A change in routine
We feed Herschel and Jellicoe in separate rooms, to prevent them stealing from each other. Herschel eats much faster than Jellicoe, and likes to investigate his brother’s bowl to see if there are any morsels left. He is adept at opening the sliding door between conservatory and kitchen, so we make sure it’s locked, otherwise Jellicoe is unceremoniously pushed aside.
Jellicoe also likes to check that there’s nothing left in Herschel’s bowl, and trots into the conservatory as soon as the door is opened. Recently, he has been abandoning his food in his desperation to sample Herschel’s food. They have the same food, in identical dishes, but Jellicoe behaves as though Herschel is receiving gourmet rations.
Yesterday, he would not eat his three o’clock meal and we began worrying that he was becoming ill or senile. He and Herschel are twelve years old and show no obvious signs of ageing, but we are aware that dementia can affect cats as much as any other *living being. We put Jellicoe’s food in the conservatory after Herschel had finished, hoping that would do the trick. Lo and behold, Jellicoe tucked in without further ado.
Jellicoe is known to the vets as ‘One Of A Kind.’ When he has to spend a day with them, they have noticed how attuned he is to food. When it approaches his usual feeding time, he sets up a loud yowling, to remind the feckless humans that the worms are biting, and he needs sustenance immediately. Should other animals in his vicinity receive their rations before him, his voice becomes ever more demanding.
At home, he just edges closer to me as the hour hand moves towards the feeding time.
I think cats do these things just to keep their humans on their toes.
*It is not only mammals that develop dementia. Mrs Nesbitt had a pet gander called Jo, who was always very fastidious about preening. When he stopped looking after his feathers, and displayed other worrying behaviours, she took him to the vet, and the conclusion was that poor Jo had dementia. What a sad end for a splendid fellow.
Cats are so funny. It must be a matter of the grass is greener...
ReplyDeleteThey can change their allegiances so quickly, too.
DeleteWhen we had two cats we fed them on completely different sides of the house with a closed door between them.
ReplyDeleteThat must have been quite an exercise!
DeleteI suppose any being with a brain can have that brain stop working properly. I'm glad Jellicoe seems to be just a super-intelligent cat who likes setting puzzles for his people :) That close up of Herschel is a fantastic shot!
ReplyDeleteCats make wonderful photographic subjects.
DeleteWe used to have seven cats and each had their own bowls and ate side-by-side but as they each kind of finished, they'd move along to the next unguarded bowl to see what that cat got to eat!
ReplyDeleteHow funny! I can't remember how our nie cats fed - it was a long time ago and time has drawn a graceful veil over that period.
DeleteBoth your cats are just so adorable. We have the same problem with Blackie & Pippi - he eats super fast, like a suction machine, & she eats slowly & delicately & has a little think about the world in between mouthfuls. So I have to separate them too as he would scoff his, hers & then go hunting. Little One has to be fed completely separate to any of them as they have still not forgiven me for bringing him home. 😉
ReplyDelete'like a suction machine' - LOL!!
DeleteI have only ever had one cat at a time, so feeding has never been a problem, though Lola is fussy about where she eats. For years she at her bowls on a placemat set at the corner of my table. Lately she demands the wet food bowl either on the windowsill, or outside on the old sheepskin. She is close to 17 (80 in cat years) and a few times has misjudged the distance to jump up onto the table, so for several months now there is a chair for her to jump onto and then onto the table. So those are her signs of aging so far, but I keep an eye on her for anything else.
ReplyDeleteIt amazes me how cats can suddenly decide they need a change in routine. Lola is doing well, by the sound of it. Has she forgiven you yet for abandoning her recently?
DeleteYes, I am forgiven, but next week it will be the same again.
DeleteAww, poor Lola! (and you too, of course.)
DeleteWe had two cats that were perfectly content to share the same saucer, taking turns in a civilised fashion
ReplyDeleteThat is so sweet.
DeleteP is like that. He often checks to see how my fat free dinner differs from his full fat version. Thankfully he is never tempted to steal mine 😁
ReplyDeleteLOL!!
