You will all think I am potty, and my post is frivolous, but I am deadly serious. I think my cat has dementia. Please don't laugh, and if you feel like laughing just ignore this post. I don't want sarcastic comments please. I appreciate that a problem with a cat is not nearly so important as a problem with a human being, but I thought I would give it a whirl.
It is dead odd. He is an old guy (nearly 19), but his behaviour has recently become so strange. He has got into a routine that he never used to have. In and out of the cat flap every 10 minutes. He used to sleep for 20 hours and have a few hours of wakefulness to eat, play, whatever, but it has all changed. Yes, I have taken him to the vet, we decided he had a mouth infection, so he has had antibiotics etc. But he has not responded to that. His behaviour is so strange. I have just got him settled in a strange place (study desk, with a cushion) and within 5 minutes he is up off the desk and outside. He has just gone out. I bet he is in before I finish this.
He also sits at the cat flap as if wondering whether he is supposed to go through it or not. So he does. And then sits right outside it as if not knowing why he is there, so he comes back in. And this is every 10 minutes. Woops, here he comes again, back in, and he doesn't seem to know how to sit or curl up. He just stands there staring at the cushion I have put there for him. He just doesn't know what to do.
He is obviously exhausted, I can see his body sagging. But he has forgotten how to curl up and sleep. He looks so sad. He is currently trying to get comfy and it is painful to watch. The vet says he is in no pain.
Sorry for such a stupid post. But the similarities between humans with dementia and my cat are just such that I cannot ignore them.
I expect a lot of stick!
Margaret
It is dead odd. He is an old guy (nearly 19), but his behaviour has recently become so strange. He has got into a routine that he never used to have. In and out of the cat flap every 10 minutes. He used to sleep for 20 hours and have a few hours of wakefulness to eat, play, whatever, but it has all changed. Yes, I have taken him to the vet, we decided he had a mouth infection, so he has had antibiotics etc. But he has not responded to that. His behaviour is so strange. I have just got him settled in a strange place (study desk, with a cushion) and within 5 minutes he is up off the desk and outside. He has just gone out. I bet he is in before I finish this.
He also sits at the cat flap as if wondering whether he is supposed to go through it or not. So he does. And then sits right outside it as if not knowing why he is there, so he comes back in. And this is every 10 minutes. Woops, here he comes again, back in, and he doesn't seem to know how to sit or curl up. He just stands there staring at the cushion I have put there for him. He just doesn't know what to do.
He is obviously exhausted, I can see his body sagging. But he has forgotten how to curl up and sleep. He looks so sad. He is currently trying to get comfy and it is painful to watch. The vet says he is in no pain.
Sorry for such a stupid post. But the similarities between humans with dementia and my cat are just such that I cannot ignore them.
I expect a lot of stick!
Margaret