27-year-old woman adopted a rescue cat of the same age and becomes a record holder

The Guardian reports on an interesting story for me. I think that this story is actually unique in the world of cat adoption from a rescue centre. Vicki Green adopted Flossie from the well-known UK cat rescue charity Cats Protection in the summer of 2023. She adopted Flossie on the passing of her childhood cat, Honeybun, with whom she was very closely connected.

Vicki wanted to adopt another cat and had the opportunity when she finally purchased her own flat in London last summer. She wanted to adopt an older cat and a rescue cat. She achieved her objectives.

She was told by Cats Protection that Flossie was a 27-year-old tortoiseshell. She thought that the charity was mistaken and meant 17, but no, they meant 27 which is an extraordinary age for a domestic cat and particularly a rescue cat at a charity.

Flossie. Screenshot

At the time Vicki Green was 27 herself and so the cat world had that highly unusual situation where the adopter, a 27-year-old young woman, was the same age as the rescue cat that she was adopting.

Vicki thought that Flossie wouldn't live more than a few months but she wanted to give Flossie a good end-of-life experience which I think is very commendable. Some people like to do that and they play a valuable role in the cat rescue scene. It is altruistic. It is a very nice thing to do and there are in fact benefits for both the cat and the adopter although you have to deal with end-of-life issues which are tricky and distressing.

Flossie and Vicki. Screenshot.

Anyway, Flossie is still living and alert and very much alive. She likes to play and has her little routines like all domestic cats do. She's obviously a full-time indoor cat living in an apartment which probably suits her down to the ground at her age. She likes to go out onto the balcony which Vicki describes as Flossie's sanctuary.

She likes to jump onto Vicki's chest in the evening when she goes to bed and then she moves down to her lap and then finally settles down at her feet for the night. She wakes up at 6 o'clock looking for her breakfast with a loud and confident meow.

This is so typical of a domestic cat and one that is much younger than Flossie. Vicki bought her some stairs to get up onto the sofa but Flossie doesn't need them. And she says that "She doesn't look old at all."

"She never turns her nose up at the chance of a good meal," Vicki says.

 

She might make 30 and that would be very, very exceptional. It's nice to report on this unique story. Vicki believes that she owns the world's oldest living cat. She is absolutely correct because Flossie is recognised by Guinness World Records which has confirmed that she is the world's oldest living cat at the moment.

Details: The oldest cat living is Flossie (UK, b. 29 December 1995) who is 26 years and 316 days old, as verified in Orpington, UK, on 10 November 2022.

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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.

Infographics on cat behavioural changes linked to health and on osteoarthritis in elderly cats

The information in this infographic about osteoarthritis in elderly cats may surprise you. It is a major health issue about which cat owners should be aware as it affects cat caregiving. Looking after domestic cats entering old age demands a little bit more vigilance to spot changes in a range of activities and sounds etc..

Observant cat caregivers can see changes in their cat when they are ill. They might not be able to identify the illness but to observe changes in activities, vocalisations, gait, and general behavior can be a signpost to understanding an as yet unidentified illness. 

The infographic below may help a cat caregiver in guiding them through these difficult times. This is a double cross-post from 2 other posts. They are overlapping topics concerning cats entering and during old age.

I hope you find them handy and if so please leave a comment and share your personal experiences to expand on the topic.

A hint of Harrison Ford in the face of Nutmeg the then oldest cat who died at 32

The snarl on Nutmeg's face is one aspect of it which provides me with a hint of Harrison Ford but perhaps my imagination is running riot. The photograph was taken when he was 31 but he lived for an extra year, approximately, dying at the ripe old age of 32. He died of heart failure after being taken to a veterinarian with breathing difficulties. His death was reported in the news media on 14 September 2017. His owners were Liz and Ian Finlay of Gateshead, Tyne & Wear, UK. The Harrison Ford snarl is probably dye to teeth issues!

 A hint of Harrison Ford in the face of Nutmeg the then oldest cat who died at 32. Photo: Reddit.