DeleteGrace who reached the age of almost 20, would start to yowl just after 4pm, she was fed at 4.30pm, we always gave her too much food as she would always leaves some, so Purdy always got a second meal, she came to us at a year old, having been a stray and for her all food left was hers.
ReplyDeleteEarly experiences last a lifetime for a stray. How kind of you to recognise that.
DeleteWhen we had two cats and two dogs, we never had feeding issues. The cats were fine with bowls next to each other. The mongrel dog was a wolfer and the Westie more delicate in her eating habits. She did learn that she couldn't leave her bowl, but the wolfer just sat patiently by waiting and hoping that she would not eat it all.
ReplyDeleteSister's cats, brother and sister, are good about sharing too, and very good at nagging for food, trying to give the impression they haven't been fed, that I have the time wrong, that they have a midday meal.
That's interesting about Jo the gander. I suppose any creature with a decently sized brain is susceptible to dementia.
Dementia is sad to see in any creature, lost in its own worrying world.
DeleteJellicoe’s quirky, food-focused antics and clever timing make it clear he enjoys keeping his humans on their toes while maintaining his unique charm.
ReplyDeleteHe's decided we need the mental stimulation, I think.
DeleteSuch pretty cats - dont we wonder what is really going on in their minds especially when it comes to food.
ReplyDeleteMy middle daughter is fond of reminding us that if the cats were larger, and we were smaller, they would eat us. She has three cats and a dog.
DeleteThey all have their funny little quirks. It's sad when we see our pets start to age and all that goes with it, dementia is horrible to see anyone go through, person or animal.
ReplyDeleteIt is horrible, indeed.
DeleteIt would seem that having food on the other side of the door is all that it takes to make it more tasty. The change of scenery. Our 20 year old Angel Seney develop dementia when she was about 17. The last 3 years of her life were strange for us and I'm sure very difficult for her.
ReplyDeleteIt's so sad to see an animal decline. Poor Seney.
DeleteI had a cat years ago who felt that the dogs were getting better food than he was so he would edge his way into the dogs dish
ReplyDeleteHa ha! That's one thing our dogs will not tolerate. They don't do anything, but a low growl suffices to put the cats in their place.
DeleteThe ER said Beau is one of a kind but that was because he let them do whatever they did with no talk back. I did not know cats get dementia, but do know dogs get it because we had Jake who did.
ReplyDeleteglad the food thing worked out well.
Beau is a good boy. Some of our dogs have hated going to the vet, while others have relished it.
DeleteWe had a cat that showed some signs of dementia, and he also lost his hearing.
ReplyDeleteIt's sad to see.
DeleteHerschel and Jellicoe are pretty elaborate names for cats. If they had been my cats I would have called them Kitty and Tiddles.
ReplyDeleteIt's a good thing they're not your cats,then. 😎
DeleteDementia is definitely a "thing" in older animals. But hopefully Jellicoe is just becoming a bit eccentric in his later years, which is perfectly acceptable. :)
ReplyDeleteLet's hope so.
DeleteAren't all cats one of a kind, I wonder?
ReplyDeleteWhen any of our cats - past or present - is acting weirdly, we tell each other they've got catzheimer! xxx
I like it!
DeleteCalli and Quill's dishes are side by side. The food dishes are put down at the same time. Calli tucks into hers. Quill sits there looking like hey, she got something different or better! They each nibble a little and then graze through the day taking turns eating out of the other bowl.
ReplyDeleteCalli and Quill are lucky to have food available whenever they want it. We can't do that. The dogs would appreciate it, but they would be enormous.
DeleteAnimal dementia? I had no idea, but of course. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if sea mammals get dementia.
DeleteBecause one of my sons had a few problems with their two cats eating each others foods, and with one of them had to carefully monitor what was being eaten, the cats now wear special collars with a 'computer chip' which only opens the 'food cage' for want of a name to open and be available for that cat. It seems to work!
ReplyDeleteAnimals are like humans! We each have our quirks, likes, dislikes etc and as we grow older other illnesses can and do interfere with our health.
I do hope Jellicoe's feeding/eating issues can be simply solved.
All the best Jan
Technocats seem to be the way to go. That is a brilliant solution.
ReplyDelete