Seriously blessed with Pumpkin. The three biggest risk factors for death in older female cats are 1. Obesity, 2. Dementia, and 3. Loneliness.
She is a responsible eater. She has a sensitive stomach that was an issue when she was younger, but she's figured out how to manage it herself. Not that I make a habit of it (just if I have to be gone for more than a day), but I can leave out large amounts of food and she won't overeat. Great at controlling her own portions.
She's a very bright cat. Stupid when it comes to physical/object based intelligence, but very smart when it comes to other things. To the point that she's still acquiring new language. She even understands concepts like apologies, if you offend her (tripping over her or whatnot) and say "I'm sorry" to her, she legitimately understands. Sounds nuts but I've had other people spend time with her and realize that she genuinely does, and have proven that she isn't responding to tone of voice, but to the actual vocabulary.
And she's lucky in that I got sick when I did, and have been able to spend so much time at home with her. Prior to my cancer she was actually a pretty solitary cat, and her health was slipping -- she weighed less and her fur was thinning out. But having me around all day every day through that got her and I very attached. Only downside is that we are so attached that her health even suffers when we are apart. Having to have someone else watch her for even a few days causes her to become mopey to the point that she barely eats, and starts to be careless with her litter habits.
But if things keep going as they are, she's got many, many years in front of her despite being 16 years old. I always tell her she's going to be the oldest cat in the world someday.
