by Team WellJoy
Natural cognitive and sensory changes can make your pet more sensitive and unsettled, as they move into their twilight years. This is the time for gentle play and mental enrichment, and a calmer, more predictable approach to life.
Cats and dogs are complex emotional beings, just like us, and their mental wellbeing is as important as their physical state.
When they’re safe and calm, feel-good hormones help them rest, digest and recover. On the flipside, feelings of stress, fear or overstimulation create cortisol and adrenaline, which increase heart rate and alertness, and slow digestion and immune function. Over time, that stress can cause tummy problems, skin flare-ups, poor sleep and behavioral changes.
Essentially: Emotion → brain → hormones → whole body wellbeing
Giving your pet predictable routines, calm environments and positive experiences is a major part of their long-term health.
What’s going on
As your pets move into their golden years, they’ll prefer more naps, shorter walks, and a bit less intensive play time. Changes in their cognitive and sensory function mean they’ll need their Pet Loyalists to be more patient and supportive of their mental health, particularly as these changes can lead to upheavals in sleeping and general emotional state.
Non-negotiables for mental wellbeing:
- Take cognitive changes into account: Older pets might experience slower processing and confusion, or find changes in routine more challenging. Keep an eye out for pacing, changing sleep patterns or a general sense that your pet is less present. Gentle mental games and puzzles are a good support at this time.
- Be aware of physical changes or discomfort: Take into account factors such as aging joints, dental problems or any chronic illness your pet has been diagnosed with. All of these can make them less tolerant of play and interaction. As well as respecting their space, supplementing with Omega-3 Fatty Acids can reduce inflammation and help your pet feel more comfortable ?(Our Immune+ for cats and for dogs contains Omega-3 Fatty Acids for the joy of staying strong inside and out).
- Watch for sensory decline: Pets’ vision or hearing can become less acute as they age, and that can make the world around them feel scarier. As a result, senior pets might prefer familiar places and routines over novelty.
All of the above can make things that once seemed normal feel more unsettling than before. Maybe your cat used to love visitors coming round, or your dog was never bothered by small changes in routine, but now seem to be struggling with these things
Supporting mental health at this stage of their life is all about being calm and predictable. Keep routines the same, offer gentle mental enrichment, calm companionship and, importantly, call on vet guidance wherever needed.
We’re proud to say that all of WellJoy’s content is fact-checked and verified by a Pet Loyalist team, including a veterinarian trained in companion animal nutrition and a PhD board-certified companion animal nutritionist.
