When Is a Pet Officially "Senior"? Experts Reveal the Exact Age for Dogs and Cats
Here’s a list of specific symptoms that indicate your pet has officially become old.
For many pet owners time flies like nothing else, so it seems pretty wild to see a cat or a dog having trouble to do their normal activities while they seemingly were a puppy or a kitten just a couple of days ago. With time, the pet’s advanced age starts signalling a bigger need for the owner’s attention and care.
There may be different ways of how exactly these signals show up, but animal experts suggest there’s a set of indications that reveal whether your pet is already senior or not yet.
When Does Your Cat Become “Senior”?
According to experts, the cat’s aging happens gradually just like people’s, and the pet is considered old once it reaches the age of 10 years. Once it occurs, owners have to pay extra attention to their cat’s daily routine, since it changes radically now that the pet is kinda retired.
That said, the pet can spend much more time sleeping than in the previous years, choose its food more carefully or rather eat less than before, opt for less activities with toys and more rest. Also, check out whether your cat’s gait has changed and movements have become less flexible.
And What About Dogs?
As experts claim, with dogs things are different since much depends on the pet’s body size: the smaller the dog is, the more active it stays when reaching an advanced age.
This way, smaller dogs officially become senior when they turn 10 while bigger dogs can be considered “retired” at the age of 7. The latter is explained by the fact that bigger dogs’ body starts functioning less intensely due to their size.
