How long do cats live for?

[jt56]

How long do cats live for?

Our first cats were short lived- Ebony got hit by a car aged 6, Honey died of cardiac myopathy aged 8. Mum's Felix was also 6 when he was hit by a car, but then her Molly lived to 19 and Jesse was 15. They were all freely able to access outside.

My two littermates, brother and sister- we still have girlie who will be 18 in nearly 3 weeks and K died aged 15 from sudden onset kidney failure. These we kept solely as house cats due to where we live.

So a big mix of ages and circumstances.

@Seeline

Depends - my Granny's was 22

That is a wonderful age. x

@SecretNutellaFix

Our first cats were short lived- Ebony got hit by a car aged 6, Honey died of cardiac myopathy aged 8. Mum's Felix was also 6 when he was hit by a car, but then her Molly lived to 19 and Jesse was 15. They were all freely able to access outside.

My two littermates, brother and sister- we still have girlie who will be 18 in nearly 3 weeks and K died aged 15 from sudden onset kidney failure. These we kept solely as house cats due to where we live.

So a big mix of ages and circumstances.

Ah I am so sorry that you lost Ebony and Honey, and your mum lost Felix at younger ages. Also K. But I am sure all the years were treasured, and K, Molly and Jesse lived long lives. And Girlie lives on. x

@SpongeBobJudgeyPants

Ours is about 17.

That is wonderful you have had so many years with your beloved pet. x

@minipie

I think somewhere between 15-20 is usual.

Unless they have an accident.

Yes minipie - that seems to be what the comments here show for most who make it through the early years. x

@Vinorosso74

Average life expectancy is about 15-16. Some make it past 20. Certain pedigrees may have a shorter life expectancy.

That is useful to know. My cat was 16 and a british shorthair cross. the owner of the shorthair was giving an accidental litter away originally.

@NorbertMeubles

Mine is only 8 and probably won't last the year due to cancer ☹

I am deeply sorry your cat is so seriously ill NorbertMeubles. I pray that the time you have with him or her will be as long and happy as possible. xxx

Maine coon pts at nearly 21. Flew to France at 12. Dislocated hip at 1yr old and had top of femur removed. No other problems apart from shaving under ga as she wouldn't groom herself.

Sorry to hear about you cat, op. I cried all night when one of mine was knocked down.

My two remaining ones are 12 and 13 and in good health. Although very much house and garden cats now.

@jt56 beautiful girl and 16 is a good age so don't be too hard on yourself, read rainbow bridge poem as someone suggested.

Crying reading all these.
I lost one of my girls in January 2019 at 18 het sister passed 1 months to the day at 19 in November 2019. The grief is terrible. I have another four cats. Two will 13 and the other two 10 this year.

Condolences to all others on here who have lost or have ill cats xx

*typo 11 months to the day

@Chimeraforce

Ours died of a cancerous lump in her abdomen about 8. Gutting. She was fab. Had her annual vet check February, stopped eating in May. Took her to the vet who found a large lump. Dead 2 weeks later. 😭😭😭

Same with my boy, he was only 10. Has his annual check and he looked great, he always saw the same vet as she’d been seeing him through some manageable issues. Two weeks later he went rapidly downhill, he looked 10 years older overnight. Rushed to vets and it was a tumour that had burst so there was nothing to be done - this was 5 days before first lockdown. Miss him so much 😢

OP - am really sorry, it’s so hard when they go. 💐

Around 20, that's if they make it past around 3 - seems curiosity as a young cat is pretty dangerous!

Our first one died at 22. We got her from a pet shop when I was 5 so I really had a chance to grow up with her. I still miss her (so did my Dad!).

One of ours was only 8, he very rapidly developed kidney disease and went downhill too quickly for the vet to be able to establish treatment.

Our last old boy got to 18, 6 years on thyroid medication but hurtling around the house causing trouble right up until his final week!

Our two girls at the moment are 16 and 12. 16 year old has gone deaf in the last year and is a bit doddery and frail these days but no illness, just her age, 12 year old has barely changed since we got her 10 years ago!

Sorry for your loss OP, it's devastating when they go

Childhood cat lived until she was 19.

Our girl got ill and within a week we had to make the awful decision to put her to sleep, she was 12. Which is still [relatively] so very young.

Our new little fella is 14 weeks and we hope to have him for many, many, many years.

She was a bonny cat OP.
16 is a good age, I don't think you should feel as if you let her down. Better to go quickly too than linger.
My two previous cats lived to around 5 (undiagnosed kidney problems) and 14 (cancer). Current cats are 6 and just under 2.
Heartbreaking every time they go

My Jazz Cat lived to 23. She was such a sweet girl, was devastated when she died. We have another rescue cat now who is 5.
So sorry for your loss.

My parents cats lived till 17 and 18. I've had two cats so far. One is 5 and going strong, the other disappeared before she was 3 😭

One of our cats died suddenly at home (no accident) aged 10 and a half. I felt this was young. But it can happen so I think many poa are right but there are ones who die in early teens or tens.

We got 2 kittens from a friend of a friend when I was about 13. They were only tiny.

The boy died last year, aged 18. He had a few health issues over his life but was generally healthy until the end. The girl is still going, nearly 19 now. She's very doddery but she's always been a bit away with the fairies. The vet said she was fairly healthy for her age. I think she'll outlive us all.

So so so sorry for your loss

I had to have my cat PTS last year. She was 13. So fairly young really. I was absolutely heartbroken. She was my very best friend, and I dont really know what was wrong with her in the end. Like you I felt she had many more years to live. She just stopped eating and drinking, and was coughing a lot and her legs were giving way. The comfort I get now, is, she was loved, safe and happy for all her life. Sorry about your cat OP. 🌺

The cat I got for my 15th birthday only died last year aged 18. We had another cat who we took in as a stray thinking he was very frail and elderly and would only live a few months and he ended up living another 10 years so god knows how old he was. Definitely early 20s at the youngest!

My pedigree Persian lived to 17, which surprised us all as she was quite inbred (I wouldn't get a pedigree cat now; my parents didn't know any better when they bought her).

My lovely ginger tom (street rescue) got to the age of 8 before a stomach tumour took him. My current mog is 5 and going strong, touch wood.

Oh I'm so sorry OP

Ours is 16 and I'm hoping has a good few years left, but I know once they get ill they can go quickly. It's comforting to know they had a happy life full of love. Losing pets is so tough.