Comments on: Why older cats YOWL (cry) at night

By: Janet

Janet — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 19:33:18 +0000

I have a siamese cat -shes approx 16-20? Age unknown. She is also urinating all over and has kidney disease. She has been through many changes in the past couple years with my mom dying and being moved from family to family. Vet told me the urinating is territorial. I have two other cats. After trying everything I finally decided to put puppy pee pads in the corners of the room. She does use litter box but if I let her out of room unattended she pees on the carpet in corners of my house. She is partially deaf and has some vision issues. She yowls at night and when I am home but I leave her in the room. I do take her out but i have to watch her closely-babysit-she will attack other kitties and pee. So when in room she yowls horribly. When I walk in she is fine-sometimes though she seems to forget where she is and if I’m in same room she may yowl until I get her attentnion. She likes to play and still eats and drinks and does use litter box as well but carpet (pee pads now) also. She is driving me crazy. The peeing and the yowling-it wakes me every night. I feel so bad for her-the room is small. Very tiny. It does have a cat post, a little soft recliner chair, her litter box and some toys and her food and water-she goes out on harness sometimes but is getting more fearful in her older age of outdoors. My quesiton is I really dont know if I should have her put down. On one hand, I feel she is not very happy but then I think of all the cats in cages at shelters and think what is so bad about her life. I dont know what to do.

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 00:46:24 +0000

I have an 18 yr old cat howling when alone and at night. I read the all the writes in. I believe most of you are right about my cat. Tiger is a sweet cat fill with love as he gotten older. We got him at 4 months a wild, scared, and not fed cat. We gave him a forever home and has stay with us, even when we moved. Our cats are our family not throw aways. Tiger has live longer than any of his buddies. Two cats and a dog. He has a new buddy for about a year and half. Only one day of hissing but took to her like she was here since day one. We comfort Tiger when he howls and understand a little better why. Just feeling bad that he is getting old but aren’t we all?

By: Kathy

Kathy — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:19:41 +0000

I have a 8 month male part siamese and persian. He is not a loving cat. He doesn’t like to be petted. He yowls loud and roams from one room to the other yowling. We got him when he was 6 wks old. Why doess’t he like us to pet him. And why does he yowl?

By: Barbara

Barbara — Tue, 08 May 2012 13:43:08 +0000

Dondi: If his yowling is not usual, if he has an increase in appetite/thirst, seems overactive or apathetic, overgrooms or doesn’t groom as much, vomits, has diarrhea, etc., you might consider having the vet check his thyroid level.
Though hyperactive thyroid generally occurs with senior cats age 10 or over, my cat developed it at age 8. He underwent the radiology treatment; and that cat lived to be the oldest cat I ever owned (age 19).

By: Dondi

Dondi — Mon, 07 May 2012 16:37:54 +0000

Ok so older cats I see here, but my cat is only 6 1/2 and he howls at night, he has the run of the house and even when we put him in our room or my son’s room he still howls.
I have tried everything, and the vet says he’s fine, I did not check his Thyroid, but everything else is normal blood tests and all.

By: Jill

Jill — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 17:59:00 +0000

Our 18-year-old female black cat has been yowling for nearly a year. She began doing it at night, but now does it all the time – sometimes more frequently. She will walk out of the room we are in, sit down and start wailing. We call to her or walk up to her, and she stops and makes a MMrp noise. We are wondering if there is any medication she could take for anxiety or to calm her and make her feel happy. She has been examined several times by her vet and he says she is physically fine for her age.

By: Patricia

Patricia — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 18:30:41 +0000

I posted on this site a few times. My 17 year old himalayan (who was always quiet as a mouse) started the night time howling about 2 years ago. I tried everything…took her to the vet a couple of times…he did tests – nothing is physically wrong with her. I tried just about everything, including leaving lights on in the livingroom and then resorted to earplugs for myself – closing my bedroom door only made her howl louder. Lately I’ve discovered that if I sleep with my door open and keep a 25 watt light in my room she is quiet all night. She will either sleep with me or in my doorway but it seems as long as she can see me I can get a quiet night’s sleep. I just had to adjust to sleeping with a light on in my room. Hope that helps someone else.

By: Eleanor

Eleanor — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 01:02:06 +0000

On April 2 I wrote that I would try Tripsy. While researching Tripsy I came across another product by the same manufacturer called Resthyro for cats with hyperthyroidism. As my cat is 15 and semi-feral she is not able to go to the vet due to extreme behavior issues. I’ve had cats for a long time so my “educated” guess is she has hyperthyroidism and renal failure. Anyway, she has been on Tripsy and Resthyro for 10 days now and is actually “Yowling” less. Additionally she has been on Azodyl for about 6 months and it certainly helps with the renal failure. Previously I had a cat with renal failure that took Azodyl for about 4 years and did quite well on it. This cat cannot be pilled, so I break open 3 capsules a day and mix it in with her canned food. This appears to work well even though the recommendation is to have the cat swollow the capsule.

Hope this helps someone. I’ll post again in a month and let you know if I think the Tripsy and Resthyro is still working.

By: Mimi

Mimi — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 22:56:59 +0000

Gary. My Sister has a cat name Berthold he lost his hearing he 14 years old she like too know why he crys now witch he never ever did that before. Mimi

By: Jamie

Jamie — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 03:59:20 +0000

I feel so much better knowing i’m not the only person who has googled “my cat is very old and howls.” She started it at night after her brother passed. I is the weirdest thing to see. She also has taken to starring at my mom all night long. Like and inch away from her face, eyes weird open, and just starring.

Does anybody have any advice or guidance? The poor thing sounds so lonely and scared? maybe leave a light on for her?

Anyone have tips of stopping her pee accidents? Or where to get rx food cheaper?