cats

Our girl is 16 and she has arthritis and some sinus/breathing issues.

She’s been doing laser treatments for arthritis and it’s been working very well. The other day she came up to me and meowed to indicate she wanted to play, then she ran down the stairs after me and she went full out for like 20 minutes, just playing like she was 10 years younger.

I stopped to text my wife a picture and she (the cat) yowled at me until I went back to playing.

It was the most fulfilling play session, it’s been impossible to get her to go after toys and she’s been so lethargic and guarded for a long time.

Pets help us understand our own mortality in ways that continue to surprise me. When I was young, the first pet I lost was a young cat, just a few years old. I raised her from a kitten that was probably too young to ween so we had a close bond. She was indoor/outdoor and was attacked by a neighbor's dog during the day when I was gone. Holding her and watching her die broke me, like she waited all day to die in my arms. She was mine and I felt like I let her down. Woof, it hurt. Still does.

But while I was holding her, our family dog (Allison) was next to me. She was older than I was, a feisty Lhasa Apso that had lost her ability to hold her bladder. We diapered her: we'd cut a hole in human diapers to pull her tail through to keep the hardwoods from getting ruined. She died a year later, after living a full life.

I buried both of them in the front yard, under a couple of pines that bordered our neighbor's pet cemetery. Both times, digging those holes gave me the time I needed to be able to return them to the earth and say goodbye. I learned so much from their passing. It is the last gift our pets give us, their final act of love.

Now, older, with kids of my own, we have Sadie, who I am looking at as I write this. She's a rescue, probably a golden mixed with some border collie, at least 16 years old. Her sister died last year and it was the first close death my kids experienced. Her passing taught my kids the alchemy of aging gracefully, the privilege of old age. Now, they find charm in Sadie's rickety hips and excuse her incontinence. Getting old is okay; we are lucky to be able to do it. Watching your loved ones get old is a privilege we should cherish.

Edit: I wanted to thank OP for posting this. Reading your observations of your aging cat brought It all forward.

Thank you for sharing, it made me smile. My senior citizen cat (he’ll be 18 in less than 2 months) also now wants my arm as his pillow and lets me know, loudly, if he’s ready but my arm isn’t in the right “spot” yet.

Going through the same with my dog. She’s been with me since before I even started dating my wife. I’m gonna miss her.

My wife and I had an older gentleman cat. He would wake us up at night (sleeping between the two of us) to get us to carry him with us and go lie down on the couch, where he'd curl up on top of whoever he picked that night and go back to sleep.

Cherish your old girl!

Now that'd be super cute to catch on video

We have two that are getting up there in age. They're both active, but the signs are there. One has irritable bowel syndrome and asthma is on medication for both. His black fur has faded in some spots, too - not much, but there are definitely spots that are a bit more brown in his legs.

The other seems healthy, but his urine had some protein and there is a slightly elevated number in his bloodwork for his liver (I think). The vet isn't sure what those mean yet, and they want him to get an ultrasound (they just told us yesterday, and we haven't had the chance to schedule it yet).

It's possible he also has IBS, which would at least mean we're used to dealing with it. He's already eating the right food.

Odds are good we have years with them yet, but it's a sign they're getting older, and a reminder that some day they'll be gone. :(