August 22 is Take Your Cat to the Vet Day, a reminder to schedule an important visit—especially if your cat is entering their senior years.
Cats are famously good at hiding discomfort and illness. Your older cat may still greet you at the door, curl up in their favorite spot, and seem perfectly healthy while changes are happening beneath the surface. Regular veterinary visits give your veterinarian an opportunity to identify those changes earlier, when there may be more options for managing them and maintaining your cat’s quality of life.
When Is a Cat Considered a Senior?
There isn’t a single birthday when every cat suddenly becomes a senior. Cats age at different rates, but feline senior-care guidelines commonly divide older cats into three groups:
- Mature or middle-aged: 7–10 years
- Senior: 11–14 years
- Geriatric: 15 years and older
Aging is not a disease, but as cats age, their risk for certain diseases increases.
“But My Cat Seems Healthy.”
That’s exactly why preventive veterinary visits matter.
A 2024 prospective study followed mature and senior cats whose owners considered them healthy. Researchers evaluated 259 cats using a thorough history, physical examination, blood testing, and urinalysis. At the initial screening, 21% of these apparently healthy cats were found to have health conditions, including chronic kidney disease and hyperthyroidism. Researchers also found that 40% were overweight, 35% had moderate to severe dental disease, and 22% had abnormal findings when their hearts were examined with a stethoscope.
Even more striking was what happened over time. Among cats confirmed to be healthy at the beginning of the study, 54% of senior cats developed a new disease within two years. Chronic kidney disease and hyperthyroidism were among the most common conditions diagnosed.
In other words, “seems healthy” and “is healthy” aren’t always the same thing—particularly for an older cat.
Cats Can Be Masters at Hiding Illness
One reason veterinary visits are so valuable is that cats may conceal signs of disease until a condition has become more advanced. Detecting and treating disease earlier can make it easier to manage successfully.
Changes that seem like normal aging may also deserve a closer look. For example, an older cat who stops jumping onto the couch may be experiencing arthritis. A cat who begins urinating outside the litter box could be having difficulty climbing into it because of joint pain—or increased urination could be associated with conditions such as kidney disease, diabetes, or hyperthyroidism.
That’s why you shouldn’t automatically dismiss changes in your senior cat’s behavior or physical condition as “just getting old.”
What Can a Senior Cat Checkup Reveal?
A veterinary visit provides information that can be difficult to gather at home. Senior-care guidelines emphasize evaluating areas such as your cat’s weight, muscle and body condition, mouth and teeth, heart, thyroid gland, abdomen, joints, eyes, and overall mobility. Comparing findings with previous visits can be especially useful because changes over time may reveal developing problems.
Your veterinarian will also want to know about changes you’ve noticed at home, including your cat’s:
- Appetite and drinking habits
- Weight
- Grooming
- Activity and ability to jump
- Sleeping patterns
- Litter box habits
- Vocalization
- Interactions with people or other pets
Depending on your cat’s age, history, and examination findings, your veterinarian may recommend additional screening including blood tests, fecal test to look for intestinal parasites, and urinalysis at least annually for senior cats.
Regular Visits Create a Health History
A single veterinary examination provides a snapshot. Regular examinations can create something even more useful: a health history.
Tracking your cat’s weight, body condition, laboratory results, and physical examination findings over time can help your veterinarian recognize meaningful trends. Senior-care guidelines note, for example, that changes in laboratory values over several months can sometimes be significant, even when individual results remain within the normal range.
Common recommendations are to examine apparently healthy senior cats every six months, while the appropriate schedule for an individual cat may vary depending on age and health status. More frequent monitoring may be appropriate once a medical condition has been identified.
Veterinary Care Is About Quality of Life, Too
Senior veterinary care isn’t simply about finding disease, it’s also about helping your cat remain comfortable and able to enjoy everyday life.
Arthritis, dental disease, changes in vision or hearing, and other age-associated problems can affect how easily a cat eats, grooms, rests, plays, and uses the litter box. Sometimes relatively simple changes at home—such as providing easier access to food and water, adding steps or ramps to favorite resting places, or choosing a litter box that’s easier to enter—can make life more comfortable for an aging cat.
Your veterinarian can help you identify these changing needs and discuss ways to support your cat as they age.
Make August 22 Your Reminder
If your senior cat hasn’t visited the veterinarian recently, Take Your Cat to the Vet Day is a great reason to schedule a checkup.
Don’t wait for your cat to look sick. Regular examinations can uncover problems that aren’t yet obvious at home, establish important health trends, and give you and your veterinarian an opportunity to address changes before they become more difficult to manage.
Your senior cat may prefer to keep their secrets. A veterinary checkup can help make sure their health isn’t one of them.
