Vet check up for elderly but healthy cat?

November 13, 2023 8:26 AM

I'm wondering if I should take my cat in for a routine checkup. He's about 14-15 yrs old but in good physical shape and seems healthy. Is it worth the trouble?

He's due for some shots like rabies and some other ones. But he's an indoor cat and doesn't live with other cats. I wouldn't hesitate if he had an obvious reason to go but I'd rather not put him through the stress unless it really is a good idea. Any advice is welcome. Thanks.

posted by Liquidwolf to Pets & Animals (16 answers total)

I had a cat who got very stressed with vet visits, and finding a mobile vet for her was life changing.

I've had bats in my house more than once, so I'd suggest rabies shots even for an indoor cat. But if you can find a mobile vet, it will greatly reduce the stress for your cat. The one I found ultimately euthanized my cat at home. I was so glad not to have to put her through the stress of a vet trip.
posted by FencingGal at 8:44 AM on November 13, 2023 [5 favorites]

I take my cats yearly, although mine are farm cats so them getting all the vaccinations on time every year is important. With a cat as old as yours the vet could check things like kidney function where your cat would benefit from it being caught and managed early. Unless he is really hugely stressed by the vet I would take him yearly.
posted by Rhedyn at 8:46 AM on November 13, 2023 [3 favorites]

It is a good idea because the vet will catch early signs of common health issues in older cats, which if treated early can help your cat live a longer and happier life. Two that come to mind are:
- hyperthyroidism (the longer runway you have to treat it the better)
- kidney issues (most cats this age are starting to get kidney issues - if your cat is, a switch to a kidney-care diet will make a huge difference in their quality and quantity of life)

Generally speaking, it's a good idea to bring a cat to the vet at least once a year. Because you live with your cat every day, there are gradual changes you may not notice that a vet will.

On edit: seconding the mobile vet.
posted by rednikki at 8:47 AM on November 13, 2023 [9 favorites]

How closely are you watching his condition? Has he lost weight? Is he more or less vocal than usual? How is his eating? How are his teeth? When you look in his mouth, are his gums healthy and pink or is there redness?

I have a cat about this age. The vet will want to do blood work and evaluate whether dental work is necessary. My feeling is that if it's a real hardship - the cat goes off his food for days after a visit or it's really something you won't be able to afford - you should keep a very, very close eye on his weight, eating/drinking, teeth and litterbox use and be prepared to go in if anything changes at all. At this age, there can be a lot of kidney or hyperthyroid issues that can come up. My experience is that you will probably see physical signs (if you're observing closely) - we had regular bloodwork and there were physical signs of health issues long before the bloodwork was at a diagnostic level.

Another option would be to go in now for a baseline and then observe closely from there.
posted by Frowner at 8:51 AM on November 13, 2023 [1 favorite]

Nthing an in-home vet visit if you can. It made a huge difference with both of our cats. We may have lucked out, but ours is surprisingly inexpensive (ours only does house visits, and her appointment cost is about the same as going to the local clinic).

We also had one vet prescribe gabapentin for vet visits. You have to dose your cat, so if they're very averse to medicine that may make it difficult. But it helped them both be much calmer for out-of-home visits and/or blood draws.
posted by ghost phoneme at 9:18 AM on November 13, 2023

Vet stress is real! Maybe your vet could prescribe something for the anxiety? Rabies shots are a good idea for a lot of reasons, including the cat getting outside by accident, a natural disaster happening where you need to take shelter somewhere that requires a rabies certificate (this is an issue in wildfire country, maybe not where you are), the cat bites someone and medical treatment requires proof of a rabies shot, bats or rodents get into the house and the cat gets bitten, etc.
posted by corey flood at 9:54 AM on November 13, 2023

I'm an outlier, but I've completely stopped taking my indoor cats to the vet unless they're having some sort of issue. The stress they go through is horrible; none are tolerant at all of the process and one is downright violent and would require sedation for any basic procedure. I realize this probably isn't the preferred style of cat ownership. It's also allowed me to adopt 4 strays (who do get the full workup/vaccines/etc. on their way into my household); if I was doing full vet visits each year I would not be able to afford 4.
posted by BlahLaLa at 9:55 AM on November 13, 2023 [5 favorites]

Cats hide pain/distress, so many medical issues are not visible. My own elderly cat has hyperthyroidism and teeth issues which were both indistinguishable from “this cat is old” in the early stages. (Our calculus might be different if she had major stress at the vet, but she seems to top out at “I am a venerable lady, why is this plebe being so disrespectful?”)
posted by tchemgrrl at 10:27 AM on November 13, 2023 [4 favorites]

If they need their shots, then yes - you should do at least an annual check-up. If you can get a mobile vet, definitely recommend it. Annual blood work may catch things like early kidney disease and you can start treating those things early before they become real problems.

But for real, get the rabies shot religiously however you have to do it. For example, in the unlikely event your cat ever bites someone you're going to want to know with certainty they have had their rabies shot if somebody needs to be treated.
posted by jzb at 10:27 AM on November 13, 2023 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks everyone forf the comments, they're helpful.
posted by Liquidwolf at 2:00 PM on November 13, 2023

I would definitely get the cat seen by a vet, whether with an at-home visit or at the vet practice. Even if the cat is in super good health, it helps establish a baseline against which you can compare future visits.

When our senior cat developed hypokalemia last year, we were able to compare his blood results to the blood results taken the year before, which meant that the lack of potassium was immediately apparent. (He's on potassium supplements and hormone regulators now, has gained back one kilo and is looking/behaving generally ten years younger. We're hopeful he'll have many more years with us.)
posted by snakeling at 2:01 PM on November 13, 2023

We have a 15 yr old cat and at her last vet appointment our vet told us that there’s no reason to see her again unless she’s ill. She’s an indoor cat, is up to date on vaccines. But, at this point, since she is old, frail, and grumpy, the vet said we don’t need to be bringing her in anymore, even for vaccines.
posted by Sassyfras at 6:00 PM on November 13, 2023

I'd recommend it. We lost our 22 year old kitty this summer due to kidney failure, but because the vet caught the kidney disease fairly early at an annual check up, we were able to get 5 more years with her just by switching her food and getting her on a tiny dose of amlodipine.
posted by astapasta24 at 6:44 PM on November 13, 2023 [2 favorites]

Senior cats should get check ups every six months so you can catch and treat problems well before they become life threatening
posted by Jacqueline at 8:55 PM on November 13, 2023

One aspect to consider about the shots is that they may be legally required where you live. You may need proof of vaccination to board the cat, take the cat on a plane, hire a petsitter, etc.

I have an elderly cat (18.5) and I take her every 6 months. They pay close attention to kidney function when cats get older but that won't manifest to the pet owner if there's an issue until it's too late. My vet told me that cats are designed to live for 8 years and they live way longer because they have protection from predators/disease/etc. so elderly happens way earlier than I realized.
posted by *s at 10:53 AM on November 14, 2023 [1 favorite]

I'd take her in because of her teeth. My vet is no longer comfortable giving my cat anesthesia for teeth cleaning because of her age and some chronic conditions. I didn't take her to the vet in 2020 and 2021 because of covid and wish I'd been able to get her teeth cleaned one last time.

I guess that's a long way of saying you should take her in to make sure you catch something early.
posted by Mavri at 6:01 PM on November 16, 2023