# 17yr old acting weird



## phisigjuliet269 (Feb 27, 2010)

So my 17 yr old is acting weird.

He is allowed outside to lay on the deck - the last 2 weeks he has been wanting to lay on the deck a lot.

The other night he jumped on the bed, licked my face and then ran away- then he jumped and went on my desk- he never jumps.

The other night he was jumping on the table trying to steal chicken.

The past 3 days he has been sitting on a paper plate in the kitchen near his water bowel ( yes it's filled) . He hasn't been in his usual spots. Although sometimes he finds a spot and just sits there for days. 

He eats great, drinks the usual amount & has been using the liter box fine. It doesn't appear he has increased his use.

I dunno if I am just being picky or if he is getting a little senile. I believe his eyes are a little cloudy but throw a piece of ham any place in the kitchen and he will find it in 1 second and god forbid I touch a can of Tuna he appears out of no where. I dunno. My dog just had knee surgery so I can't afford to take him for a check up for a few weeks. Last yr he checked out great. 

Just curious if anyone else has experienced their older cats acting crazy. The sitting on the plate thing is making me crazy.


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## phisigjuliet269 (Feb 27, 2010)

Anyone? He is still sitting on a paper plate in the kitchen. I try to move him and he runs back to the plate. I was even thinking of throwing it out. 

So frustrating....


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## blondie1483 (Jan 19, 2011)

Hey! First - are you a Phi Sigma Sigma? I am too! Zeta Pi chapter, from NJ.. 

Second - I wish I had any experience with this.. my oldest is only 10 and sometimes he acts a little wacko.. but not sure about senility..

Hope someone else has some input. :-/ best of luck! At least he sounds like he's having fun.. he doesn't seem in pain or anything.


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## cooncatbob (May 27, 2011)

17 years for a cat is like 80 for a person, congratulations on providing your cat with a long healthy life.
Any sign of behavioral change at this advanced age can be a warning that something is amiss.
I ignored the sign with my Samantha, she was yowling and pooping outside the box but otherwise seemed fine until 5 days after her 16th birthday I found her lying on the floor in distress.
I rushed her to the vet where $1000 worth of test and scans reveled tumors around her spleen and in her intestines, it was cancer and it was advanced.
I could not put her through extensive surgery for maybe a little more time wracked with pain and discomfort, so I let my beloved friend go and she died in my arms.
I'm not saying this to frighten you but if you love your pet and want whats best you might want to get her checked out, disease can strike and elderly cat very quickly.
My baby seemed fine one day and the next she was old and feeble, her eyes were cloudy and distant and her coat which had been so soft and shiny was now dull.


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## BotanyBlack (Apr 6, 2011)

have you changed his diet any out of curiousity? was he over weight and lost any poundage? 

My older cat liked to sit on paper plates if I had used it to give a treat like fresh roasted turkey. mainly to tell me he wanted more If I did not pick it up immediately. 

trying to think of ideas. My cats would change out favorite roosting spots if my routine changed also, if I was spending more time in a different room ect.

Most cats get some cloudyness to their eyes after the age of 8 years(one of the ways to determine age), but if he is developing eye issues, he may be picking brighter spots that stand out more, but then he probably would not be jumping alot.

so I really don't have many clues otherwise.

Is he doing anything else out of the ordinary?


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

Sounds like a normal cat to me.

Does him sitting on  a paper plate offend you for some reason?


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## phisigjuliet269 (Feb 27, 2010)

blondie1483 said:


> Hey! First - are you a Phi Sigma Sigma? I am too! Zeta Pi chapter, from NJ..
> 
> 
> Actually yes I am a Phi Sig Delta Mu (William Paterson University) chapter also in NJ.
> ...


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## Fyreflie (Mar 5, 2011)

Our cats do random things like that all the time!  The kitten will sit on anything made of paper that is left on the floor and if it stays in a room he will go to it as soon as he enters the room and sit or lie on it. He also randomly throws his body on the floor without warning and stretches, then gets back up. 

I don't know, I have only had experience with strangely behaved cats so that sounds normal to me but if it's different for your kitty definitely get it checked out!


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## BotanyBlack (Apr 6, 2011)

if I had a empty room and a single sheet of paper on the floor.. that cats would all squeeze onto it, But then I never have a totally empty room so they sit on anything.. but still prefer paper unless i have warm laundry fresh out of the drier..


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## cooncatbob (May 27, 2011)

Plastic grocery bags and a sheet of newspaper, my cat love to lay on them.
I still have an old throw pillow stuffed in a grocery bag that Samantha always laid on.


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## laurief (Jun 22, 2008)

An elderly cat exhibiting uncharacteristically hyperactive behavior (jumping and running) and stealing food would have me taking him to the vet for a thyroid test (Total T4 blood test). It may not be a thyroid problem, but it's certainly the first thing I'd want to rule out, given those symptoms.

Laurie


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