Cat years in human years
There is a common misconception that cats age the same way as dogs. That is seven cat years for every one human year. However, research has concluded that cats age in a more complex way. During the first two years of life, cats age pretty rapidly. So, by the time a year has passed, your cat will be in the same developmental stage of a 10 to 15-year old human. After two years, your cat would the equivalent of around 25 human years.
After that, cats begin to age at a much slower pace. So, once your cat is two human years old, every human year can be counted as roughly four human years.
How to Calculate Cat years
We need to establish here the difference between indoor and outdoor cats. For the first two years, both will age at pretty much the same rhythm. After that, however, it is noted that outdoor cats age more rapidly.
To calculate the approximate age of your cat in human years, consider that the two first feline months are equivalent to three cat years for the first six months. It moves to approximately two human years for every two cat months. So your one-year-old cat will be 15 human years old. Count five years for 1.5 cat years, and by the time two years have passed your cat is around 24 human years.
After this, every human year becomes four cat years for indoor cats and approximately eight cat years for outdoor cats. An indoor cat will usually live 15 to 18 years, some of them reaching the age of 20. Outdoor cats will usually live for around ten years.
What does an aged cat look like?
If you have just rescued a cat whose age is unknown, there are several indicators to calculate its approximate age. No, they do not grow wrinkles nor they walk on a cane.
Teeth are a great indicator of cat age, given that the owner did not provide oral hygiene. If the teeth are permanent and white, this cat is around one year of age. Yellowish teeth will place him between 1 and 2 years. Tartar buildup could indicate 3 to 5 years of age. Missing teeth are an indicator of a senior cat.
Older cats might have some folded skin and be less muscular than younger ones. The coat of younger cats is soft and silky. Older cats coat is rough and with patches of gray or white.
If you notice some cloudiness in his eyes, you probably have a cat that is 12 years or older.
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