Friday, September 22, 2017

5 Benefits of Adopting an Older Cat

Meows from Mudpie!

Are you looking to adopt a new cat? As tempting as adorable little kittens are, Mommy and I are huge advocates of bringing home adult kitties. Truffles and I were young adults of 2 when we were adopted, but before us, Sashi was 9, Tara was 7, and Sebastian was 12! They were all amazing pets that Mommy was blessed to have many years of happiness with.

Today we're happy to share a guest post featuring five benefits of adopting a senior cat over a kitten.


Guest post by Adam Snape on behalf of animalfriends.co.uk

As much as you may love the excitement of a kitten, you may not have realized the advantages that adopting an older cat can bring to your home.

Pet owners can experience a variety of benefits when adopting an older cat. Often, they’re more well-suited to senior owners or relaxed, family homes who have less time to wait hand and foot on a kitten. In this guide, we’ve shared five benefits of adopting a senior pet, along with how you can help them settle into your home:

1. They require less training.

The most obvious benefit of adopting an older cat is that they require less training than they would at a younger age. Chances are, they’re already house-trained and know how to do basic things such as use a litter tray.

Because they don’t need as much training, your senior cat will be much easier to handle than a younger one.

2. Their exercise requirements aren’t as demanding.

If you’ve got a kitten, you’re probably smitten with your little bundle of joy. But while they are cute balls of energy, bear in mind that you might have to spend a lot of time tending to their heightened activity levels.

Senior cats have a great attention span, so there’s no need to panic about teaching an old cat new tricks. It’s still possible to house-train a senior cat if they haven’t had any form of training before.


3. They’re great companions.

Another benefit of adopting an older cat is that they make perfect companions. Compared to their kitten stages, senior cats are less energetic and require less attention. They also tend to have a calmer temperament.

Because they don’t have a demanding exercise regime and would love to curl up on your lap, they’re true feline friends – particularly for elderly people.

4. Older cats are less destructive.

Unlike kittens, older cats don’t require as much attention and are usually content with lounging around the home. This means that they’re much less likely to cause damage to your home!

However, if you spot that your senior cat is causing problems and destroying your home, it might be a life-long behavior issue. In this event, extra time and patience will be required to train them to be less destructive.

5. You know what you’re getting!

Every home has specific requirements for a new pet, especially when it comes to the amount of space that they have. For this reason, adopting a senior cat may be more beneficial as you know what you’re getting – especially with regards to their final size!

By adopting a kitten, you can’t really predict how big the cat will grow, the temperament that they’ll have or how they will react to other day-to-day routines.

Adopting an older cat will combat these issues, especially if you visit the cat in their previous habitat before making the decision to bring them home.


As you can see, adopting a senior cat offers incredible benefits but of course there’s the obvious disadvantage of older pets being more prone to serious illness. For that reason, you should always have the best pet insurance policy for your older cat to ensure that they’re happy, healthy and content.

Have you ever adopted a senior kitty? 
Why did you choose them over a kitten?

FTC Disclosure: We are being compensated to feature this content, but regardless of payment received you will only see topics on this blog that we believe are of interest to our readers.

Photos:
flickr creative commons/Nate Steiner
flickr creative commons/Stephen Rahn
flickr creative commons/Kim Siever

13 comments:

The Menagerie Mom said...

This is a topic that I love discussing and which is dear to my heart. In the future, I plan to adopt adult, senior, geriatric kitties. In the last few of her 21 years of life, my Angel Rosie showed me just how beautiful life with an older cat can be, and I plan to honor that by adopting older cats. Thank you for sharing this!

Summer at sparklecat.com said...

Binga wants to dispute #4! She says that senior cats can be JUST as destructive as kittens, if they put their minds to it.

Um, don't listen to her.

Anonymous said...

Good information. Thanks, Mudpie and Melissa.

Random Felines said...

Tim & Tom were 2 when they became foster fails but everyone else here has been kittens. That said, we love promoting older cats being adopted and do the happy dance when it happens. (besides, kittens are kind of like gangsters sometimes....trust us)

Colehaus Cats said...

We can't say enough on adopting a senior cat. Having raised bottle babies, kittens, foster kittens and cats over thirty years, adopting a senior cat is definitely where it's at, and for all the reasons you have listed. There is nothing more rewarding than bringing an older cat into your family and our experience has shown they know they are special, having often been looked over time and again for a cute ball of fluff.

da tabbies o trout towne said...

sauce and I chose each other ♥♥♥ though his age was not definite, the shelter
thought he was close to 6 when I adopted him ~~

Momma Kat and Her Bear Cat said...

I'm embarrassed to admit that before Ellie, I'd never really considered adopting an older cat. It's not a matter of cuteness - just that we have so little time with our furbabies as it is - I wanted every second possible. Plus my finances are a bit shaky as it is - and I'd never want to be in a position where I couldn't afford to give my kitties the best care. Then I fell in love with Ellie and I realized life has other plans. It's funny how life turns out. Up until I fell in love with Bear (he was about 8 months old), I wouldn't have adopted a cat off the street that hadn't been carefully vetted (and yes, I did get him checked out before I brought him inside - but I meant a longer period to really be sure he didn't have anything). Love truly is blind - you just have to have enough courage to give it a chance.

Hairballsandhissyfits.com said...

Very good points about senior cats! I have no idea how old Amarula is cause I got her off the streets but she may be middle aged. Seniors have just as much to offer as the young ones do!

Eastside Cats said...

Heck, I'm hoping there is some wealthy person who wants to adopt me...I'm an older 'cat', who wants to quit working and have someone else pay all the bills.
Hardy har har!

The Island Cats said...

This is so true. We hope people will give seniors a chance.

Mark's Mews (Marley, Lori, Loki, and Binq) said...

I have already decided that the next ones (should I outlive the Mews) will be older ones. I'll understand them, respect their age, give them comfort. ~ TBT

M Dawson said...

Our senior Dusty was much loved, and senior Harvey IS much loved, and our senior Peanut ran the house for 18.5 years! we would have NO hesitation about adopting a senior EVER!!!!

This is a lovely post and I hope it encourages others to consider a adult, or senior for the sheer joy and love they bring.

Marjorie and the Dash Kitten Crew

Three Chatty Cats said...

Our first three cats found us, so we didn't have a choice in age. But we adopted Woodrow earlier this year and he's an adult cat. Not a senior, but definitely an adult at about 5 years old. I think it's wonderful for people to welcome older cats into their home!