We had to say goodbye to our 20 year old cat today. Only last week I weighed him. Having dropped to 4.5 Kg in the heatwave, he had put weight back on every following month and came in at 4.76 Kg. He had a raft of problems and was on 4 meds in the morning and 3 in the evening, but he still ruled our 2.5 acres, wanting my husband to take him out (supervised only) early every morning, throughout the day and last thing before bed. He was catching rabbits at the age of 18 and had been seen chasing badgers out of the garden. Even last night I was finishing his special feed (which he refused) and yet when I put my head outside to call hubby, they were both out of earshot. He had been diagnosed with hyperthyroidism many years ago, his kidneys were starting to fail, he had seizures without his phenobarbitone and his white ears and nose had early signs of cancer, even though we had never let him out in the middle of the day. It was his thyroid that got him in the end. From having a fantastic appetite, it dropped off a cliff over the weekend. I believe the tumour had grown down his oesophagus making him refuse all food. We're going to miss him so much...
It's an incredible age. When I was a kid, twelve was about the most you could expect. With better veterinary care, it's about fourteen now.
