Complete Care for Your Aging Cat - Amy Shojai [101]
Jennifer learned if they decide to travel, special arrangements must be made for somebody qualified to give the insulin injections. “You can’t just leave the food out and go for the weekend anymore.” Jennifer and Wes trained both Momma Kitty and Fezzik to walk on a harness and leash. “They just travel along with us,” she says. “You’d be amazed at the attention you get when you walk off an elevator with two cats on leashes.”
Once Momma Kitty was regulated, she got her strength back and cut back on sleep to the normal 16 hours a day. “The rest of the time she’s playing. She’ll attack toes under the covers again. She can run and leap and dance and play and all the things she used to do.”
Jennifer hasn’t wanted to think about eventually losing Momma Kitty, but she has talked about the eventuality with Dr. Jones. “If she were to become incapacitated it wouldn’t be fair to make her live that way just because I don’t want to deal with her loss.”
She believes accommodations are important for aging cats, “But never treat them like they’re old. Expect them to play and be active. When you sit down on the couch and they’re not there, go find them,” she says. Keep them engaged in life and the world around them to help them feel as good as they possibly can.
Jennifer has no doubt Momma Cat enjoys her life. “When I wake up, she’s sitting in front of my face and as soon as I open my eyes she bursts out with purrs that have just been boiling inside to come out. Now, that’s a happy cat!” says Jennifer. “She’s got her kittenhood back.”
Age-Defying Tip
“The single best thing an individual could do in terms of trying to minimize the potential development of diabetes is weight control, and trying to avoid obesity,” says Dr. Nelson. “That causes insulin resistance and has been shown to be a definite cause-and-effect factor in dogs and cats both.”
GLAUCOMA
Glaucoma usually strikes cats older than seven years old. The disease causes intense pain when pressure increases inside the eyeball and pushes the internal structures out of position. It can cause sudden blindness in as little as 24 hours, or may take weeks to months depending on the pressure. Without treatment, cats go blind.
The internal components of the eye are held in the right position by a fluid called aqueous humor that fills the front part of the eye. Normally, the level of this liquid stays the same as the amount that’s produced is also drained away. You could compare the system to a sink where the water drains away as fast as the faucet replenishes it. Glaucoma develops if not enough fluid drains away, and the eyeball swells with the pressure.
Senior Symptoms
Glaucoma is a progressive, relatively slow disease in people, but is very aggressive in cats and can lead to blindness. The primary symptom is excruciating pain. Signs to watch for include:
Excessive tearing
Cloudy or bloodshot eye
Squinting or pawing at the painful eye
Tipping head to relieve pressure from the aggravated side
Keeping eyelid closed, or pulling away from touch
Dilated and unresponsive pupil
Enlarged eyeball
“Glaucoma can be found in older cats, especially in animals where a cataract is not treated,” says Dr. Gerding. Secondary glaucoma develops as a result of disease such as feline leukemia or feline immunodeficiency virus, which scars the inside of the eye and prevents drainage of the fluid. “Uveitis [inflammation] is sort of a low, smoldering condition, and can lead glaucoma,” says Harriet Davidson, DVM, an ophthalmologist at Michigan Veterinary Specialists. Injury to the eye can also interfere with this natural flow of fluid. Extremely high blood pressure can also prompt glaucoma and retinal detachment. Glaucoma causes the cat to keep his painful