Content
- The aging process in cats
- Vitamin supplements for elderly cats
- How to administer vitamins to elderly cats?
- Other advice for elderly cats
There is nothing more satisfying for us than to have pets healthy and with a long life that they give us their affection and company for as long as possible, for this reason, the old age of our animals, far from being a problem, is a stage full of positive moments, where our pet need us more than ever and that gives us the opportunity to give them a lot of attention and affection.
However, as with human beings, aging is a process that changes the organism's physiology from the normal way, a process during which both animals and people begin to have different needs.
To cover the nutritional needs of elderly felines, sometimes they need nutritional supplements and in this article by the Animal Expert we show you what they are. vitamins for old cats.
The aging process in cats
Our cat's longevity, as well as its quality of life, is determined through the care that our cat. pet you receive daily, and if this is adequate and if we are able to cover all your physical, psychological and social needs. If so, our cat can live to live more than 12 years, in fact some even reach an age of 21 years or more.
While it is true that cats can age in a healthy way, it is nonetheless true that the aging process involves important changes in your body, let's see what they are:
- It decreases metabolism and activity, the cat becomes lazy and tends to be overweight.
- The immune system begins to weaken and is at greater risk of suffering from infectious diseases.
- Decreases fluid intake and runs a greater risk of dehydration.
- Its behavior can change, the cat needs more affection and company from its owner.
- Increases the risk of suffering bone and degenerative diseases
During our cat's old age we must pay more attention to your health and go to the vet immediately when we notice that our pet is not well.
Through various precautions we can minimize the risks associated with longevity and one of the best tools we can use for this purpose is food.
Vitamin supplements for elderly cats
During our cat's old age it is important to control eating habits to prevent an increase in body weight, for this we must give it food several times a day but in reduced quantity.
Dry food is also recommended as it is much more useful to prevent the formation of tartar on the teeth, however, in the face of problems with lack of appetite, we should opt for moist food.
If the cat eats properly and according to its stage of life, we can plan the use of vitamin-based nutritional supplements, since vitamins for old cats give our pets the following advantages:
- Greater vitality and energy
- Strengthening the capacity of the immune system
- Prevention of bone and degenerative diseases (vitamins participate in several chemical reactions essential for proper bone metabolism)
- appetite regulation
It is important to emphasize that before planning the use of vitamin supplements, we must make sure that the dietary guidelines are adequate, since nutritional supplements cannot be intended to replace a good diet, but rather to complement it.
How to administer vitamins to elderly cats?
Under no circumstances can you administer nutritional supplements that have been approved for human use to your cat, as our pet's needs are very different from ours.
the vitamins must be specific for cats and currently we can easily find them in specialized stores and in various presentations, so we can choose the format that is most comfortable for our cat.
However, before administering nutritional supplements to your cat, the advice of the veterinarian is essential. He will carry out a basic exploration and will recommend the vitamin supplement that best suits your cat's specific needs during old age.
Other advice for elderly cats
if you want to see your cat grow old healthily and preserving your quality of life, we recommend that you pay special attention to the following advice:
- From 8 years of age on, the cat needs at least two annual veterinary checks, regardless of having pathological symptoms or not.
- Through food and water, we must ensure that our cat maintains adequate oral hygiene to prevent the onset of gingivitis.
- We must not wake the cat when it is sleeping, nor disturb it in any way. He needs to rest and remain calm, don't forget this is an elderly animal.
- If it doesn't clean as before, we should periodically brush it ourselves.
- Your elderly cat needs extra pampering, don't forget to give him as much love as you can and spend time with him.
