Indoor cat wants to go outside (urgent)

This has been happening the past couple weeks now. He is an elderly cat (at least 19 OR 20) and when we used to open the door to see if he would go out, he'd just sit there or walk the other way. Now lately he has been becoming very affectionate and wants to go outside every time we go out. During the summer he would go out but he would stay around the house. Now if we let him out he travels off and I had to chase him the one day.

He is acting very strange and today he jumped on our dining room table. When I went to push him down, he started whining and slowly slumped off the table. He has also been twitching his head a lot and jumping on other innapropriate places.

What I'm wondering is, due to his odd nature, sudden affectionateness, and becoming rather slow (I know he's old but even in his old age he would still run around like a kitten), I'm wondering is his time almost up?

I'm thinking he may want to go outside to die but I'm hesitant to let him, not only because I love him but I don't want him to get attacked by other animals as he is declawed (I don't need any lectures about how declawing is cruel. he had it done when he was little so he pretty much acts like he has claws. besides, lectures about declawing are not the topic, the fact my cat may be dying is.)

Anyone got any advice for me? I want what's best for my cat, but I also don't want him to be attacked by other animals if the only reason he wants to go outside is just to explore. But due to his behavior, I am little reluctant to admit that he might want to go outside to die.

Please help!

 

your right, that does not sound good. if you let him out to explore, in his state, he will be dog meat. best thing to do is telephone the vet and tell them what is going down with kitty.

 

he probably wants to wander off and die.. its what cats do..

 

Thanks for the answers guys. Yeah I feared that was the reason he wants to go out. I would call the vet but we don't have a vet for him. He was my aunts cat for the majority of his life and we got him at least 2 or 3 years ago. Its weird, sometimes he acts slow and other days hes back to acting energetic. Im wondering if the days where hes back to his old self is just him putting on an act for us so we dont worry about him. what do you guys think?

 

his fluxauting behavior is common among all animals, even our speices too. all animals in a degenative state will have times of remission from time-to-time. when he stops grooming himself that, means he will be near death; it will be anywhere from a few minutes to a few days.
i most strongly suggest you find a vet for him right now! if he is in terrble pain, he will need to be euthanize by a vet. i know you don't want to hear this, yet, this is the humane thing to do for him. belive me, i know how hard this is to do! almost 7 years ago i had to have my 17 year old tomcat euthanize. i broke down and cried right there in the vet's office. i had grief for sometime over his death.

i hear that you love him very much and, i am sorry that you will lose him and be in pain for awhile; that is just how life is, and, none of us, have it in our power to change that.

let me just say i am sorry for your lost when he dies.
you can ask the vet if there is a creamation service which could collect him, and return his cremains to you.
i have done this with 2 of my pets. the fee runs about $ 100.00 (u.s.a funds) or less.

 

maybe you should just spend some quality time with your cat??

 

I think that's whats happening. But I thought animals try to avoid everyone else, but you're saying the cat is being overly affectionate, that's what's throwing me off.

 

Cats can go senile in old age... I am going through the same thing, night calling and acting different than she used to.

http://www.fabcats.org/owners/elderly/info.html

this site has some good info!

 

Instinct is instinct - I'd say let him out but supervise his wanderings - say, if you're working in the yard have him join you. Hope you get it figured out, communication isn't always the easiest with furry friends!

 

Good work banning him.......but you might want to remove the picture too

 

My cat has been doing better. The thing is we had gotten a new kitten recently too and I think he felt like he was being replaced. I still love him. In fact, I love both of my cats equally. My younger cat is mostly an outdoor cat (he only comes inside to use the bathroom. he won't go outside). when the younger cat is outside, my older cat is much more energetic and affectionate. I think the main thing here is probably jealousy.

 

I think it might be jealous seeing the other cat go outside whenever it wants but he can't. I had a cat that was an inside declawed cat (not my choice) and when he was about 5 or 6 he decided he wanted out. I used to try with a leash but he could always get out of it so I stopped bringing him out. One day he made a break for the door and I wasn't fast enough. After a couple weeks I resigned myself to the fact that he was dead because we lived in a very rural forested area. Then a couple days later he showed up back home with little damage that a brushing couldn't fix.
After that he stayed inside for couple years until once again he got the urge to leave, that time he was only gone for a week and a half. I then gave up trying to regulate him. Most of the time he wouldn't even go outside for a second but if he wanted to wander he would wander. I don't think it was sexual outing for him because he was also nuetered (again not my choice), he just liked to wander for extended periods infrequently on his own terms.

 

Your description of your cat’s behavior certainly sounds like he felt at though he was dying and started following his instincts …. maybe with a little senility mixed in. Thankfully he fought through it.

I would beg you, don’t euthanize him until he tells that he can’t deal with the pain. Would euthanize a human in pain? I would in some instances, and I also would if my pet were in a lot of pain.

What has worked well for me with my last two cat passings. I made a “cave” in the back corner of our master bedroom … which was her room of choice for heavy duty sleeping. The cave was cushions and blankets, very dark and just a enough space for a single cat to curl up and look out. I put a food dish (all my cats free feed on dry food) and a water bowl near the cave so than she would have it as a choice of places to die. Both cats picked the cave …. one maybe 30 hours before death, the other somewhat longer. They both purred almost constantly for the entire time. They both liked light steady hand contact, but not petting. I sat with both of them most of the time and they both just appeared to go to sleep and stopped breathing. They were 18 and 20 when they departed.