Getting Old (kitten, declawed, weight, meowing)

[Samsoncat]

Are there any tell tale signs that a cat is getting old?

My ds beloved ragdoll (mix) was a rescue from an animal shelter 6 yrs ago.
because kitty had been picked up as a stray, they were not certain of his age so they put him at 5 yrs old. he had been front paw declawed and neutered and it was love at first sight for us!

So, IF he was 5 at the time, that would make him 11 now. we are diligent with keeping up with his shots, good food, vet care... as of this year he is showing signs of slowing down?. he has always been an avid hunter, prowler, now it just seems he wants to spend even the sunniest of days indoors asleep on ds bed He also has a tendency to go about the house vocalizing for no apparent reason... do cats get senile like old folks?
He has not put on any additional weight yet eats normally. lastly, he 'creaks', his bones/joints that is, when he walks you can hear the creaking sounds.

Any imput?

Thanks

[Gone-2-Beach]

The one sign that we notice with our now 13-year old cat is that she was not tolerating her usual diet very well. We switched her last year to a "special diet" formula and this year to a "senior diet" formula and she seems to be thriving very well on the senior diet.

Our cat is "talking" to us (vocalizing) more than in the past. I had not considered that a sign of seniority ... but I guess it's possible.

Charley

[lilypad]

My previous beloved cat lived to 18. In her last days, she did not eat much, and slept all day long. When she was awake she was very irritable. I had found a new kitten and she was very short tempered with him, he followed her around like she was his "mommy", but she would have nothing to do with him. Also the hair around her ears got very thin and sparse, turned white as did the rest of the hair on her face. She had no apparent other health problems, just died of old age.

[Towhee]

Our 17 year old spayed Calliecat is very loud with her meowing. I am sure it is because she is deaf and cannot hear her own voice. She is still very frisky. She has always been an outside cat, but usually sleeps in DH's shop building, where he has fixed her various beds. :-) She is apparenly slowing down some this year, and does not spend much time at the front porch as she used to.

[The French Maid]

Is a change in their body.. for instance, my 15 year old cat has more of a "sag" in her back... and just the natural slowing down...

Her fur isn't as shiny which I attribute to her not being able to clean herself as well.. she tends to strain a bit.. and no she isn't overweight

She does get vocal at night more... this seems to be a pattern with older cats...

It's good you switched to the mature food... a cat is considered mature after 7 years and requires ingredients such as cranberry to help with urinary infections which they get more prone to as they get older...