A senior cat with a zit.

Question
My husband and I have been owned by this cat for over 6 years.  He's probably now 12 years young (he was stray so not sure about the exact age).  We love him all to death but these days we notice he's getting old; not as agile as he used to be and when he jumps down he thumps.  

My questions are...

- I personally have never cared for a senior cat before (my husband has).  Is there anything particular we should be doing or should not be doing for his comfort except a general care and bottomless love?

- I found a zit like thing near his eye, looks like a blood clot, about 0.5mm in diameter, blackish and brownish in color.  I just found this and don't know what it is.  Could it be a serious problem like cancer or else?

Any comments would be appreciated.

Answer
Hello Kay,

It is recommended that a kitty of this age go in to the vet twice yearly for a CBC (Complete Blood Count) to monitor how they are doing.  Unfortunately cats are very good at masking symptoms when they are not feeling well so it is important to stay on top of their condition.  You should make it a habbit once a day, usually during cuddle time, to run your hands all over his body to feel for any abnormalities.  This is actually a good idea for cats of any age but even more important for older cats.  If you do this on a regular basis your hands will 'learn' what he feels like and you will quickly notice any changes.

Have you ever looked into raw feeding?  Raw food has given many older cats extended lives full of health and energy.  Alternately I would recommend feeding a high quality canned food as it is much easier on their kidneys.  Vets continuously recommend dry food as it is better for keeding the teeth clean but the side effect is it is an unatural form of food for cats and sends them to the water bowl far too often making things hard on the kidney's.  They are finding that most cats die in old age of kidney failure, this is largely due to dry food.  Cats in the wild get 75% of their moisture from their prey and this is how their kidney's are designed to work.  Getting their moisture from the water bowl goes against that so by going to canned you are providing that moisture in a way that is more natural to them.

I would suggest you ask your second question in the 'ask the vet' category but in my opinion any changes such as this should be checked over by a vet.

Hope this helps!

Natoma
Chenza Maine Coons
www.chenza.com