Greebo...

My Greebo turned 8 last November, so in cat years he's getting old. I know he's considered "mature" or "senior" so I've been keeping a an extra close eye on him for a couple of years.

he loves lying in front of the TV... I dunno if its warm there or what

Up until about a week ago we had no problems!
His coat has been shiny, he plays with the other cats, he takes a swat at Volt every now and then, and he still loves to pick on Thelma and Louise through the glass door.
But I know that cats don't let you know something is wrong until they're practically at death's door!
Then my son told me one morning- when we were feeding our menagerie of dogs, cats, koi and beardie- that Greebo's breath stank something awful!
Alarm bells immediately started going off! When my Taxi was still a youngster, his unbelievably bad breath was what alerted us to his severe gum disease and eventually his FeLV.
My son and I then had a look at Greebo's teeth and they are quite badly eroded in some places. I didn't take him to the vet immediately 'coz I didn't have the cash, but I've been watching him. Then last week he took a turn for the worse. He's been supremely grumpy with the other furbabies- which is very unlike him- and he has lost a little bit of weight which tells me he's battling to eat. I also noticed him behaving oddly when he was eating, and sniffing his bowl more than usual... like he was hesitant. Not eating and the grumpy spells told me he was in pain, even though he was still running and playing with the other furbabies.
I took him to the vet yesterday and he agreed that Greebo's teeth are in a bad way and that he will most likely lose several of them. I'm dropping him off at the vet tonight so they can make sure he doesn't eat anything, and he will be operated on tomorrow.
This morning I gave him a bowl of soft meat- which my cats only get a little of as a rare treat- and he ate the whole tin! He was so hungry!
Ooh, and I found this cat age calculator on the web! I quite like it 'coz it shows how cats age according to whether they're indoor or outdoor cats!
Greebo is 48 years old!
So hold thumbs for me and for Greebo tomorrow... anaesthetic is always risky, but I am determined not to worry.