In praise of the older cat

[nsweezie]

Hello!
I am thinking of putting together a little brochure for our local cat resuce group. They have a number of older (5+ years) that are available for adotion, some of whom have been looking for homes for quite a while. It seems most people prefer a kitten or young cat.
I'd love to hear from people who have adopted older cats, about how GREAT they are and any other positive thoughts.
I can tell you that our cat Odin, who was 4 when we got him, is the most super cat ever (well, I am biased!). I have adopted some grown cats before in the past, and I would say that it would be unlikely for me to adopt a kitten again, that is how much I love the older cats!
I've attached a picture of Odin, just so everyone can see my SUPER cat!
Louise

[G535]

Odin is lovely! I have adopted older cats in the past and would do so again.

[jenluckenbach]

I adopted Monte at 6 years of age. I knew exactly his personality, unlike a kitten who will change. He was mellow, not hyper like a kitten, but still has a lot of play in him.

I adopted Y.Lee as an adult. We never knew his age. This is one thing about cats, you usually can not tell the difference between a 2 year old and a 6 year old. So why should it matter? I had Y.Lee for 8 years before his diabetes got the better of him. We never knew if he died at the age of 10 or the age of 14 or somewhere in between, but it did not matter. His life here was filled with joy. He was the most loving, huggable, laid-back, empathetic, mellow cat a person could ask for. And knowing his age would not have changed that.

Calvin was also about 5 years old (a guess) when we adopted him. And the majority of the others were around 1 year of age.

Kittens are fun, no doubt about it, but adults are more stable. Somewhat less work to keep them occupied and out of trouble. If a certain personality trait is important to you, then an adult is the only way to go. And even though it seems impossible, I believe that the adults are more grateful when you show them love that they might not have received in the past.

[catmandu]

BJ,WAS ABOUT 8,WHEN I TOOK HIM,IN ,AND HE WAS TRULY A MARVELLOUS CAT,THAT WE MISS VERY MUCH.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v621/catmandu/GARYMEEZ.jpg

AND MOOSE,THE MAGNIFICENT,WASFOUR,WHEN HE JOINED THE HOTEL,AND IS A WONDERFUL GENTLE CAT.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v621/catmandu/moose.jpg

MR FLUFFY,WAS 12,AND HE,WAS SUCH A HAPPY,LOVING CAT,THAT HELPED,THE YOUNGER CATS,ADJUST,TO THE HOTEL.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v621/catmandu/Picture145.jpg
AND MY PAL SMOKEY
WHO,I ADOPTED AT 16,AND LIVED TO BE 23.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v621/catmandu/catphotos891.jpg

[slick]

Speckles was 10 when I adopted her 8 years ago. It was from a family that could not keep her because they were moving and travelled too much.

The very day she came home, she settled into one of the living room chairs and claimed it as her own. She still sleeps there during the day.

My little girl has been such a blessing because she knows my moods so well. Her meow is really more of a sqeak and sometimes she's so gentle that she opens her mouth to meow and nothing comes out. :D She purrs up a storm in bed and loves to crawl underneath the covers on cool nights.

She's also very dainty and clean with her litterbox habits and never misses the target.

Even though Speckles does not like to be held or brushed, that makes no difference to me. She's not a lap cat but loves to curl up really close to me. She never used to like her tummy rubbed, but now that she's "matured" I can rub her belly all I want.

To be honest, kittens and young cats don't fit into my quiet lifestyle. I enjoy not being woken up at 3am with "let's play." I enjoy the fact that the cats get up when I get up and not before. I will always be adopting older kitties.

[skneisel74]

It is much easier to adopt a kitten because they are cute, but when you adopt an older cat you are doing a great deed. WIth older cats, there is no litter box training, no personality conflicts, no suprises. Older cats are more mature, more patient, more settled. They have developed their independence and are quite content just being. Thus much more mature and able to settle in to a routine. I know that is a big plus+++++++ for me !

