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Diana - 28 Jun 2004 21:33 GMT

I found this group, knowing beforehand that there must be a wealth of
knowledge within the group, who are cat owners and I hope that some cat
owners/cat friends can answer some of my questions. I recently was given
a cat, and his medical (papers) background history shows that he is 13
years old. My question is..would that be literally 13 yrs old, as humans
calculate, or as with dogs, this number is multiplied by seven?. And he
is somewhat of a long-hair cat, but no where near the amount of fur on a
Persian/Himalayan(?) cat, so should I find some kind of "Furr-Ball"
remedy, or just make sure that he always has plenty of water each day?.
Yes, I'm pretty much of a "rookie" at this point, but I would never want
to harm the little guy (Charlie the Cat") and that is why I am posting
to you folks, who probably have a whole bunch of helpful info. Thanks in
advance!! ~Diana~

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Cathy Friedmann - 28 Jun 2004 23:09 GMT

> I found this group, knowing beforehand that there must be a wealth of
> knowledge within the group, who are cat owners and I hope that some cat
> owners/cat friends can answer some of my questions. I recently was given
> a cat, and his medical (papers) background history shows that he is 13
> years old. My question is..would that be literally 13 yrs old, as humans
> calculate, or as with dogs, this number is multiplied by seven?.

Literally 13, as in human years. 13 is "older", but not ancient for a cat.

> And he
> is somewhat of a long-hair cat, but no where near the amount of fur on a
> Persian/Himalayan(?) cat, so should I find some kind of "Furr-Ball"
> remedy, or just make sure that he always has plenty of water each day?.

Of course plenty of water, but you can also give him Petromalt or Laxatone
(furball/hairball remedies), or even offer him licks of plain Vaseline
(that's what in the hairball remedies, along w/ flavoring); some cats
actually like Vaseline.

> Yes, I'm pretty much of a "rookie" at this point, but I would never want
> to harm the little guy (Charlie the Cat") and that is why I am posting
> to you folks, who probably have a whole bunch of helpful info. Thanks in
> advance!! ~Diana~

Good luck w/ him. Looking back at his medical history, see if he's been to
the vet within the last year, & if he had a full-panel bloodwork done.
Maybe not everyone'd agree, but once a cat is over 10, I think it's a good
idea to make sure diseases common in older cats haven't started to show up -
such as hyperthyroidism & CRF (chronic renal failure). The earlier caught &
treated, the better.

Cathy

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RobZip - 29 Jun 2004 01:34 GMT

>And he
> is somewhat of a long-hair cat, but no where near the amount of fur on a
> Persian/Himalayan(?) cat, so should I find some kind of "Furr-Ball"
> remedy, or just make sure that he always has plenty of water each day?.

Please don't rely on additional water to assure passage of swallowed hair.
Cats tend to derive a lot of their water intake through what is present in
the foods they eat. Some cats however will drink larger quantities of
supplemental water while others rarely drink anything. In any case, the
water will be absorbed in the digestive process and the swallowed hair
remains behind. If the cat can process it on through, all is well. If not it
will collect in the lower stomach until such time as the cat becomes
distressed enough to regurgitate it. There are instances where hairballs
have passed on to the small intestines and caused blockges.

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Laura R. - 29 Jun 2004 02:31 GMT

circa Mon, 28 Jun 2004 13:33:33 -0700, in rec.pets.cats.health+behav,
Diana (dianakahn@webtv.net) said,

Neither. Cats' age equivalencies vary by the cats life stage; here
are a couple of links to charts.

http://www.cats.alpha.pl/catsage.htm
http://cats.about.com/cs/healthissues/a/agechart.htm

Your thirteen-year-old cat would be the rough equivalent to a 65-70
year old human. This is considered a geriatric or "senior" cat, and
means that you will want to ask your vet to give the cat a geriatric
workup. They'll do blood tests looking for renal problems,
electrolyte imbalances and basically anything that tends to strike
older cats. They'll also examine your cat's eyes, teeth, gums, ears
and joints to watch for age-related degeneration, infection, etc.
They'll feel your cat's muscle mass to determine if it's consistent
with a cat that age (muscle mass is lost as cats age, but a lot of
conditions such as kidney disease and hyperthyroidism can cause
muscle wasting).

> is somewhat of a long-hair cat, but no where near the amount of fur on a
> Persian/Himalayan(?) cat, so should I find some kind of "Furr-Ball"
> remedy, or just make sure that he always has plenty of water each day?.

It certainly wouldn't hurt to get a hairball remedy. *All* cats can
get hairballs, not just long-haired ones. In fact, my cat that gets
the worst hairballs is a shorthair. Lots of water is very important,
and feeding a high-quality food may significantly extend your cat's
life in terms of both length and quality.

Laura

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Experience is the name every one gives to their mistakes.
-Oscar Wilde

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