Older Cat Sits on Her Tail

by Cheryl
(Ocala, FL)

I have a 16 yr old female cat named Mocha. We call her Moo for short. She is a long haired siamese mix. She is the oldest of the 3 cats I currently have. Scooter is 12 and Queenie B is 3.

In the last couple of weeks she has begun to carry her tail low against the back of her legs or tucked between her legs and when she sits down, she sits on her tail instead of moving it aside before she sits down. I had her to the vet a few months ago for labs - no renal disease, diabetes or thyroid disease at that time.

She is a very petite cat (6 lbs or so at her heaviest, she currently is about 5 lbs.) I don't think she is arthritic (or not much) as she still moves well and jumps up to her favorite napping places without a problem. She has also recently taken to staying in our Florida room (screened in porch), probably because it is warmer than being indoors in the air conditioning. That in itself is kind of odd as she has always been my best "lap cat". But she seems to be very happy out in the Florida room.

She gets a little wet food twice a day and dry chow and water are available at all times. She is eating OK. I give her hairball medicine 3-4 times a week because she sheds so much, and it has really cut down on the amount of hairballs she throws up. She uses the litter box OK, although we went through a period recently where she would stop and pee wherever she was. She does much better in the Florida room with always getting into the box - maybe because she doesn't have to go so far to get to it.

She just doesn't want to come indoors. If I bring her in, she will sit by the door and cry until I let her back out to the Florida room. She is occasionally allowed outdoors with supervision (and on a leash and harness), but basically she has always been an indoor cat. I realize that some of this may just be age related behaviors, but I was hoping you could maybe suggest what might be going on with her before I take her to the vet and maybe suggest repeating her labs.


I apologize for the length of this. Many thanks for any light you can shed on this.


Dear Cheryl,

Would your cat allow you to look at her rear end? Because she is a longer-haired cat, she may have stool stuck or mats around her rear. If she would let you look, this would be the place to start.

In terms of other cat health problems that could be causing your cat to walk around with her tail down and to be behaving unusually, the list goes on and on. A cat with her tail down can certainly be a sign that the cat isn't feeling well, which could indicate any number of cat illnesses.

Cat health conditions that may specifically effect how your cat carries her tail include impacted anal sacs, constipation, tumors or other inflammation around the anus, or even neurological diseases or something wrong with her spine or brain. But, especially with an older cat, any number of cat illnesses can be causing her to feel unwell and behave unusually.

Bloodwork values can change overnight, so especially as cats begin to get older, any time there is indication that the cat is ill, repeating bloodwork would be strongly recommended. Your cat could have kidney disease, diabetes, hyperthyroidism, or any number of elderly cat health problems, and her lab values may be quite different now from what they were just a few months ago.

I would recommend bringing your cat to the veterinarian for an exam and possible bloodwork. While this may be nothing or something very minor, it is always better to be safe than sorry.

Best wishes,
Dr. Neely