[barncat]

If you want to be a "mommy" and watch cute develop into something unpredictable, get a kitten. If you want to bring a companion into your life, a fur-person to share fun with on a more equal footing (always knowing time and species make for differences) adopt an older cat.

My Dearie, who is gone on her great adventure now, showed up on my back porch in a sleet storm on a long ago Valentine's Day. My vet warned me not to get too attached as she was old and had athritis and lots of scar tissue.... Well, 16 years later she died sleeping in my arms with the rest of the fur-family around us. She had been a dear and loving friend.

Older cats have gifts of grace and wisdom to share. You never can know how long a pet will live....so don't hesitate. Enjoy. The love they can give, the perspectives they can share are as precious as the fleeting antics of a kitten.

[Randy_K]

Danté was six to seven years old and FIV positive when I adopted him three years ago. I quickly understood his personality when I first met him: He just wanted to be loved and cared for. In the last three years I had a sweet, loving, cuddly companion to share my home with who was almost the perfect pet. I knew he had grown to love me and had bonded to me but I didn't realize how deeply I had grown to love him. He died in May from complications of FIV and I miss him terribly. Perhaps if I had adoped him as a kitten he'd still be with me today. That I will never know but adopting him was the best choice I have ever made.

http://home.att.net/~rjknox/Balcony_Dante.jpg

[catmandu]

ACTUALLY,OF ALL MY CATS,ONLY SCRAPPY 2,AND GCK,WERE KITTENS.
THE OTHER CATS,WERE AT LEAST,ANYWHERES,FROM 2,MICHAEL,PRINCESS,JJJ3, 5 0R 6,MOST,OF THE MEEZERS,MOOSE,SMOKE,AND SOME,EVEN OLDER SHEBA,SMOKEY,BJ,ETC.

OH,POUNCER,AND MUNCKIN,WERE KITTENS.
AND THE RESCUED STARRYS,WERE OLDER ORANGE BLOSSOM,MR FLUFFY,TIGER,WERE ALL MATURE CATS.
IT HURT ME,FRIDAY,WHEN I WAS AT SUPER PETS,AND EVERYONE,WAS CROWDED,AROUND 2 KITTENS,IGNORING SEVERAL OLDER CATS,MOST,OF WHOM,WERE JUST PAST THE KITTEN STAGE,THEMSELVES.
POOR OLD CATS,THEY DESERVE BETTER.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v621/catmandu/Picture325.jpg

[Laura's Babies]

Those are all great stories about older, more mature ones. I have adopted many from the old vet I use to use that had been brought in to be PTS.

They make great companions and if they don't.... well, I have never had any problem with those either. We ALL are deserving in our senior years of being loved and cared for, being kept warm and well fed. I hope someday to have a housefull of senior's to love as I have always loved the old (humans and animals).

[nsweezie]

Thank you so much everyone for your stories of older cats. I hope that I will be able to quote some of you, as you have summed it up much better than I can! I will let you know once I start making the brochure.
I totally agree with slick who says that a kitten doesn't really fit into their lifestyle. I have thought the same myself, and I am sure there are other people out there would would love a settled, stable adult cat.
It has also been great to see pictures of happy older cats. I really can never say enough good things about my Odin, and it looks like there are plenty of people who feel the same way about their cats!
Louise

[Lightning SuperCat]

Those were great stories.
Your cat Odin is adorable. Although I think he's saying "why are my nails all different colors! And you have that camera again" :D
Lightning is my only cat, and he isn't old. But I "adopted" a cat-who really"adopted"me-who was in our backyard one day and kept coming back. I named him "Gotze's"-like the candy company tha makes Cow Tails-Yum! :D-because of his colors. He's probably a few years old, he lives outside and I think he's someone else's cat, but he adopted me anyway!! :D
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid180/p5ad3c39ecb316bd3f71417af99c3d76e/f2ee8d8f.jpg
I love this picture!!!! :D
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid180/p0ed77b37cdce085e66d0516643d3aa83/f2ee8c78.jpg

[rosethecopycat]

I've got the Geezer bug for sure!

I get my fill of kittens by fostering them, but Malfi is special.

