my senior cat

Question
Hi. My cat, Buffy, is 14 years old. She had done very well up until about a year ago. Then we noticed her back legs were getting stiff. When it got worse, the vet put her on metacam twice a week for some relief. she seemed to be doing fine, although you could tell she was much weaker. She stayed in the house except when wanting to go outside for a while . She was welcome to go in or out as she pleased. Last Friday morning she went out with the dog and we haven't seen her since. In all the 14 years, she has never left the house or yard. Any ideas? I've heard cats sometimes leave to die. We have looked everywhere and can't find her.
Cindy

Answer
Cindy,

Is Buffy an indoor/outdoor cat? If she isn't used to going outdoors she may simply be hiding because she is frightened or disoriented. I don't think that arthritis in Buffy's back end would cause her to wander off and die if that is her only health concern. I would recommend that you consider trying glucosamine to treat her arthritis when you find her - it's natural and generally works quite well to alleviate symptoms of arthritis. You can usually find glucosamine in health food stores or pharmacies and most cats will tolerate having it mixed in with a favorite soft food. Hopefully you will find Buffy soon, I would recommend that you consider leaving her favorite food out on your porch or in a humane live trap near your home. It's possible that she is coming out at night when things are still and quiet. I would advise against putting the humane live trap out unless you can be there to monitor it and take her out as soon as she is caught, particularly if you live in a colder climate because there is a good chance that a trap placed in an unsheltered location without any bedding in the winter could cause death by hypothermia. Humane live traps are only humane if used in the way that they were intended which means being there to release your cat into the house promptly - I usually don't leave traps for any longer than 1 hour, most often I check them every twenty minutes.