Mrs Finlay said at the time: "I feel as though my heart has been ripped out. He was a huge character who was dearly loved."

Cats are living longer thanks to better medical care, better nutrition and better monitoring of cat welfare although of course these benefits are not universal. It depends where you live and it depends upon how good the cat caretaker is. Nutmeg's age was actually estimated because he was adopted as a stray and taken to Cat Protection who estimated his then age as five based upon the condition of his teeth. Mr Mrs Finlay owned him for a further 27 years.

You probably know that the oldest domestic cat ever was Creme Puff who died on August 16, 2005, 38 years and three days after his birth. She lived in Austin Texas with his owner, Jake Perry. The approximate average for a domestic cat is about 15 to perhaps 18 years.

Note: videos on this site are typically made by people other than me and held on YouTube servers or the servers of other businesses (not the server storing this website). Sometimes the videos are deleted at source which stops them working on this site. If that has happened, I apologise but I have no control over it.

My cat is dying. How long will it take?

People actually asked this question. What does the question tell us about the person? If the question is genuine and I have to say right away that it is Google which presents this question to me. Google  auto-completes questions for people conducting searches. Google bases its auto-completions on actual searches. Therefore, I have to conclude that somebody has asked this question and it implies that this cat owner is negligent.

CAT AT A VET. THIS IS WHERE A CAT SHOULD BE IF YOU THINK THEY ARE DYING. PICTURE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN AS ASSESSED.

If your cat is dying you should know through your veterinarian. Your vet will tell you well before your cat is entering that very last phase of their life when they are seriously ill and the question of euthanasia should be discussed. Nowadays, in a well organised home with a decent cat owner, a dying cat should be euthanised to allow their passing to be as calm and as pleasant as possible. You do not watch your cat dying because of a chronic disease and ask the internet how long it will take! Note: you should be present when the vet euthanises your cat.

The question reminds me that tens of millions of people in the West do not take their cat to their veterinarian when they should. The reason? Money is normally the reason because a lot of people who own a cat or cats do not, if they are really honest with themselves, have sufficient funds to do a good job in caring for their cat. It can be quite expensive but too many people brush that aspect of cat ownership under the carpet when they adopt. They take a chance but they will never be a really good cat caretaker no matter how much they love their cat if they do not have sufficient funds to seek the advice and the services of a veterinarian when they are required.

One last point is worth making. Nobody can answer the question in the title. You can only answer the question if you know what diseases are killing the cat. Or perhaps their cat is dying of old age. We don't know and therefore we can't assess how long it will take the cat to die. Also, we don't know the cat's symptoms so the question is pointless and frankly idiotic. This supports my original assessment about this owner being negligent. They are also stupid.

A Crime? Failing to Take Vet's Advice On Euthanising Your Cat

A woman in the UK was prosecuted for declining to take the advice of a veterinarian who had advised her to euthanise her cat, Ziggy, who was in a poor state because of old age. This was a decision about when to euthanise a cat at the end of his life. This ultimately is a decision for the cat's caretaker on the advice of a vet but the buck stops at the cat owner (the cat's caretaker).

A very old cat soon to be euthanised

What is shocking about this case is that the RSPCA decided to prosecute this woman simply because she had a different idea about when to euthanise her elderly cat, Ziggy. The woman's name is Ms Julie Nadian. The veterinarian who advised her to put down her cat worked for the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals.

Although the prosecution was stopped by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) the lady had all her cats taken from her and they have since been in RSPCA care. She continues to be prosecuted for failing to provide a suitable environment for her pets.

However, the big issue really is that she was prosecuted because she failed to agree to euthanise a very old cat at the time that her veterinarian deemed to be correct. The prosecution was clearly incorrect because it is a personal decision of the cat's owner and it is an emotional decision.

However, it does highlight this very tricky decision because if it is delayed it can cause unnecessary suffering and when you do that to a companion animal, under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 you are committing a crime.

