The life of our cat impacts our life in countless, priceless ways – so we can’t help but wonder: How long do cats live? How much time will we have to share this incredible experience?
Generally, this depends on multiple variables. Whether cats are indoor or outdoor cat is a big factor in how long they are expected live. Current average estimates for indoor cats is between 13-17 years. Outdoor cats’ average lifespan is only 2-5 years.
7-10% of a cat’s lifespan is considered to be determined by genetics.
But did you know that the longest living domestic felines on record actually live well into their 30s???
So perhaps the better question is:
How long CAN cat live?
The oldest cat in the Guinness Book of World Records lived to be 38 years old. Her name is Creme Puff – age 38 years and 3 days old when she passed. Her owner was Jake Perry. Incidentally, another member of Jake’s family was a cat named Granpa Rex Allen. Granpa Rex lived to be 33 years and 4 months old.
And Jake’s feline friends aren’t the only ones living this long. There’s a documented list of more that 30 cats that have lived well past 25 years. Genetics? Maybe…
But let’s look at some interesting similarities that don’t consider genetics. Similarities that may allow us humans to enjoy sharing Life with these beautiful Beings for longer than their average, estimated lifespan.
Enrichment. Many of the cats we researched all had regular engagement, stimulation of their feline instincts, and love.
Human Food. Sure, the research shows that adding just some fresh, real food to a cats diet can reduce disease markers by more than 80%. And interestingly, these long lived cats had human food like eggs, turkey bacon, and broccoli added to regular diet of regular cat food.
Stress-free Environment. The beautiful humans that were lucky enough to share this amount of time with their cats all gave considerable consideration to them – as cats. They took time to observe what they enjoyed, learned their personalities, and appreciated them an the amazing individuals they are. These cats felt secure, confident, and seen.
Three simple things – that over time could create more time together. I don’t know about you, but I’m putting this simple recipe in my pocket and plan to add more ingredients as we learn them.
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