Changes in an older cat are not always easy to describe. You may know that something about eating, drinking, movement, toileting, grooming, sleep or behaviour seems different without being sure exactly what has changed.
The Feline Golden Years Senior Cat Observation Toolkit is designed to help you turn those small observations into clearer notes.
You can use one tracker or several, depending on what you have noticed. The aim is not to work out the cause yourself. It is simply to record what is happening, when it happens and whether other changes are appearing at the same time.
Your notes can then help you describe the pattern more clearly if you speak to your vet.
About this toolkit: This is a Feline Golden Years-created observation resource designed to help owners organise changes they notice at home. It is not a diagnostic tool or a clinically validated assessment.
Important: These trackers are for observation only. They cannot diagnose illness or tell you whether a change is serious. If your cat seems distressed, is struggling to breathe, cannot pass urine, has stopped eating, collapses, or appears seriously unwell, contact your vet promptly.
For a broader overview of changes owners may notice as cats get older, see our Senior Cat Health guide.
Printable version
Prefer to write things down by hand? Download the printable Senior Cat Observation Toolkit with all five observation sheets in one file.
1. 7-Day Senior Cat Change Log
This general tracker can be useful when you have the feeling that something has changed, but you are not yet sure whether there is a clear pattern.
Over seven days, make a brief note about the areas you are able to observe.
You do not need to watch your cat constantly or complete every box. Normal everyday observations are enough.
For each area, you can use:
- Same as usual
- Slightly different
- Clearly different
- Not observed
7-day senior cat change log
| Date | Eating | Drinking | Toileting | Movement | Grooming | Sleep | Behaviour | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | ||||||||
| Day 2 | ||||||||
| Day 3 | ||||||||
| Day 4 | ||||||||
| Day 5 | ||||||||
| Day 6 | ||||||||
| Day 7 |
What to notice
You are not looking for a particular diagnosis. Simply compare what you see with your cat’s usual routine.
For example:
- Eating: interest in meals, eating speed, walking away or eating differently from usual.
- Drinking: whether visits to the water bowl seem unchanged, more frequent or less frequent.
- Toileting: changes in litter-tray visits, accidents or anything clearly different from the usual pattern.
- Movement: getting up, walking, jumping, using stairs or reaching favourite places.
- Grooming: whether your cat appears to be grooming normally or leaving areas of the coat less tidy.
- Sleep: changes in sleeping times, waking more often or struggling to settle.
- Behaviour: hiding, clinginess, vocalising, irritability, confusion or another noticeable change.
Use the Notes column for anything that does not fit neatly into one category, such as a household change, a different feeding time or something that seemed to happen immediately before the behaviour.
What the tracker is for
You do not need to fill in every box perfectly.
The value of the log is simply to help you see whether a change appears once, keeps repeating, or is happening alongside changes in other parts of your cat’s routine.
A tracker cannot tell you why something has changed. If you are concerned about what you are seeing, or the change is clear, persistent or worsening, speak to your vet.
2. Eating & Drinking Observation Sheet
Changes around food or water can be easy to notice without being easy to describe. Your cat may still be eating and drinking, but perhaps not in quite the same way as before.
This tracker is designed to help you record what has changed from your cat’s usual routine without trying to work out the cause yourself.
What to note around eating
You might record whether your cat:
- approaches meals as usual
- seems more or less interested in food
- eats more slowly than usual
- pauses or walks away during a meal
- drops food
- seems awkward while chewing
- prefers one type of food more than before
- asks for food at different times
- seems hungry but does not finish the meal
What to note around drinking
You might notice whether your cat:
- visits the water bowl more often
- visits it less often
- spends longer drinking than usual
- drinks from places they did not use before
- seems more interested in water at certain times of day
- has shown a clear change from their usual drinking pattern
You do not need to measure every mouthful or calculate exact amounts unless your vet has specifically asked you to.
Eating and drinking observation sheet
| Date / time | What changed? | Eating | Drinking | Vomiting? | Toileting changes? | Weight change noticed? | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Questions that can help clarify the pattern
If you are trying to make sense of a change, these simple questions may help:
- What changed first?
- Did the change appear suddenly or gradually?
- Is it happening at every meal or only sometimes?
- Is your cat eating differently but still showing interest in food?
- Has drinking changed at the same time?
- Have vomiting, toileting or behaviour changed too?
- Have you noticed any change in body weight or condition?
You do not need to answer every question. Even a few clear observations may make it easier to explain what has changed.
What this tracker cannot tell you
This sheet cannot tell you why your cat is eating or drinking differently, and it should not be used to decide whether a change is harmless.
If your cat has stopped eating, is repeatedly vomiting, seems weak or distressed, or you are worried about a clear change in eating or drinking, speak to your vet.
3. Mobility & Comfort Tracker
Changes in movement can develop gradually in older cats. You may first notice hesitation before a jump, a different route to a favourite place, or more time spent choosing where to settle.
This tracker is designed to help you record everyday movement and comfort changes without trying to score pain or identify the cause yourself.
Everyday activities to watch
Useful things to notice include:
- getting up after resting
- walking across the room
- using stairs
- jumping onto furniture
- getting down from furniture
- stepping into or out of the litter tray
- reaching food and water
- grooming the lower back or back end
- turning around in small spaces
- settling into a comfortable resting position
For each activity, you can use:
- Same as usual
- Hesitates
- Avoids it
- Not observed
Mobility and comfort tracker
| Date | Activity | Same as usual | Hesitates | Avoids it | Not observed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Getting up after resting | ||||||
| Walking across the room | ||||||
| Using stairs | ||||||
| Getting onto furniture | ||||||
| Getting down from furniture | ||||||
| Entering the litter tray | ||||||
| Reaching food or water | ||||||
| Grooming hard-to-reach areas | ||||||
| Settling into a resting position |
What can be useful to note
The most useful information is often the change from your cat’s usual behaviour.
