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Cat Owner's Manual › Chapter 7: Cat Growth & Development › Calculating Age in "Cat Years" ›Calculating Age in Cat Years
A popular misconception is that cats age seven years for each calendar year. In fact, feline aging is much more rapid during the first two years of life. A cat reaches the approximate human age of 15 during its first year, then 24 at age 2. Each year thereafter, it ages approximately four "cat years" for every calendar year. Thus, a 5-year-old feline would be approximately 36 in cat years. It should be remembered that a cat who lives outdoors ages far more quickly, perhaps even twice as fast, than an indoor cat.  Chapter 7: Cat Growth & Development
Comments for This Page (32) | Post a CommentThis is a VERY interesting article. Are you sure it's correct. My cat is 15 and defying the aging process. According to your chart, she is OVER 72 years old. But you say cats that GO OUTDOORS AGE FASTER. I find that hard to believe. They get fresh air and exercise and natural sunlight. Wouldn't a cat that is STUCK INSIDE throughout it's life, FORCED to BREATH the nasty, dusty air and sit around all the time AGE SOONER To Jennifer, nope. There are a lot of dangers that outdoor cats face, including disease, potential poisoning, being trapped, fleas, ticks, etc. I think this age thing is for a SOLELY outdoor cat.. but an indoor cat will always live longer than outdoor cats because there's much less risk when living indoors. I would just like to point out that the info above isn't correct. You have the outside life expectancy as a higher number then the inside expectancy. The first part up to age 3 is correct but from age 3 on, the numbers are not in the right places. D B -- The outside number is higher because the chart is showing that outdoor cats tend to have a shorter lifespan and therefore "age" quicker than indoor cats. Now, that's outdoor cats in GENERAL, and ones that spend all or most of their time roaming the streets. There are, of course, exceptions, but typically outdoor cats face a lot of dangers and unfortunately don't live as long as indoor cats. Jennifer -- Why would you base aging off of what air a cat breathes? Unless the cat is living with a smoker, I highly doubt the air in most houses is really contaminated enough to shorten a cat's lifespan. Also, indoor cats can be just as active as outdoor ones given their caretaker isn't keeping them in a cat carrier 24 hours a day (which no cat lover does). My girls are highly active because I provide them with plenty of toys, climbable cat furniture, and I also take time out of my day to play with them. I am so impressed with my previous cat Colombo who was indoor/outdoor, she lived to be gee, nearly 23..... she must have been methusala...but she was always so spry and active, even until the end.!!! I however now only have indoor cats due to one of my previous outdoor cats costing thousands of dollars in medical care due to outdoor hazards, I can never put myself in that emotional or financial position again, nor would I be able to subject my babies to the risks now a days..... so many horrible people and things - Us humans can barely make it outdoors! MOL! This is really interesting! My Old Terri Cat is almost 20, so i think that makes her about 96 or something? shes got a little arthritic and mild cataracts, but i think shes still going ot be around for a while. shes got all her teeth still even! The age chart doesn't go far enough. A friend of Bitu's recently died at 16 and the chart only goes to 14. Whoever made the chart should have extended it a little more. I have a cat named kitty who is 17 years old now. She is off the chart. LOL My cat is 19 years old - way off this chart. And seriously, a 14-year-old outdoor cat is equal to a 120-year-old human? How many 120-year-old humans do you know? I personally have never met one, I have met several over-14 outdoor kitties, though. And why is the age different for the outdoor kitties? I agree it's more dangerous for them, but it doesn't make them age quicker. This is like saying a 20-year-old human addicted to extreme sports is more like a 40-year-old. Actually, with all the stuff I've read about cats, that chart is about right on, except it doesn't go high enough. But there is more to consider: weight, diet, general health, behavior . .etc. To find out your cat's purrrsonal age in human years, go to www.catage.com, they have a dogage and a realage too. Well my OUT door cat is 15 .. and still going strong ! My first cat, Sylvester, lived to be 14 years old despite having FUS. I was very sad when I had to put him down. Tika is now 10 and she's a sweetie. OMG a 27 yr old siamese! I could only HOPE Mia lives to be that old! The chart doesn't go far enough! Plus I don't agree with the outside kitty thing. Being in cat rescue for many years, I've seen cats that would die of depression if kept only indoors. It's up to the cat's purrrrsonality. There are house cats and outside cats. We have some that live in and out, they have free range of our 7 acres totally fenced and their own house (because of not having inside manners). They go to bed at dark then are let out early in the AM. I don't think a cat living in a place that didn't have fences or land should be allowed to roam. But the house cat living longer thing is not a true statement. Bernadette -- Cats don't die of depression from being indoors, I'm sure there were other health issues present there. A cat CAN become depressed from being inside if it was an outdoor cat for all of it's life, but it's not going to die from it. The only cats that would get depressed by being kept inside are ones that were raised to be outdoor cats, so the solution is to not raise them like that OR (like you said) keep them in a fenced-in area. I completely agree that it's okay for cats to be outdoor as long as