The prosecution was misconceived as it happens and the case highlights the overzealous approach of the RSPCA to prosecute people perhaps as a way to publicise its services and to try and take proactive steps to prevent people from mistreating their companion animals by frightening them into believing that they could be prosecuted over day-to-day decisions.

Nobody really knows when it is right to put down a pet due to very old age. A veterinarian will provide a cold, objective and scientific assessment while the cat's owner will also be as objective as possible but his or her decision must be affected by her emotional connection with her companion animal which should and indeed must be in the equation when she makes a decision.

It is also almost impossible even for veterinarian to judge exactly how much discomfort or pain a cat is suffering in old age and if he thinks the cat is suffering he can prescribe medication to ease it. That I argue would have been a better decision.

My conclusion is that no one should ever be prosecuted for making an incorrect decision about when to euthanise her cat due to very advanced old age.

Update:  Having received a lot of detail from Julie, I was able to compose another article, which can be seen here. I'm not sure whether Ziggy is in fact an old cat. That does not matter because the basic principles that I discuss here still apply.

Caring For an Old Cat

I am caring for a very old cat. She is 20 years old. This is a short post about what it is like. It is a labor of love. It is no different as far as I am concerned to caring for an old person. You don't get a lot of feedback. You have to do things that your old cat does not like in order to keep them alive and out of pain and discomfort.

For example, I have to administer antibiotics twice a day every day for the rest of her life to manage a massive infection on her right kidney. Her left kidney is hard I am told. She has a heart murmur and is anemic. She has kidney failure. She is somewhat anorexic. She is very static all day and night and demands to be static outside. She is outside about 10 paces from my home, day and night, 24/7 (except for eating and drinking and going to the toilet). She is so static that flies have laid eggs in her fur. I have to comb these out and she hates it because it is at her rear end.

Binnie - old cat - she looks quite good but is dying. Taken ten minutes ago (1-11-11)

So, I am doing things for her that she dislikes. This does not help the relationship. Because of her dementia I have already lost most of her. In other words this is one way traffic and my actions are altruistic. I do it all for her. I give her the best food, plenty of cuddles, flea combing and general combing. You will need unconditional love.

For this reason I can understand why cat owners euthanize their old cats before they should do it. You have to look into your heart and ask am I euthanizing my cat because she is inconvenient and troublesome? Or am I euthanizing my cat for her, to stop the discomfort, and because the quality of her life has deteriorated so much that is it pointless.

In other words there should be the same standards for our cat and a person when it comes to decide how to administer care. Let's not fool ourselves many very old people are quietly euthanized in care homes and hospitals.

That said we should not apply overly zealous rules about euthanasia that govern our behavior towards people. Death is not something to be feared. It should be treated as just another part of life; the final moment.

How to look after an old cat

How to Look After an Old Cat? Cats are living longer. People are living longer. This is due to better food, health care and lifestyle etc. That means more older cats. It might be useful to think about things that we could do to help an older cat.

Some people believe that there are things we can do and I'll list them. They all translate to being aware of our cat's health and diminishing abilities and accepting that old age brings change. One of those changes is the coat. And another is being less active, which can mean a tendency to put on weight. But (and this is my personal viewpoint) we should not try and "shoe horn" an older cat into a young cat's body. We change shape as we get older and so should a cat. It is natural. Sometimes I feel that we tend to treat cats as robots and think of them as all the same. That said, being overweight is to be resisted.

One point about being less active has come to my attention recently (Oct 2011). My old lady cat (20) sits on the ground in the garden all day and night. I have to watch for maggots. This sounds ghastly but a cat that is static for long periods will attract flies who treat the cat as dead almost and lay eggs in the fur. I am not sure how common this is but please watch out for it. Fly larva can be combed out with a flea comb. They are like small grains of rice bundled together.

