show clear signs of ageing between 7 and 10.

In human years a cat of 15 is roughly mid-seventies and a cat of 16 or 17 around 80. The full table is on the page about your cat's age in human years.

An old cat sleeps more, plays less, jumps a little less high and washes less thoroughly. The coat turns greyer, especially on the head, and duller. A bluish haze in the lens of the eye is a normal change, and hearing loss is common. Smell and taste dull, so a slightly smaller appetite can be normal. A sudden drop is not.

Old age is not a disease. Many changes owners put down to age turn out to have a treatable cause: pain, kidneys, thyroid, diabetes or teeth. Cats hide illness and pain very well, so the signs are small and come slowly. Only a vet can tell whether something is age or illness.

So tell the vet about small things too: drinking more, jumping differently, calling at night, or a cat that grooms less. Owners often do not mention exactly those signs.

Weight loss in an old cat should be looked into before it is blamed on age. Common causes are an overactive thyroid, kidney disease, diabetes, dental disease, heart disease and cancer. Weight loss can start years before a diagnosis. Watch for muscle loss over the spine, hips and thighs too: a cat can be heavy and still lose muscle.

Is your old cat getting thin while eating well, or always hungry? Then the vet will often test the thyroid and kidneys first. Diabetes and worms can also be behind it.

An old cat that stops eating may be in pain, nauseous, have sore teeth or kidney disease, or be stressed or ill. A cat that is already thin can decline quickly, so do not wait it out: if it eats nothing for a day, call the vet at once. Mouth pain is often missed: the cat chews on one side, drops food, eats slowly or leaves the dry food.

Weigh your cat every one to two months and write it down. Half a kilo less in a 4 kg cat is more than 10 percent, which is easy to miss by eye. Gaining weight is a risk too: extra weight strains the joints. Never put an old cat on a diet on your own; ask the vet for a plan.

Drinking and peeing more are early signs of kidney disease and diabetes, and also come with an overactive thyroid. Owners often miss it, so keep an eye on the water bowl and on bigger or more wet patches in the litter tray.

Kidney disease is common in old cats and usually progresses slowly, over months or years. First the cat drinks and pees more, later come weight loss, poor appetite and nausea. It cannot be cured, but the right food and good care can support the cat. Report blood in the urine, strong-smelling urine or a change in how the cat pees to the vet.

Old cats feel thirst less and dry out more easily when ill or stressed. Wet food, fresh water and several bowls in quiet spots help.

Arthritis is very common in old cats but often missed. On X-rays most cats over 10 to 12 have joint changes. Cats rarely limp. They jump less, avoid the stairs, are stiff after rest, stop using favourite spots, groom less, are irritable when touched or struggle to get into the litter tray.

Owners often put this down to age. A vet can usually spot arthritis during the exam. Film your cat on the stairs or jumping to show the vet. Arthritis cannot be cured but can be managed: pain relief chosen by the vet (prescription only, because not every painkiller is safe for cats), a healthy weight, gentle daily movement and changes at home. Complete rest does not help.

If your old cat's back legs give way, it wobbles or its balance is poor, this can also come from nerves, the spine or the brain. A vet needs to see it. If your cat suddenly cannot use its back legs, go at once.

Many old cats call at night, sometimes loudly or strangely. Causes include hearing or sight loss, pain, an overactive thyroid, high blood pressure and cognitive dysfunction (brain ageing, much like dementia in people). Pain, senses and blood pressure should be checked first.

Dementia in a cat shows as confusion (staring, getting stuck in corners, forgetting it was fed), a reversed rhythm (awake at night, asleep by day), changed contact with the family, peeing or pooping outside the tray, and less activity or grooming. About 1 in 3 cats aged 11 to 14 develop at least one age-related behaviour problem, and more than half do after 15.

There is no test for it: the vet first rules out other causes. It cannot be cured, but its progress can often be slowed and the signs eased. At home a steady routine helps, with everything in the same place, a night light or a quiet radio, play in the day so the cat sleeps at night, and food and a litter tray close to where it sleeps. Do not punish the calling, and do not reward it either. Keep a confused cat indoors or in a secure garden.

If an old cat pees or poops in the house, start with the vet, not with a behaviour plan. Causes include a bladder infection or stones, kidney disease and diabetes (more urine), arthritis or back and hip pain that make the tray hard to reach, constipation or bowel disease, stress and dementia.

Pain on the way to the tray is a common reason. High sides, stairs and a small covered box are all hard for a stiff cat. If your cat leaks urine or stool without seeming to notice, that can come from infection, the nerves or the spine.

Never punish a cat for an accident: it makes things worse and harms trust. Scoop the tray at least daily, keep it where it is, and if it must move, move it a little at a time.