they are fenced in for protection, but that's generally not the case. Despite what you think, house cats DO live longer than most outdoor cats because they aren't kept in safe conditions. If more outdoor cat owners were like you, then yes, outdoor cats would live just as long indoor ones. I'm dumb, my last comment was obviously targeted at Cat Smith-Ward =( Also, I do suppose a cat can die from prolonged depression, but it's the caretakers fault for not giving the outdoor cat enough things to do inside. I thought that the information on this page was really helpful deffently with me have two 9 almost 10 year old cats and a 8 week old kitten so thank you Catster for the information that you put into this Cat Owner`s Manual! I'm with Sharon Murphy and Cat Smith-Ward. Some cats just need to go outside. Milagrito was supposed to be an indoor cat, but he made his feelings known and got let out. I feel the same way--I'd die of boredom if I never went outside, even though my house is packed with toys for humans as well as cats. I wonder if the chart doesn't confuse life expectancy with equivalent age. A cat who goes out might be more likely to meet with an accident, but he wasn't twice as old when he died. Well I'm a indoor / outdoor kitty, and I turned 18 last Sept. I'm the same as Milagrito. I'd go crazy if I was locked up. I love to go outside and feel the breeze in my fur and the warmth of the sun on my coat. Though it is safe where I live. The humans made sure the house wasn't on any major roads. We make the humans life unbearable when the doors are shut. So we have our own cat door. Cats rule! Wow I had it all wrong so tell me if my Scrappy-doo was born in 1990 what is her age ???? She is a indoor / outdoor but now that she is much older she only goes out to use the bathroom when the weather is warm. Since then we have 2 more Kita and Babie-dollie who do not go outdoors I feel much better having all my girls indoors. Just because your life expectancy is shortened does not mean you age faster. If a child dies at the age of 10 does that make their age 70 just because they died? No, it doesn't. Their life just happened to end sooner. The event, disease, or whatever did not make the ten year old all the sudden turn into an old man before he died. My cat Biscuit was outdoors until he was 10, then became indoor only. He was never sick a day in his life and passed from a stroke at the age of 23.8. Maybe was so long-lived because he was so laid back and easy! Even in old age he needed no meds or special food. He had regular vet checkups and a sonogram once a year and dental. Other than going deaf the last couple of years of his life he was spot-on perfect. He def had the good genes and I have no idea how old he'd be in human years. The paragraph before the chart says that cats age approximately "four cat years" to calendar year after the age of 2. All of you that have complained about the chart not showing past the age of 14, do some math. You simply need to add 4 "cat years" for each year past the age of 14 that your cat is. If your cat is 17 then add 12 to the last "cat age" shown on the chart. It's simple. My goodness. And it makes perfect sense that an outdoor cat would "age" faster than an indoor cat. Obviously being outdoors doesn't put them in a time warp where they are actually any number of years older. This is referring to the wear and tear on their bodies from being outdoors as opposed to being indoors. People can go through the same thing. Have you never heard of someone "aging" because of some diffuculty they have experienced in their life? It's because of the stress the situation puts on their body. It's not a literal advancing of the number of years they are on Earth. Outdoor cats face more obstcales, plain and simple. Greater risks from the environment (weather, other animals, traffic, etc.) as well as higher chance of contracting illness or disease mean the odds are stacked against them. Indoor cats don't have as high a risk of these things because their environment is controlled. There are no rabid raccoons or speeding cars in a house. And for crying out loud, it has nothing to do with the air in your house! If the air in your house was that toxic you'd be dead too. Air outside isn't necessarily cleaner than air inside anyway. Ever heard of smog? At least inside you can use filters to try to clean the air. Either way, it's really a moot point. Outdoor cats having a shorter lifespan is a statement that reflects the average, considering the factors working on both sides. Not all outdoor cats are going to live short lives, just as not all indoor cats will be longlived. Any cat, whether indoor or out, needs proper care. I'm guessing that anyone that posted here and has an outdoor cat takes good care of them since this is a site for animal lovers. So a well fed, vaccinated cat is of course at a lower risk than some poor stray. Some older cats age well and have no serious health problems, some don't. It all comes down to the individual cat. As owners all we can do is provide the best care for them and enjoy our time with our furry friends. Rocky Ann is going to be 88 (18) in human years in April!! Our vet told us that certain breeds (indoors) are living into their 20's as we see on Catster. I hope RA is as lucky. Post a Comment for This Page
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The Cat Owner's Manual is a basic guide to cat care.
Very good, Morgan is a rescue and I have had her for the past 4 years, I treasure Her and am proud to make her golden years the best that they can be. My precious Angel is off your charts at the age of 15 so she is over the age of 76 and she holds her age remarkably even with the medical problems that she does have. I highly recomend to adopt an older cat if you want to have joy in your life from a kitty who will give you all of the love that you give to her.