Sigh, one of our cats seems to have dementia

[spinbaby]

One of our senior cats has taken to peeing in corners. He’s had a full work up by the vet and that’s the only thing we can come up with. He’s never been a very bright cat and has always been easily confused, but now he seems to not find his way around the house. I’m dealing with it for the moment by carrying him to the litter box regularly. I’m also finding that I’m carrying him to his food. It’s like he’s hungry, but doesn’t know what to do about it. He’s otherwise healthy and I’ve thought of simply confining him to a bathroom, but that doesn’t seem fair to him.

[Mister Ed]

1. I wonder if additional litter boxes would help?

Maybe a supplemental litter box in each corner where he's been habituating.

I know that's not a great deal of help, but it's all I can offer. It's so terribly hard when you start to lose a loved one this way.

[FM123]

2. Oh I am so sorry, it is heartbreaking as our pets begin to diminish.

I think you are doing the right thing by bringing his food and litter box to him as much as possible. Can you block off parts of your house without confining him to a single bathroom?

[spinbaby]

3. That's difficult

I have the complication of six other cats plus an autistic grandson who respects no barriers.

[FM123]

4. Wow, that's a handful- what a big beautiful heart you must have to care for them all.

[redstatebluegirl]

5. One of our doxies had dementia.

We tried everything, the vets tried everything. He would get confused about how to go outside towards the end. He would also be so scared he would try and pry himself under the bed. Then all at once he stopped eating, i made him chicken, we tried everything we could think of . Finally he would cry all the time.

He was a very bright dog, a field trial champion so he was pretty bright, it was so sad to watch. We made a decision that he had no quality of life, it was the hardest decision we have ever made because he had been so healthy up to the point of dementia.

Sending you good Karma it is really hard to deal with.

[procon]

6. A couple of ideas that may help.

One of our senor cats started having troubles getting around, and I suspected, like many older people, his joints probably ached and maybe his balance was a bit off.

I also switched litter boxes to give him a shallow tray that was only 1-2 inches high. Then I started testing different types of litter, thinking his poor old paws might be sensitive too. I think we ended up using a litter designed for kittens which looked like smaller grains. I placed a soft mat in front of it to cushion his feet. He did a lot better with that arrangement.

[spinbaby]

7. I'll try that

He does take glucosamine for arthritis. One good thing about his memory issue is that twice a day he forgets he doesn’t like to be pilled.

[IndyOp]

9. OMG - LoL! I can appreciate the benefits of him forgetting he doesn't like to be pilled. :-) (nt)

[Bayard]

8. You say, one of our cats.....

There may be some kind of dynamic going on with the other cats. Or have you brought in a new one?

Every cat has, "their spot". My barn cats have two areas of feed bowls. The same groups always go to what they have determined is their assigned food bowls. It never varies.

Sometimes indoor cats just whack out for no apparent reason we can see. They are cats.

[spinbaby]

11. This one has always gotten along with the other cats

He’s a very mellow cat.

[Phoenix61]

10. I have a 19 year old kitty

He has taken to pooping in corners. No idea why. Easier to clean up than pee but still not pleasant.

[spinbaby]

12. None of that yet, thank goodness

Although my grandson just pooped in the bathroom, which would have been fine had it been in the toilet.