I have a cat around 12 years old (adult rescue, so not positive on exact age-could be older). She’s never been a high energy cat, but lately she’s been sleeping what seems like close to 24 hours a day. She wakes up to eat and use the litter box–aside from that she’s snoozing. I used to feed her wet food twice per day (morning & evening) and she has dry kibble available at all times. Usually in the mornings, she is eager for her food, but all week, she has skipped breakfast & only ate at dinner time. Today she slept through breakfast & still has not awoken for her evening meal. When I pet her she’ll open an eye and acknowledge me, but goes right back to sleep.
Someone will of course say 'Go get her checked out by a vet" and I do have an appointment for next week. But meanwhile, for those of you who have had older cats, is this normal…or is something wrong with her?
It’s not normal and you did the right thing by seeing a vet. Cats sleep a lot but not that much. (I’ve had ten cats over my life so I guess that makes me an expert…)
My young (3 yrs) take spells where it seems like all they do is sleep, eat and poop. But it’s intermittent. I think missing a meal is more important than too much sleeping. Watch her for pee-ing. Kidney failure is common in older cats.
ETA, if she’s completely off her food, I feel it’s more serious.IMHO.
That much sleep, by itself, is normal for a cat, especially an older one. Missing meals, however, is not.
And as others have said, when something goes wrong with older cats, something urinary-tract related is often the problem. Some of those things can be fixed completely, some can’t be fixed but can be ameliorated, and some, there’s nothing you can do.
My first thought is health issues. My second is something has changed in her sleep schedule and you just aren’t seeing when she’s awake. Cats don’t sleep all that deeply and can awaken quickly. If there’s some new stimulus when you are asleep or out, she could just be awake times when you aren’t aware of it.
I free fed my last cat, except for a little bit of wet food at my dinner time, so his schedule could, and did, vary quite a bit. Since you talk about feeding times that might not apply…unless you are leaving the food and she knows it.
I should add that this cat is overweight. We’re constantly getting fat-shamed at the vet, but I don’t withhold her food, because eating is her greatest joy in life. So yes, missing her morning meal is definitely out of character.
But I just looked up the symptoms of kidney failure in cats & she doesn’t have many of them. She’s still overweight (though maybe this is just the start of renal failure) & no bad breath, vomiting, or increased urine production (at least I don’t think so–litter boxes seem normal, but she she shares with other cats & I haven’t really paid that much attention).
It seems kidney failure is uncurable. Any possibilities that can be cured?
I don’t know why people went straight to kidney failure based on one sympton. You really won’t get a good diagnosis on the Internet, but if she’s really sleeping close to 24 hours a day it’s worth getting her checked.
Yes DinoR, it’s possible she is awake while I’m not watching, but she was asleep in her cat house when I went to bed last night, was asleep when I got up this morning at 5am & I’ve been home all day long and she hasn’t moved. She does not seem like she is in pain though.
Yes she will wake up when I pick her up, but seems to just want to go back to sleep. She has a cat tree with a little box-shaped room with a hole to go in and out–and she’s been in there all day (and pretty much all week).
And I very much appreciate everyone’s potential diagnoses. Gives my OCD self things to google, so that the time until her vet appointment next Tuesday will pass more quickly.
And I’m wondering if cats get viruses like humans do. I’ve had the flu in the past, where sleep was all I wanted to do. Hoping it’s something like that…or hypothyroidism…
nearwildheaven she’s always weighted 13-14 lbs on my home scale & still weighs the same (give or take–scale is not all that consistent).
I’m really hoping this is just a virus or hypothyroidism or something else curable. Even if it’s renal failure, I want to know because there are ways to keep it at bay. Please lmk if anyone has any other theories/speculations/guesses. TIA
If it is winter where you are could there be a problem with the air via the heating system? An old cat may be impacted before larger or more robust creatures.
Thylacine, I live in southern California & our winters are very mild. And it is now 9:30pm & she is still asleep. Did not wake up for dinner like she always does (at 5-6pm ish).
I agree on all counts, as well as for having to wait four days for an appointment. Enola Gay, would you consider an appointment with another vet, if there are any in your area?
Excessive sleeping doesn’t tick the boxes for many of the typical problems like kidney disease or diabetes, but it’s possible for hypothyroidism. It can also be an indicator of pain.
