Is your cat a senior citizen?

Did you know that cats are considered "senior" after 10 years of age?  More importantly, did you know that they should have a general check up, along with urine and blood testing when they reach this age?  I didn't know that for a long time.  I've always been on a limited budget, so I only took my cats to the vet if they were ill.  I stopped getting vaccinations for them after my little tortoiseshell girl had a bad reaction to her annual vaccine.  It was quite an awful event for her, as I had to take her to the animal hospital and leave her there for the day.  They told me that she was doing better and that I could come get her around 6 pm.  Once I got her home, though, she developed a bad reaction to the Benadryl that they gave her to counteract the reaction to the vaccines.  Instead of making her calm and somewhat sedated, it had the opposite effect.  My poor girl couldn't sit still.  Her skin would start twitching whenever she tried to lay still.  Because of all of that,  I decided that I would only take my cats in if they were ill.

When my oldest cat was 14, however, I noticed that she was drinking more than usual.  I searched the internet for that symptom, and the results I got said she could either have diabetes or kidney failure.  I read that both were common diseases for older cats, and that because of that, you should have your cat tested for them after they turned 10.  Cats have 2 kidneys, but by the time most owners notice the symptoms of kidney failure (if they notice at all), most often they only have 1/4 of their kidneys functioning.

If I had known this, I could have put my girl Buddy on a kidney diet as soon as she developed the problem, and she may have lived longer.  No vet ever told me this, and I felt guilty for not taking her for regular exams.  So I thought I'd share this on my blog so other kitties could be diagnosed as soon as possible.

Take your kitty in and ask for tests for it's kidneys and for diabetes.  You won't regret it, but if you don't, you may regret that.  My girl is gone now, and I'd do almost anything to have her here for a few more years.