how old is my cat??

Question

I have a sweet cat named raegan, and she has been with us since last summer, we found her digging in the pinestraw in front of our house. at first we weren't sure if she was friendly, but after she saw us standing there, she came right up to us and started we could tell she was begging for attention. We gave her some food, and she went on her way. we thought that that would be the last time we would see her, but we were wrong, she came back the next day. she has stuck around ever since. we believe she had an owner for some part of her life because she hasn't had kittens, which means she has been spayed. The only thing we are unsure about is her age. is there anyone that can help me find the easiest way to determain her age without going to a vet?? Thanks so much!!!

Answer 1

You can really only get a "range" on the cat's age. Kittens are easy because their age can be determined by dentition. Very old cats do seem to have a more "grizzled" appearance around their mouths and heads, their bodies may be thin around the shoulders even when they are well nourished and healthy. Cats under five usually have whiter teeth than older cats and that can be influenced by diet and general health.

Anything in between is a "guestimate". People at humane societies frequently will place an age on a stray kitty because they have been able over time to compare a "new" kitty with others surrendered to them where the exact age is known.

The majority of vets see dogs for as much as 80% of their practice and may not be able to give an opinion on age of a cat as well as the shelter people.

Answer 2

The above may be true of American? vets, but certainly not true of vets the world over - where I am there's 50/50 cats and dogs - well perhaps more cats than dogs.

You can usually get a pretty good idea of a cat's age from their teeth, but also taking into account general appearance - you often get the idea with stray cats that they're not as old as the look, or even as old as their teeth look.

Sparkly white teeth - under a year old.
Some discolouration - 1-3 years old.
Tartar starting to become caked on - 3-8 years old.
Awful teeth buried beneath tartar - over 8 years old!
Really horrendous teeth with lots missing, inch long canines where the gum has receded so much - over 15 years, which doesn't really happen with ferals/lifelong strays.

Chalice