He's 10+ years old, he could be ancient. We don't know.

He's so gentle and grateful just to have a nice place and nice food.

He doesn't 'do' much, but unknowingly provides hours of entertainment, and comfort to his parents.

The old ones, they deserve a good life.

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Originally posted by rosethecopycat
The old ones, they deserve a good life.

I couldn't agree more, Rose. :)

I got Cracker Jack in January of this year (2005) and he is 7 years old. There is no way I was going to bring a kitten into the house with 16 year old Peanut, and after seeing what a fire cracker Cracker Jack is, boy am I glad I listened to myself! And Peanut is doubly glad I listened to myself! ;)

Just because a cat is a little older doesn't mean all it's going to do is sleep all day. Older cats have personalities too. Kittens are so easy to fall for, but older cats provide a comfort, warmth and stability that a kitten is too young to have achieved.

I don't know think I will ever, on-purpose, adopt a kitten again. I just love the older, wiser adult cats. So many of them have such sad stories about being abandoned or having their life long caretakers die on them that they really do deserve a good home where they can live out their lives in peace comfort and spoildness. ;) :D

[catlover4ever]

I adopted Tucker.....actually she adopted me. She was tossed on the streets when she was around 10 years old. I have been her care taker for 9 years already (wow, it does not seem like it has been that long).

Older cats have the maturity, yet they are young at heart. If you play with Tucker she may tire out quickly but she is still just as fast as a kitten. Older cats will always have some "kitten" in them, you just have to know how to bring that playful side out of them.

Here are a few pictures of Tucker. She is almost 20 now. She is bossy, demanding, and grouchy but I would not trade her or change her for the world.

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid116/pe3708701564de642a390ef5d57d58175/f8b20d25.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid120/ped75dee57a5e69f0df31aa29fa2404e1/f85dadae.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid136/p3466e44801abec015742b8c429ffa676/f749e1c3.jpg

Do an older cat a favor and adopt them...they will be your best friend and confidant.

[nsweezie]

I've found the responses to this thread to be very touching. Thanks all for sharing your 'old' cats!
Louise

[Pam]

Well my Trevor and Andy were kittens when I got them but I must say I prefer the wise old gentlemen that they have become. They are mellow although still have some play left in them, and it's been years since they have broken anything! LOL!
P.S. Trevor is now 12 and Andy is 9.

[sirrahbed]

Odin is a wonderfully handsome cat - I love the "rainbow" toes!

My most recent adoption of two sets of siblings were babies but before that I had never had a kitten and likely never will again. As I prefer and and am drawn to elderly people, so do I prefer older cats. They have a grace and dignity about them and I love bringing them into my home. I try to imagine where they have been and what they could tell me about - and I just really enjoy giving them a good life that maybe they did not have before. I have enjoyed my kittens immensely - but they are so very active and into trouble. I am 50 myself and starting to "settle in" and as always - I prefer the older animals. There is just something about them!

Our last geriatric was Ernie and he was my daughter Missy's cat. He was with her as a toddler and he was with her when she was about to get married. When she left for college, he looked for her and slept on her bed until she came home for visits. He always stayed up with her late into the night and then followed her to bed when she fell asleep. He also loved her hubby-to-be which was important to her - he did NOT like some of her earlier boyfriends. Then, Ernie fell ill with kidney failure. The disease made him slow and thin over the months and he quit eating. He waited until the day before her wedding, when she was home to give him lots of attention - and then he fell asleep in his favorite spot and did not wake up again. I know he waited to see his Missy once again.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v170/sirrahbed/Missy%2084-05/ernie.jpg
An older pet is ideal for an older person because they are not as likely to be left to grieve when their owners are gone.

The older cat already has the established personality and so can be good pets for children.

The older cat tends to be quieter and more lovable - requiring less care.

The older cat is ideal for an older person because they are happy to sit in laps and nap.

I LOVE older cats!!

[lvpets2002]

:) I have adopted older cats & would do again in a heart beat.. I think of this way they are just as human as us & we dont want to be abandened just because we grew up & got older.