12 year old tom cat behaving strangely

[GlomOfNit]

Not sure if we should be worried or not. He's neutered, came to us at 3 years old, has since then enjoyed a chilled lifestyle with lots of love, outdoor activity, etc. He's lost a bit of weight recently but saw a vet a few weeks ago for his 6 monthly check up. We fairly recently changed his food to a better one (one of those subscription ones) though annoyingly I later found out that half of my choices aren't a 'complete' food (he gets Iams biscuits and the odd tin of Whiskas which is less high quality but still rated as 'complete' because of the minerals etc they add). The vet said this was probably fine as long as he eats biscuits too. He's also been thirstier - as in, I hardly ever saw him drink water though I know he did, but now he's often slurping. Mentioned that to the vet too, she said 'the new food possibly has less moisture in than the Felix he used to have'. She also did a blood test at this check up and said his kidneys seem fine. He's on something called Loxicom for suspected arthritis (he was getting stiff and sometimes limping) but isn't currently limping.

Ok, that's the recent background. The last couple of evenings, he's come into the living room and yowled at the tv corner of the room, then stared fixedly at that corner. Very insistent, definitely distressed about something. Then moved to another part of the room and got behind a dresser in that corner, and this evening I caught him spraying the wall behind the dresser! (He's neutered but does spray occasionally, outside.)

I have no idea what's going on. I know cats can get very eccentric if their kidneys start to go (hallucinating etc) but surely the blood test he had rules that out? (plus I think they really have to be badly functioning before cats start acting odd because of toxins?) We have once before had mice in the walls which he spotted first (before we could hear them) and was paying a lot of attention to particular spots. Could be that, I suppose. Or possibly another cat in the area is freaking him out? There's a new tom we've seen a few times, and it doesn't seem very friendly (his other two cat friends are pretty chilled and they seem to enjoy sitting outside together!).

Should we be going back to the vet? Change his food back to crappy Felix pouches?

Could there be a mouse hiding somewhere in that area ? It’s the staring that made me wonder

My cats have only done that kind of thing especially the staring when there’s been a mouse (and once a shrew!) nearby

If he's spraying he could have FLUTD which is similar to cystitis. It's very painful for them, I'd take him back to the vet to rule that and diabetes out.

One of ours was put to sleep after staring into corners, and peeing indoors. The vet said she believed some cats develop an Alzheimers type disease.

I'm thinking it might be bladder stones.
If so would need to see vet as dangerous if bladder gets blocked.

oh god, I'm sorry. This is the sort of nasty niggle at the back of my mind, as I've read about similar. He's playing happily, he enjoys his outdoor time (though slowing down at 12 and spending more time asleep on beds inside), he has a generally good appetite.

In terms of how he is in himself, he's gradually become more hostile towards me over the years and will bite me fiercely if he's pissed off - my son thinks it's because I insist on picking him up to snuggle, and not paying him due respect. Might be true - my 15 yo son and the cat have a very nice relationship and he is definitely the preferred human. I honestly don't think he's changed suddenly though, apart from this sudden fixation with that corner.

Is he urinating, not the spraying, but have you seen him urinating in his litter tray (if he has one)? He could have a uti or possibly a stress induced urinary problem if there's a new aggressive cat about. Male neutered cats are susceptible to urinary problems especially on dried food.

There are other possibilities too as suggested eg dementia but I'd rule out the above first.

The corner thing sounds like a mouse. But yowling and slight bad temper can sometimes be a sign of a thyroid condition which can be easily treated. Maybe take him to the vet if it carries on to check there is nothing up.

Hi OP..the thirst and weight loss could indicate diabetes .my previous cat had that and these were the symptoms..my partner's cat also has uncontrolled diabetes before it was diagnosed..urinating in strange places and yowling...please get him checked out .feline diabetes is quite common and very easily put right. Also if his blood sugar is all over the place, he will be feeling rough so that would explain the aggression

Have you changed anything around the house lately? My 14 year old tom cat started spraying since I redecorated. He pees absolutely fine in the litter tray and outside but has hugely taken against the house being slightly different. At one point he sprayed all down my back while I was crouched down! I’m "his" person and he gets the rage very easily (and acts out) if he doesn't get attention right when he wants it. He's still on a dirty protest spraying in specific (newer decorated) areas of the house almost a year later. It's always soft furnishings, like newer floor length curtains or a thin velvet thingie I have covering the TV stand.

No, no house changes. My younger son is severely autistic and can be loud and a bit unpredictable, but they stay out of one another's way and coexist fine. That's not a change, anyway.

One thing he's started doing in recent months is very aggressively going after me if I have the temerity to pick him up and place him on the sofa (where I know he likes to curl up and nap) or something like that. He's particularly motivated/provoked by swishy dressing gowns/wide pyjama trouser legs. My legs have scars from scratches and tooth scratches (so do my wrists) and I literally have to fend him off. This seems like red flag behaviour now I write it down, but it's gradually come on in aggressiveness and as I say, he's been quite iffy with me for years now. (He's one of those cats who's very needy - will get on your lap purring for a cuddle on his terms, but after maybe 5 mins stroking he turns Mr Hyde on you and savages. He doesn't do this to my 15 yo son but then DS is much more circumspect and doesn't fuss him as much .) He's a bit of a git but very much his own character and we do love him.

I wonder if I've triggered anything by changing his food to Untamed? And like I say, the ones he likes are the jelly ones and apparently they don't give him everything he needs, though he's supplemented with Iams and Whiskas/Felix.

I'll take him back to the vet, I suppose, see what she thinks. I'm dreading that this will escalate if it's something degenerative, it'll devastate my son.