# elderly cat meowing in the middle of the night



## anita a (Jun 17, 2011)

our elderly (19 year old) burman cat Lilly has started meowing in the middle of the night (this has been going on for a good few months now) - she has plenty of food, drink, a clean litter tray etc....

she does not want to go out (she rarely goes out - only on a fine day if the wind is not too strong etc  ) as i've been down to let her out on many occasions only to find her back up stairs meowwing at the top of her voice

DH and i are begining to get very frazzled as this is happening every night for anything between half an hour and 2 hours

we've tried waking her up during the day/trying to make her more active etc but at 19 she's not really interested

any suggestions as to what i can do to get her to sleep all night again or is this it for sleep for us till the great cat basket in the sky calls her?

thanks anita & lilly


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## gloworm*mushroom (Mar 4, 2011)

Hmmm, my first though would be feline alzheimers  They can suffer from this, and the symptoms you describe sound very similar 

This sitehas some more symptoms and some general advice on feline dementia, does it fit with your kitty?

Does Your Cat Have Alzheimer's?: 10 Symptoms of Feline Dementia | Suite101.com

She has lived to a good old age!


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## anita a (Jun 17, 2011)

mmmm... i didn't know cats could get that, she only really has 2 of the symptoms - she's still eating & drinking fine and has perfect aim in her litter tray. i think i will take her to the vets for a check up though (she's not due a visit till her boosters are due in march)
i'm sure i read some where that you can give cat's piriton at night to help with excessive meowing but i'm not 100 % sure about that
thanks for the link

anita


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## Aurelia (Apr 29, 2010)

Nooo please don't give piriton just for meowing 

But yes, a visit to the vets to rule out anything else. It could be that her eye sight is failing and she is seeing shadows and things when the lights go down. But only your vet can really help with diagnostics.


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## anita a (Jun 17, 2011)

oh no don't get me wrong i'd never just give her anything without first checking it with her vet


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## Ianthi (Oct 21, 2008)

Anita-19 good age! Is is just meiowing or more howling at night? Either can also be due to medical conditions as well like high blood pressure, hyperthyroidism or kidney problems. Deafness can be another reason.

When was the last time she had full bloodwork run? It's always a good idea with older cats especially to have this done to pinpoint potential problems early. I would also have a T4 run for hyperthroidism as some cats do have the condition without exhibiting typical symptoms. Do ask vets to take BP as well, as this would be my first suspicion-easily treated though with devastating consequences if not. Regarding the vaccinations-at her age and considering she's indoor personally I don't think it's necessary with older animals. She's probably build up a strong level of immunity anyway over the years anyway.


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## anita a (Jun 17, 2011)

we are going to look for another vets this week and get her registered and have her checked over (at 19 she has no pet insurance either as this was not the done thing when we got her)

thanks for all your replies

anita


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