How should I take care of my senior cat at night?

Question

He is 18 years old and I think he's got some kind of kitty dementia. I don't think he can hear very well either, because if you come up from behind and pet him he jumps a little and he doesn't respond to sounds in general. Unfortunately, my parents have recently moved in together and there was a cat at both houses, so now there are the two together and he is having a very hard time adjusting to this new younger female cat in his house. Now, he yowls and wanders around at night so my mother locks him up in the basement with his food, litter box and bed. His bed gets filled with catnip and kitty treats every night. Anyway, this whole thing makes me feel awful. I can hear him crying from the basement and I wish there was something I could do. 

Is there any advice anyone can offer? I wish I could put him in my room with me at night, but I'm allergic to cats and I'm afraid he'll need to use his kitty litter. Do you think it would be okay to put him in my room anyway? I am willing to try to put up with my allergies. Or is this situation totally okay and I'm just over reacting?

CDC · Accepted Answer

My cat is also quite old (20) and he does the same thing. At first I thought he was in pain but he only does it at night, never during the day. I read a report that cats also suffer from a type of Alzheimer's where they get confused at night when it gets dark & that kind of makes sense since cats get almost all the diseases that people get.When my cat does it I call out to him or go where he is & talk to him.That calms him down & he stops crying. He also seems to be confused sometimes. If you can I'd suggest you take him in your room with you at night & put another litter box in there with you (you can buy a small disposable box to keep there with you.If you have medication you need for allergies you might be able to take it at night since most of them just make you drowsy anyway. (My son has allergies to cats & did this with no real problem). Cats are creatures of habit so he might be a little confused with the other cat too but I think he'd be fine sleeping with you anyway & not have to deal with the other cat so much or being locked away alone like he is being now. Try keeping him with you for a week or so & see if that works. He's an old cat & deserves to feel safe for the rest of the time he has & not be upset by changes. Good luck.

How should I take care of my senior cat at night?

1 Answer