Cat Chats series, 2 of 2
Your Cat Isn't "Just Getting Old": How to Recognize the Hidden Signs of Pain
By Dr Ryan Morgan, Onward Veterinary Services ·
"She doesn't jump as much anymore."
"He mostly sleeps downstairs now."
"She doesn't really play anymore, but she's getting old."
Veterinarians hear these every week, and sometimes they are exactly what they sound like, the ordinary arithmetic of an older body.
But aging and pain are not the same thing. Aging happens. Pain is not something we should accept as part of it.
Cats are extraordinarily good at adapting, and that ability is what makes chronic pain in a cat so easy to miss.
A cat does not have to limp to hurt
When we picture an animal in pain we picture the obvious: crying, limping, refusing to move. Cats are subtler. Rather than stop an activity, they change how they do it.
Think about a cat getting onto the bed.
A comfortable cat goes floor to bed.
A sore cat goes floor to chair to bed.
Both cats got onto the bed. One changed the route. The destination stayed the same and the strategy changed, and that distinction is one of the most useful things you can learn to watch for at home.
Your house is part of the exam
We get snapshots. You get the movie.
You see your cat get up in the morning, take the stairs, choose a windowsill, climb into the litter box. Your home is the best place there is to watch how a cat moves.
Six places worth watching:
The bed. Do they still jump straight up? Have they started using something else as a step? Have they moved to a different place to sleep?
The sofa. Watch both directions. Getting down reveals as much as getting up.
The stairs. Smooth, or hesitant? Up but not down? A pause between flights?
The favourite window. Are they still going to the high places they used to love? If they are, has the route changed?
Food and water. Has their posture changed while they eat or drink? Is anything on another floor becoming a trip they skip?
The litter box. Reluctance at a high side? Accidents right beside the box? A change in posture or habits?
None of these observations alone diagnoses arthritis. They are clues.
Pain or age
The signs are ordinary looking. Watch for change:
- hesitating before a jump
- jumping to something lower first
- hauling themselves onto furniture instead of jumping cleanly
- trouble getting down
- stiffness after a rest
- avoiding stairs
- sleeping somewhere easier to reach
- playing and exploring less
- grooming less, particularly over the back and hindquarters
- less tolerance for being touched or picked up
- irritability with people or other animals
- changes in litter box habits
Change is the word that matters. You are not comparing your cat to anyone else's cat. You are comparing your cat to your cat.
The ten second video test
Your phone is a useful veterinary instrument. Every few months, take ten seconds of your cat:
- walking
- getting up after a rest
- going up and down the stairs
- jumping onto a favourite surface
- jumping down
- getting into the litter box
- grooming
Nothing staged. Ten seconds of ordinary behaviour beats a posed video.
Then save them. Months later you have something a single appointment cannot give us: a comparison. If something has changed, show us.
The cat-friendly home makeover
Mobility care does not always start in a medicine bottle. Often we can make the cat's world fit the body they have now.
Turn one big jump into two small ones. A stable step, ottoman or pet stair beside a favourite bed or sofa.
Improve traction. Hardwood and tile get harder to trust. Runners and other secure nonslip surfaces make dependable routes.
Look hard at the litter box. A high side becomes an obstacle. An appropriately sized box with a lower entrance makes the whole business easier for a cat with limited mobility.
Keep the essentials reachable. In a multi-level house, check that food, water, a comfortable bed and a litter box are all available without another trip up the stairs.
Protect the favourite spots. A cat should not have to give up the windowsill because getting there got harder. A step, a stable surface in between, or a ramp keeps it.
Think about warmth. Comfortable, supportive beds in warm places are particularly appealing to older cats.
The principle: do not only treat the cat. Change the environment.
Pain care is more than a pill
There is no single treatment for chronic musculoskeletal pain. Depending on the cat, the medical history and the cause of the discomfort, a plan might combine appropriate pain medication, weight and nutrition management, changes to the home, movement and rehabilitation, monitoring, and selected complementary therapies where they fit.
This is one of the reasons we think in terms of multimodal care at Onward. The question is not which drug treats arthritis. It is what this cat needs in order to live comfortably and go on doing the things that make them a cat.
Do not settle for "just old"
Getting older changes a body. It is not an explanation for every change in how a cat moves, grooms, behaves or plays.
Observe. Compare. Take the videos. Ask the questions.
Catching subtle pain earlier means helping before a cat has given up the things they love.
Old age is not a disease, and your cat may be telling you more than you realize.
One of the tools in that multimodal picture is light. If you want to read where it fits, our series on photobiomodulation starts with how light helps pets move, heal and feel better.