The most common problems in old cats are dental disease, chronic kidney disease, an overactive thyroid, diabetes, arthritis, heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer and dementia. Many old cats have more than one at a time. If a treatment does not work, the vet looks further.

Dental disease hurts, can stop a cat eating and affects its whole health. Almost every old cat without dental care has gum disease. Age alone is no reason to skip dental treatment under anaesthesia: with a thorough check first and extra monitoring, an old cat can be put under safely.

An overactive thyroid is the most common hormone disease of old cats. Signs are weight loss with a big appetite, restlessness, a fast heartbeat, drinking a lot and a greasy or untidy coat. It can be treated well. High blood pressure often shows no early signs, is usually linked to kidney or thyroid disease, and can cause sudden blindness and howling at night. It has to be measured.

Heart disease can stay hidden until the cat has trouble breathing, and trouble breathing is an emergency. The risk of cancer rises with age: weight loss with no other cause, tiredness or long-lasting gut problems should be checked.

A check-up finds problems early, when they are most treatable. At a senior check-up the vet looks at weight, body condition and muscle, teeth and gums, eyes, ears, heart and lungs, joints and the thyroid, and often measures blood pressure. The vet asks about eating, drinking, the litter tray, sleep, movement and mood.

Common tests are blood tests (blood count, kidney and liver values, sugar), a urine test, a thyroid test and blood pressure. Repeated results say more than one result: a baseline taken while your cat is healthy lets the vet see changes later, before values leave the normal range. Experts do not fully agree on measuring blood pressure routinely in healthy old cats.

Before the visit, write down what has changed and since when, weigh your cat and film any odd behaviour. Ask the clinic whether your cat should come without food and whether you can catch a urine sample at home. If visits are very stressful for your cat, ask about a quiet waiting area and cat-friendly handling.

A healthy old cat on a complete adult food does not necessarily need a senior food. Senior foods often have fewer calories: that suits an older cat that is overweight, not a thin one. Old cats need good protein to keep their muscle. Less protein is only for a cat with diagnosed kidney disease, and the vet decides that.

Is your old cat eating less, or no longer eating dry food? Offer small meals more often, gently warmed food, strongly scented or softer food, and food in jelly or gravy if the mouth hurts, in wide, shallow bowls. Do have the teeth checked. Water matters even more: fresh water in several places, wet food, and a fountain if your cat likes one.

Change food gradually, over 7 to 10 days, and not during an acute illness. For kidney disease, thyroid disease, overweight or gut problems the vet may advise a prescription diet. Extra vitamins are usually not needed if the food is complete.

Old cats groom less well. Brush gently and briefly: long-haired cats daily, short-haired once or twice a week. A lightly damp microfibre cloth helps. A matted, greasy or untidy coat can be a sign of pain in the joints or teeth, or of the thyroid. Losing fur in patches is common in old cats but not always normal.

Claws grow thick and can curl into the paw pads. Check them weekly and trim every few weeks, or ask the vet. Look at the teeth and gums regularly too: bad breath, drooling, red gums or pawing at the mouth need the vet.

There is no fixed moment. It is a personal choice in which you weigh pain and discomfort against the moments your cat is still itself and enjoys life. Vets see putting a cat to sleep as a caring choice for a cat that is terminally ill or has a poor life that cannot be made better, not as giving up. Your vet helps you decide.

Pain comes first, and trouble breathing is among the hardest things. Other signs that things are going downhill: no longer eating or drinking normally, no longer standing or walking well, no longer keeping clean, or bad days (vomiting, diarrhoea, falling) that outnumber the good ones.

A quality-of-life scale can help, such as the HHHHHMM scale: hurt, hunger, hydration, hygiene, happiness, mobility and more good days than bad. These are tools, not rules. Write your answers down, repeat after one or two weeks, ask family members to score too and take photos: slow decline is easy to miss yourself.

Talk about it with your vet early, before there is a crisis. Palliative care means checks every 2 to 4 weeks to keep your cat comfortable, often at home.

Euthanasia is a death without pain. The vet usually gives a sedative first, so your cat is calm or asleep, and then the injection that stops the heart. That happens within about a minute, and the vet listens with a stethoscope to confirm. The whole thing takes a few minutes.

The vet tells you what you may see afterwards: the eyes often stay open, and there may be a muscle twitch or a last breath. That is normal and your cat does not feel it. You can usually stay, and it often helps with grieving, but it is your choice. Let everyone at home say goodbye, other pets too: they can see and smell the body for a while.

It can often be done at home, so your cat does not have to travel; not every clinic does home visits. A clinic can also plan it at the end of the day, when it is quiet. Afterwards the body can stay with the vet, be cremated, buried or taken home, following the rules where you live. The vet explains the options.

Grief often starts before your cat is gone, and grief has no time limit. Many owners find the goodbye hard, even when they know it was a dignified choice.