just in case anyone is interested... as I am in this site!! Barney is brilliant and we are loving every minute with him although I work all day my husband works mainly from home so he has plenty of company but guess who he loves best! He is still biting a bit too much but I keep saying no and sometimes it sinks in and he sulks. Then he thinks hey I want a treat please and comes round and talks again. He wakes up at 10pm and wants to play til late so we have a late day but love it anyway. When we turn off the light he goes off to sleep straightaway. He does seem to like the cooler places though is this normal?

Vet says he is fine as we have seen herI think nearly every week in the 5 weeks or so we have had Barney as we panic over him if he seems not right. He does have a slight ear infection so perhaps we are right to get him checked out as he cant tell us if he is ill. The vet must think it is good - although living in Surrey is a lot cheaper than living in Westminster I can tell you. We keep him away from our 3 year old cat as they hate one another but it is amazing how long they now stay in the same room (supervised) so I think in the end they will be okay. Our 22 year old cat stays in "her" bedroom most of the time as she cant make the stairs - mind you Barney cant get up and down them yet and hates heights and he is supposed to be a lhasa - but he is a bit of a baby!! Anyway enough of me hope this is the sort of input you like on this web cos I read everything everyone writes!! Regards Gina

Hi Gina,

A 22 year old cat! Wow, that is fantastic, what's the secret, or will your cat not tell?!!!

Puss, poor thing that is what we call her, has always been a very normal sort of cat not very interesting but lovely. We have never ignored our cats but she has just spent her life sitting around like a duchess watching any younger cats we may have had and enjoying a life of luxury. She is different than the other cats we have had in the past who were more outgoing but she has outlived them and I suppose that is why she has got to such a great age!! We love her to bits too and Barney doesnt even seem to realise she is about!! We do worry about her as she is quite thin now but she hates going out (as she is only used to going out into our patio area when we had a garden flat although when she could make the stairs she did the same walk round the garden every morning and then retired upstairs for the rest of the day) so I wont take her to the vet more than once a year and the last time he said her heart was very good so I dont think she should be upset by carting her to the vet more often. I hope she will go quietly (not sure she will be around much longer) and as long as I am with her I will be happy. Regards Gina

My dad had to have his 20 year old cat put to sleep this year. Seems they are living longer. Well done though 22 a very good age.

My friend's cat is 24, and still brings in dead birds!