Answer: The aged cat is less active and less adoptable then formerly. The reduction in the amount of muscle on its frame means that it has less strength and stamina; it move more slowly and is less agile. Any severe loss of fluid (e.g. due to vomiting or diarrhea) takes longer to correct, and temperature regulation is less efficient so that exposure to cold can easily result in hypothermia (abnormally low body temperature). The healing of damaged tissues takes longer and the senses of smell, taste, sight and hearing are all impaired to some extent.
There elder cats is also less interested in what is happing around it, preferring to remain inactive fro longer periods. It resents alteration to its daily routine and will not readily accept changes in its food or surroundings.
Renal disease, dental disease, and occurrence of tumours are all common in old cats. Some cats loss the ability to pass motions, other are unable to control the sphincters of the bladder or anus resulting in incontinence. The skin is less elastic and because the cat is less interested in grooming, discharges from the eye and ear can accumulate and have to be cleaned away by the owner.
Old age, however, should not be regarded as a disease but merely as a state in which, unfortunately, the cat has decreased power of survival and of adjustment to change.