For example:
- Does your cat pause before jumping where they once jumped straight up?
- Are they choosing lower furniture or easier routes?
- Are stairs taking longer?
- Do they seem less willing to climb into the litter tray?
- Are they leaving parts of the coat less well groomed?
- Do they repeatedly change position before settling?
- Is one activity becoming harder while others remain unchanged?
You do not need to test your cat or encourage them to perform activities just so you can complete the tracker. Only record what you naturally see during normal daily life.
Look for patterns rather than a score
This tracker deliberately does not produce a mobility or pain score.
One hesitant jump does not tell you why it happened. What can be more useful is noticing whether the same difficulty keeps appearing, whether several activities are changing together, or whether the pattern is becoming more noticeable over time.
If movement or comfort has clearly changed, your cat seems painful or distressed, or normal activities are becoming harder, speak to your vet.
For a broader look at movement, stiffness and everyday comfort changes, see our Senior Cat Mobility & Pain guide.
4. Night-Time Behaviour Log
Night-time changes can be difficult to describe because they often happen when the house is quiet and everyone is tired. You may notice calling, wandering, repeated waking, confusion or difficulty settling, but the exact pattern can be hard to remember the next day.
This log is designed to help you record what actually happens overnight, rather than trying to decide why it is happening.
What to record
Useful details include:
- what time the behaviour starts
- what your cat is doing
- where they are in the house
- whether they are vocalising
- whether they are pacing or wandering
- whether they seem confused or unsure
- what happened immediately beforehand
- what, if anything, seems to settle them
- whether eating, drinking, toileting, movement or behaviour has also changed
Night-time behaviour log
| Date / time | What happened? | Vocalising? | Pacing / wandering? | Seemed confused? | Where was your cat? | What happened beforehand? | What seemed to settle them? | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Describe the behaviour as plainly as possible
Try to record what you can see or hear rather than interpreting it.
For example:
- “Walked between bedroom and hallway for 15 minutes”
- “Called out three times after waking”
- “Stood in the doorway and seemed unsure where to go”
- “Settled after I spoke softly”
- “Got up repeatedly and changed sleeping places”
That kind of description can be more useful than labels such as “anxious” or “demented”, because it tells your vet what actually happened.
Look for timing and repetition
After a few nights, you may start to notice whether the behaviour:
- happens at a similar time
- follows waking from sleep
- happens near food, water or the litter tray
- follows wandering or difficulty settling
- improves with reassurance
- is becoming more frequent
- is appearing alongside other daytime changes
You do not need to keep the log indefinitely. A few nights of clear notes may be enough to show a useful pattern.
What this log cannot tell you
Night-time vocalising, pacing, wandering or confusion can happen for many reasons. This log cannot tell you whether the cause is cognitive change, discomfort, sensory change, routine disruption or something else.
If the behaviour is new, persistent, worsening, or your cat seems distressed or unlike themselves, speak to your vet.
5. Vet Visit Preparation Sheet
When several small changes are happening at once, it can be difficult to remember everything during a veterinary appointment.
This sheet is designed to help you bring the most useful observations together in one place. You do not need to complete every field. Record only what is relevant to your cat.
Vet visit preparation sheet
| What to record | Your notes |
|---|---|
| Main change I have noticed | |
| I first noticed it | |
| It happens | Occasionally / Most days / Every day / Unsure |
| The pattern appears to be | Improving / About the same / Worsening / Varies |
| Eating changes | |
| Drinking changes | |
| Toileting changes | |
| Movement or comfort changes | |
| Grooming changes | |
| Sleep or night-time changes | |
| Behaviour changes | |
| Weight change noticed | |
| Anything else that changed around the same time | |
| Photos or videos available | Yes / No |
| Current prescribed medications I need to mention | |
| Questions I want to ask my vet |
Bring the pattern, not a diagnosis
You do not need to decide what is causing the change before your appointment.
Clear observations such as:
- when the change started
- whether it is becoming more noticeable
- what your cat is doing differently
- whether several changes appeared around the same time
- what you have already observed using the other trackers
- whether you have a useful photo or short video
can help you explain the situation more clearly.
If you already keep notes on your phone, you do not need to copy everything onto this sheet. A short summary is enough.
Photos and videos can sometimes help
A photo or short video may help show a change that does not happen during the appointment, such as unusual walking, night-time behaviour, coughing, breathing sounds or difficulty jumping.
Only record your cat if you can do so safely and without deliberately provoking the behaviour.
Do not delay veterinary advice in order to obtain a photo, video or completed tracker if your cat appears distressed or seriously unwell.
Questions you may want to take with you
You could note questions such as whether the change needs further investigation, what signs would be useful to monitor, or when your vet would like an update.
The aim is not to leave the appointment with a perfect explanation for every change. It is simply to make sure the things you have noticed are easy to discuss.
How to use the Senior Cat Observation Toolkit
You can use these trackers in whatever way is easiest for you. You might print the page, copy one table into a notebook, take notes on your phone, or simply use the headings as prompts.
You do not need to complete all five tools. Choose the one that best matches the change you are noticing.
A tracker cannot tell you why something has changed. Its value is in helping you notice the pattern and describe it clearly.
For wider everyday support as your cat gets older, see our Senior Cat Care guide.
If you are worried about a change in your senior cat, speak to your vet.