Wednesday, July 22, 2020

Quiet Times for Josie

Josie is hard of hearing. She is not deaf, though she may be considered partially so. She can certainly still hear, but I often must speak loudly to her, or be close to her, for her to know that I am speaking.

The most obvious signs of Josie’s growing impairment come when I walk into a room where she is lying. She will start or jump a little upon seeing me, as I materialise silently near her. I always try to let her know visually that I have arrived, but trying to get her attention with a movement also startles her. My Chubs will catch me out of the corner of her eye and her head will whip around, surprised by my presence. Speaking loudly startles her, so I sometimes make a noise that increases in volume. This, however, will wake her unnecessarily if she is snoozing. I usually try to allow her to sleep through my presence; if she does not, though, she experiences the same start that comes from seeing me suddenly. Living with a partially deaf animal can result in dilemmas.

I wonder what she thinks of all this. Being a cat, I am sure that she takes it in her stride. Just as I imagine that Cammie was frustrated by her abrupt blindness but quickly accepted it, Josie probably just accepts the diminishing sounds in her world. But I chuckle over the possibility that she fumes, like a human, that people are always mumbling these days; why can’t they speak up?

In her old age, she has become, as I have mentioned previously, much more demonstrably affectionate. Is this due to her growing disabilities, her decreasing sharpness of hearing, her slowing movements? Is she less secure than she used to be? As she accumulates years, I will show her that she is safe and loved. I just may not be able to tell her so.

18 comments:

  1. Josie looks very wise in that photo.

    Cats can generally handle life's problems much better than humans. A neighbor of mine has an elderly cat who's blind AND deaf. He stays indoors, of course, but he manages surprisingly well.

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    1. Being both deaf and blind would be tough, but as long as he has his sense of smell, he’s probably far ahead of a deaf and blind human. It’s one of the reasons I had to let Cammie go after her second stroke; I believe she’d lost her sense of smell.

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  2. Josie is certainly a beauty. A cat is so used to having terrific
    senses, that it must take a while for one to get over the lack of one
    or worse, more.

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  3. My veterinarian said that there is no really good way to test if a cat is deaf; she said, make a loud noise and see what happens! Sweetie often appears to not hear me enter the room, and her early morning meowling could also be a hard-of-hearing activity.
    Josie knows that you love her; you are her rock!

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  4. You show her you love her everyday by giving her a warm bed and a full tummy. I am sure she knows.

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  5. Josie looks so lovely in this photo. I notice now Mr Jinx (18) sleeps so soundly that I can walk by and not wake him, so yeah age is playing it's hand. *sigh* I fear our days are much less than they once were.

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  6. daisy has grown hard of hearing as well. she used to have "selective hearing" ☺☺☺☺ but now truly does have an issue; boomer grew hard of hearing as well, right about the same age { 17 } ♥♥♥

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    1. OH Dai$y...you can here Katie Isabella well. I know because you both just got n]back from Italy.

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  7. Josie is such a pretty gal, just do your best to let her know when you are around.

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  8. Josie's adored by many of us. ♥

    Can you stomp your foot, so she can feel the vibration? Maybe that might help her understand you're near.

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    1. If I create a vibration, it will need to be gentle; I have a couple of big brave mancats who startle easily at sounds, rather than sights...

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  9. I have always believed that if a cat loses one of their senses, then the others are heightened to compensate. Josie certainly looks happy enough.

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  10. Josie's hearing loss may have occurred so gradually that she probably did not realize that she was losing her hearing. (Hearing loss in elderly people often occurs that way.) Cammie's loss of vision probably occurred suddenly so she had to make a big adjustment while Josie did not. Kea's idea to stomp your foot or create some sort of vibration is excellent.

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  11. Her affection is a natural progression of her love for you which follows upon your love for her. She knows you love her. She has not a doubt that you do. She trusts you completely and is giving back her love, and showing you that she is at home and safe and oh my...when they love us back-- it is such a joy.

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  12. Our Jezebel got super affectionate as she got older.

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  13. Ah! Bless! She looks lovely...!x
    In the middle of the bed, probably
    thinking to herself..
    'where is everyone'?

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  14. Josie looks so lovely! I laughed at Willie's comment! She does look a little lonely on that big bed.

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  15. Pretty girl! You may startle her but I'm sure she is certain of your love and caring.

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