I wish I could find the original source of this quote about longevity. I found it and copied it down in March 2016 because it immediately spoke to me about my senior kitty. He passed away this year at age 18+. I somehow knew inside when I read this quote that this was the key for him, rhythm of life. Keep things the same, a predictable routine, make things easy. My kitty was not only senior, but on benazapril (heart medication) for an arrythmia with a gallop, which is a serious heart problem. He was able to survive 4 years on medication with this condition. For a long time he was also on Plavix to prevent throwing clots (which could cause a saddle thrombus).Many monks have lived into their 90s, a product of their vegetarianism and the steady rhythm of life there.
This year we were able to buy back the house we used to live in before I adopted this kitty, and I started thinking how moving would affect him. Initially I thought we could all do it, make the move, but he was in his last year and during the time we were restoring the house to get it ready to move into, he lost most of his vision. He could not see his food or water bowls so I would click the bowls and position him when I gave him dinner. He knew where the water bowls and litter boxes were from having things memorized. At first he just stayed upstairs where he had everything he needed and I thought he was going to stay there permanently. Partly it was easy for him to triangulate upstairs because the central air closet was upstairs (making noise) and I kept a light on full time in the bathroom (he had light vision, at least at times), and also a radio on the one bedroom half the day. But then a couple of months ago he came downstairs and was able to navigate there, too. I was pleased that he had reclaimed the house after losing his sight.
But then I had the prospect of an almost 18 yo kitty on heart medication for almost 4 years and unable to see, being moved to a house he had never been in before. It was then that I referred back to this rhythm of life quote repeatedly. "Are we going to move?" "No, rhythm of life. I can't do that to him." A friend said, "Just go ahead and move, he will adjust and be fine." I know they can adjust to blindness, and I know I could have (for example) set him up in his own room to make adjusting easiest, but I didn't want to do that. He had survived almost 4 years with a gallop, I was not about to stress him with a new house where he didn't know where anything is. If we could have moved when he still had his sight, it would have been different.
Therefore I just continued on the remodelling, the months passed, and he continued his usual rhythm of life. The house got to the stage where technically it was ready enough that we could move in if we were in a rush, and I could finish the last details after we moved, but instead I just kept working on it and not hurrying, finishing the details. I had wanted to get the other house on the market during the summer selling season, but we had already missed that deadline so there was no hurry. Then, bless his dear heart, he passed away a few weeks before the final remodelling was completed, of extreme old age, and with no upset of moving. I absolutely believe rhythm of life was the key to letting him have his full life without stressing him. I know we did the right thing. To be honest, I might make a different decision with a dog, I'm not sure. They navigate a lot by their nose and seem excited by novelty, I don't know. But I know I made the right decision for our kitty, it was what he would have wanted.
Rhythm of life. A steady rhythm of life.
