This section is on feline basics -- nutrition, general cat topics, etc. These are all questions that have been submitted or that I have been inspired to talk about because of a question submitted. If you have any topics that you would like to have discussed please feel free to email me with the topic or question.
Indoor versus outdoor cats is a hotly debated topic. Indoor cats are at lower risk for car trauma, dog trauma, other cat trauma, and infectious diseases. Some cats, however, are simply not happy being confined inside. For these cats, it is imperative to maintain their vaccintations -- Rabies, Respiratory Diseases, Feline Leukemia, and FIP. It is also imperative to have them spayed or neutered. If you live near a busy road, letting them roam free is strongly discouraged. Free roaming cats are also more prone to hunt and get into fights both of which predispose the cat to parasites and bacterial diseases. So, think long and hard before letting cats run free and be prepared for the possible consequences. Some cats roam free all their lives without problem, but it is wise to be prepared.
Most cats live from 15 to 20 years. The average is around 18 years, and the oldest cat I have ever personally heard of is 27 years old.
That depends on your cat. Cats can develop bladder stones. There are two common types of bladder stones. One type of stone, struvite, forms in alkaline urine (high pH) and is composed of magnesium and phosphate. The other type of stone, calcium oxalate, forms in acidic urine (low pH) and is composed of a calcium compound. For a long time, the vast majority of the stones that cats got were struvite. To prevent these stones, diets that made the urine acidic and were low in magnesium (ash) were recommended. Hence, the proliferation of "urinary tract health" diets. But the consequence of feeding diets that acidified the urine was an dramatic increase in the incidence of calcium oxalate stones. The special urinary tract diets only help those cats prone to developing struvite stones and can cause other cats to develop calcium oxalate stones. Thus, if a cat does not have a struvite stone formation predisposition then there is no need to feed the special urinary diet because it may lead to calcium oxalate stone formation.
That is an excellent question and one for which there is no clear-cut answer. Most cats live to be between 16 and 19 years of age although 20+ year old cats are not uncommon. Most veterinarians consider a cat to join the "senior" population at 10 to 12 years of age. Does every cat at this age need a senior diet? Probably not. But as a rule a cat becomes a senior between the ages of 10 and 12.
I have researched and answered these questions to the best of my ability. But I am human and make mistakes. If there is any part of my answer that you feel is incorrect, please let me know. The last thing I want is to disseminate false or incorrect information.