My cat is about 10 years old now, female. Lately, she goes through these spells of demensia. She will cry incessantly for food, but will not eat any unless someone stands right next to her in the garage (yes, we feed her in the garage so our dog won't bother her while she eats). If you make any move towards the door, she will dart fearfully back into the house. Once inside, she will continue to cry and cry anew. She will do this for maybe 3 or 4 days, and then she will be normal again for about a week. Then it starts all over again. It's almost as if she's trying to tell me something, but I just don't know what. We have tried moving her feeding area from the garage to the kitchen counter, but that doesn't work. She will just pace the counter tops crying or sit and cry, trying to say something. I don't know what to do. Is she just getting old and nutty?

You really should take her to the vet to get checked out. It could be and most likely is something rather serious.

My first thought was that there's a scary animal out there that takes her food away from her if she's out there alone and she needs you to stay with her while she eats. But if she won't eat in the kitchen either. Maybe she's used to eating outside?

When my cat misbehaves, I teach him tricks like shaking paws in exchange for treats. He loves the challenge and stop harassing the other cat in the house as much. Maybe she needs more social time and play or something? She might be getting neurotic out of sheer boredom. Just a thought.