The Older Cat: Recognizing Decline & Extending Life

Like lots of people, I bought this book when my Number One Cat Elvis was dying of kidney disease. In addition to feeling the sadness of other people's experiences, I also was able to do a few things just to make Elvis' life even better his last few days and minutes--I brought a towel from home and had him lay on it. The book also helped me deal with Elvis' afterlife, just remembering and writing freely about the little details of our relationship. We all mourn in different ways, and it's important that writings on the human-animal bond do include the human part. One of the unique things about Poynter's THE OLDER CAT is it's written in a relaxed and personal style, and has short sections, different fonts--something that will allure the cyber generation.

This is an excellent book dealing exclusively with older cats. It is informative, easy to read, and surprisingly upbeat considering the issues it covers. The book has an extensive appendix with valuable resources for more information on dealing with older cat issues. The book has useful information covering health, extending life, nutrition, and dealing with final decisions and grief in a straightforward manner. The book has stories about older cat solutions from various cat owners that make the book fun, and have helpful hints as well. There is no easy way to make a decision about your older cat's fate when he or she gets sick or has age-related problems. This book has the courage to deal with these issues, including the matter of deciding when or if to use euthanasia to ease your cat's suffering. Again, stories from other people make the read easier, and come up with alternatives. Death is a taboo subject in our society, but this book has the courage to deal with it. The book covers some diseases and the signs that your cat may be ill, injured, or in declining health because of age. It deals with the decisions whether to give care or to end your cat's suffering. It helps to make the choices, and again reading other people's choices can make your decision easier. Cats are valuable additions to their owners' lives and I deserve whatever help we can give when they reach old age. This book can help you do the right thing for your pet. I recommend this book to anyone with an older cat. It is a valuable reference for the cat owner's library.

& #65279; While I haven't had any cats or other pets for a couple of decades, I was fascinated by the Aging Cat-which just goes to show that anything done really well is interesting. Dan Poynter wants to make sure that cats get all nine of their lives. The Older Cat is a cat lover's manual on being the best cat lover and guardian possible. It is about how to be Florence Nightingale to your cat when she is ill. And it is about how to make the difficult decisions about when and how to let go when your cat is dying. As a longevity expert, I was struck with Dan Poynter's data on how, just like humans, cats are living a lot longer. The Older Cat is a comprehensive book on cat care that includes nutrition at different ages, illnesses, warning signs, and working with veterinarians. It is unique in focusing on the issues of aging cats and dealing with their eventual decline and death. Mr. Poynter walks the reader through and holds the reader's hand in giving cats loving care and in making tough decisions. As a psychologist I am particularly struck with how readers will feel they are not alone in making tough decisions, but part of a brotherhood of cat lovers. The Older Cat was striking in how technology is changing cat care. Mr. Poynter recommend getting your vet's E-mail address so you can update the vet on changes in a sick cat's health status. The appendix not only contains information about many books, magazines, cat insurance, support groups, and other resources, it is full of web site addresses and even chat room information. I highly recommend it to all cat lovers-it gets a five mouse rating...

This book will help you discover how to determine the real age of your cat, recognize the early signs of decline, slow the aging process, and extend your cat's life. And when your cat nears death, this book will explain your choices. It will help you decide if you should put your cat to sleep, how to minimize the loss to your family and other pets, the grieving process, and your choices regarding burial and memorializing your cat. The Appendix contains many helpful resources.Cats are living longer than ever, an average of 16 years, due to our increased knowledge of nutrition and improvements in medicine. Sooner or later, every cat will die, but you can help improve both his/her quality and quantity of life.Highly recommended to anyone with a cat who is more than 10 years old. Protect your cat now! Get this book BEFORE you need it.

"The Older Cat" is the only book I know of that explains in human terms how cats age and what cat owners can do to ensure that the special relationships they enjoy with the cat remain high-quality to the very end. The information here may even help owners prolong their cats' lives, and it will certainly help make the cats' later years truly golden.I have outlived several cats. No book can make that part of the relationship any easier, but "The Older Cat" helped me appreciate all over again the reasons why I had cats in the first place. Every cat needs an owner who has read this book.