Thoughts on adopting an elderly cat, for a new-ish cat owner?
Hello! So, I currently have one cat, she is about 5 years old. She was a stray that I picked up at around 9 months old, once she started hanging out around my parents' farm house. She is very sweet, and very spoiled, and she is also the first cat I've ever had -- my parents or siblings never had them before.
Now, she is a very chill, mostly well-behaved cat. The one issue I ever encountered with her is that she's hellbent on eating any plants she can get her hands on, so I've had to get creative with my plant positioning and I've lost many poor plants to her vicious teeth lol. Otherwise she's a great companion, excessively cuddly even, loves being brushed, she drinks lots of water and free feeds throughout the day. So overall, pretty low maitenance.
Because mind you, I grew up with dogs my whole life. Big and small, all types of dogs. I currently also have with me a pomeranian who is already an old man passing the double digits. I am very used to old dogs. I know the health issues they commonly have, the things I need to do to accomodate -- I could handle an elderly dog pretty easily, I think, after living with many, growing up. I've dealt with hip dysplasia in big dogs, heart and lung conditions in small dogs, deafness, blindness, etc. My current pom takes daily heart medication!
Anyway, I've really been considering another cat, and with that, a cat on the older side. Because I know they get less attention at shelters, and if they are anything like older dogs, I know they can be the sweetest souls. (Also, if kittens are anything like puppies, I will pass on the chance of having them any day. That's too much energy for me lmao I'll take an adult pet any day)
I'm wondering if experienced cat owners out there think this would be too much of a challenge for me, since I've only dealt with a low maitenance young cat for the last 5ish years? I'm self-conscious that I may not know enough about cats to take care of a senior well. For the elderly cat owners out there, how is your experience with an older cat? Tia!