Here are some pointers:

• Regular vet visits and blood work are recommended. This can pick up health problems early. The trouble is that money doesn't grow on trees especially at this particular time. But a check over without blood tests is relatively inexpensive.
• Be aware of your cat's gradual change by making mental comparisons to the way she has behaved in the past. Knowing our cat's routines helps with diagnosis.
• Buy senior cat food. I am personally a bit skeptical about the benefits of senior cat food. It is more a marketing ploy but I am sure there is an intended benefit to the cat as well. My personal experience is that it has some benefits. My old lady cat gets gas with non-senior food but not with senior food.
• Water should be fresh and in a clean bowl.
• Sometimes certain drugs can help such as glucosamin and chondroitin, which are good for healthy joints; plus non-steroid anti-inflammatories. I would always treat drugs with caution though. Minimize drugs for obvious reasons.
• Getting older can mean that the cat becomes more nervous and this might mean more aggression from defensiveness that could be misconstrued by us.
• Old age can bring on cognitive dysfunction syndrome - dementia. This is the same for humans e.g. Alzheimer's. This might lead to symptoms such as disorientation etc. A vet can advise. Dementia in old cats is quite hard to deal with because a cat's routine changes. Also the cat becomes distanced from the owner. The caretaker begins to lose her cat gradually. People should make an extra effort to stay in touch with their cat and play with their cat or hug their cat to offset this.
• The coat becomes dryer making grooming (always important) even more important. However, cats that were overweight might begin to lose weight when geriatric which allows them to groom better. This has occurred with my cat.
• Play is also always important for mental and physical activity. Regular sessions are best but I realise that in practice finding time can be factor.
• Maintain an interesting environment.
• Watch for dental hygiene and fleas. My cat has good teeth (lucky) but some are predisposed to bad oral health. Periodontal disease is common.
• Above all love her or him unconditionally and gently. This will keep them relaxed and feeling secure. That, bottom line, is how to look after an old cat.

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Why does my old cat cry out at night?

My old lady cat

I am getting a little exasperated. Every night these days my 19 year old lady cat wakes me at 3:30 in the morning crying out. Sometimes her cry is a very deep one and loud. It is insistent. And sometimes it is a standard loud meow.

The deep cry is an interesting sound. She has only really started to make it fairly recently. She is not in pain neither is she ill. She is, however, very old and she is deaf or partially deaf.

One reason she calls out is for the simple reason that the food that I had put down for her has been eaten by a stray cat! She is hungry! Although she won't eat dry food these days unless it is Hills C/d.

Putting that reason aside, the reason she cries out is, I believe, to get attention and reassurance. She might also cry out after eating and after coming in from the outside. I believe that she feels isolated due to her deafness and needs comfort through contact with me to reassure her that all is well. During eating she is focused. When she stops she is a little confused and needs the reassurance of me around.

Another reason for a sense of isolation is senility. The vets call this cognitive dysfunction syndrome. It can cause a loss of awareness of the surroundings. This sense of disorientation and confusion results, I believe in a need for reassurance. She is crying out for that.

Once she has been comforted and eaten she settles down again. The major factor I believe is her insecurity due to her failing senses and particularly deafness.

She might want to be lifted up onto my bed for a cuddle as well. Of course I oblige. All this happens at 3:30 am. I am writing this at 4 am as I have just done all the above.

Apparently up to 40% of cats in the age bracket 16-20 years of age can suffer from disorientation due to cognitive dysfunction. There is nothing that can be done about it seems. A drug that is used for dogs, L-deprenyl (Anipryl), which improves the action of the brains neurotransmitters has not yet been approved for cats but is being tested (this drug was first used to treat Cushing’s disease in dogs - source: www.veterinarypartner.com). Things may have changed as at the date of this post. Personally, I would not prescribe drugs for something that is a natural consequence of aging. Plenty of tender love and care is the better treatment, I feel.

Here she is the night howler....! She has lost weight.

You can hear her cry at the beginning of this video:



Persistent crying in a young cat is probably due to discomfort or pain. For newborn kittens, an infection of the blood (kitten septicemia) will cause crying.



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