How Long Do Cats Live For? Find Out Here!

How long do cats live for? It’s a significant question for many Kiwis when planning to become a first time pet owner. For instance, a puss with a five-year lifespan requires vastly different spending to one likely to live for 20 years.

For example, knowing your furry friend’s potential lifespan gives insight into your financial planning needs for giving them an a-meowsing life. Like, for instance, what cat insurance plan to get.

From an emotional standpoint, new kitten parents may also be wondering how long they’ll get to share that special bond. Because just as dogs are humans’ best friend, cats are too… in fact, our pets are more than friends, they’re family.

To find out, read this article where we share who the longest living Kiwi cat is as well as the oldest known cat in the world. Plus, we’ve also included some general lifespan factors.

How long do cats live, generally?

Lifestyle is one of the biggest variables that can affect cat lifespan. The average lifespan of most domestic house cats is 15 years, however, lifestyle choices such as indoor cat or out and diet can affect the outcome. The oldest known cat lived to the ripe old age of 38 years! More on that further on.

Just like dogs, every year of a cat’s life counts for more in human years, so when your cat is one year old, they’re already the human equivalent of a teen. And when they’re two, they’re in their mid-twenties. Let’s just say they’re bigger than their boots!

Cat years to human years are calculated on a sliding scale and can also vary from cat to cat, depending on several factors.

This chart shows (approximately), how old your cat is in relation to people years:

Cat lifespan: Understanding how long do cats live

Of course, every cat is different, and there are many reasons from genetics and diet to health that can affect a cat’s lifespan.

Here are three factors that can influence a cat’s nine lives:

1. Indoor vs outdoor cat

Indoor cats are generally known to live longer than outdoor ones. Plus in New Zealand having an indoor cat has the valued benefit of protecting birds and other creatures from your cat’s natural hunting instinct. However, if you’re keen to let them out, get the right cat collar with a bell. Or, keep them indoors but take them out for walks. That’s right, just read about training a cat to walk on a lead so you can get started.

2. Breed

Breed has a significant impact on what you can expect your cat’s average lifespan to be. And along with this, your breed will also have corresponding health and diet needs too. For example, Siamese cats tend to be prone to allergies while Ragdolls are more likely to dental problems (check out our dental cover under the Deluxe cat insurance plans).

While we’re on the topic, read about some of the friendliest cat breeds and cat breeds’ personalities. BTW, ‘bitzers’ – or mixed breeds – often live longer than purebred cats because of their diverse gene pools.

3. Health

Health is a huge factor in anyone’s life and comprises things like diet, exercise and pet insurance. All these health aspects can affect the lifespan of a cat.

That’s why your fabulous feline needs access to quality food, clean water, enough room to roam, a little grooming here and there, and of course regular vet check-ups. Read how to choose between dry cat food and wet so you can tail-or your kitty-cat’s diet.

Studies also show that if you spay and neuter your girl and boy cats, they’re likely to live longer. Vaccinations are important to a cat’s longevity too – read about that in our pet vaccinations article.

Oldest cat in the world

The oldest known cat in the world is Creme Puff who lived to the ripe old age of 38 years. Living this long is unusual for a cat, and it earned her the Guinness World Record!

Creme Puff lived with her owner Jake Perry and his many other cats. Her diet consisted of dry cat food and some fairly eclectic snacks which we won’t go into here! 😊

This feline record breaker was a tabby mix who had a blend of indoor-outdoor lifestyle, with a screened outdoor enclosure. Here are more fast facts about Creme Puff:

Watch this video to see Creme Puff in action:

Oldest cat in New Zealand

The oldest known cat in New Zealand is Sarah, a Christchurch cat who lived for 33! That’s pretty a-meowsing! Sarah’s original owner got her as a fifth birthday present and sadly left her behind 20 years later when moving to a new house.

But not to worry, because Sarah was adopted by Fleur Ford who was the neighbour at the time. That would mean that Sarah was already 20 years old when she moved in with Fleur, and she went on to live another 13 years.

This Kiwi cat almost nearly made it into the Guinness World Book mentions, because her vet had applied on behalf of her pet parents. But sadly, the admin was nearly complete when Sarah had heart failure and needed to be put down at age 33. Read about more about putting a pet to sleep and how to grieve the loss of a pet.

Sarah was well-loved and is affectionately remembered by her pet parents and her vet. In a Stuff article, Fleur recollects her cat’s euthanasia and describes how “It was so lovely for her because she was very dignified. It was so beautiful, I cry when I think of it.”

Here are some fast facts about Sarah:

Watch this video of Sarah the Kiwi cat:

Cat insurance for young and old cats

They say cats have nine lives, which means you need nine times better healthcare too. Or something like that 😉 This is made easy with affordable cat insurance.

Pet insurance allows you to focus on your cat’s health and longevity. Depending on the pet cover you choose, it can help pay for a wide range of health care costs. For example, non-routine vet visits to unforeseeable hospitalisation and on to third party property damage.

Plus, PD Insurance will give you one or more months of free cat insurance (or dog insurance) if you sign up online. Click below to get started.