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Cat Forum / Cat Anecdotes / January 2008Re-Naming a Cat
It's impossible. Isn't it? So I've had Pinky how long now? Several months? And of course, I had to have *some* name for him to put on the vet papers. And to call him by, of course. Cats *must* have a name, even if it *is* Pinky. But of course, Pinky is a very silly name for a male cat. Notwithstanding that it was my mother's nickname for me when I was a child, it really isn't a particularly interesting, regal, personality-appropriate, creative or just-right name. So last night, I am watching him chase my shadow on the wall as I walk up the stairs. I don't know what it is about this cat, but he goes bonkers over light and shadows. Shadow! He's black, he loves light/shadows, I have a good friend named Shadow (of course, he is not a cat person, but oh, well) -- pefect! Okay, it is not very original or unique, but it fits him. "Shadow. Hi, Shadow! Mrrrowwww, Shadow," I try. Yawn. Ignore. Scratch. Walk away. "Shadow-Pinky! Pinky-Shadow! Mrrrooowwwwww." He gives me a look that says "What in the heck are you talking about, stupid human? What's this 'shadow' stuff mean? I don't get you humans." Curl up. Sleep. I'll keep trying. But I'm afraid the guy may be stuck with Pinky for life. Be careful what you name your cat -- even if it is supposed to be "temporary". Ginger-lyn  SignatureHome Pages: http://www.moonsummer.com http://www.angelfire.com/folk/glsummer (homepage & cats) http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~summer/index.htm (genealogy) http://www.movieanimals.bravehost.com/ (The Violence Against Animals in Movies Website) > It's impossible. Isn't it? > [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > > Ginger-lyn Ginger I think that you can call them what ever you want. I think that the human voice has different frequencies that we use when talking to different people and specially our pets. I can say hey furball and be talking to Rumble while Phantom and Spirit are laying next to him. He will turn towards me with a what do you want look while the others pay no attention to me. When I got Tiger at age four months, his name was "Tweedles". That wouldn't fit a 24 pound Maine Coon! He responds to his name when he feels like it. ---MIKE--- >>In the White Mountains of New Hampshire >> (44° 15' N - Elevation 1580') > It's impossible. Isn't it? > > So I've had Pinky how long now? Several months? And of course, I had to > have *some* name for him to put on the vet papers. And to call him by, of > course. Cats *must* have a name, even if it *is* Pinky. Pinky sounds fine to me, but then my brother had a good guy friend named Pinky for years. I could rename Molly at will, but then she has never responded to Molly or anything else for that matter. She seems to like "baby girl" when I'm talking to her. We just yell kitty kitty out the door when we want her to come in. Not that she responds to that either, but she has sort of learned that at night when we are yelling that, we might be getting close to leaving her out all night. Of course if the weather is decent she doesn't mind that until long after we've gone to sleep. The only purpose Molly serves is something to use when we talk about her so we all know which cat we are talking about. Of course she is a calico girl. They don't believe they need people names. Jo > It's impossible. Isn't it? > [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > Be careful what you name your cat -- even if it is supposed to be > "temporary". Happened for me with Boyfriend, he got the nickname when KFC was allowing him into "her" garden = so he must have been her boyfriend, right? and it stuck. I tried to rename him Gideon once but it didn't work so he has his silly name for life too. Tweed Whaddya mean, my name is silly? - Boyfie.. Dylan wanted to rename Smokey because 1. he had a cat named Smokey when he was younger, so it reminded him of the previous Smokey and 2. Smokey is a very common, sort of dumb, name. We couldn't do it. Smokey is trailertrash. He has no dignity. He has no majesty. He does like to eat garbage and stare at the ceiling for hours, though. Any alternate name that would suit, is even dumber than Smokey. He could pull off "Ranger," "Bubba" or the like. And of course there's the cigarette fascination. Smokey it is. His middle name is "Wayne" after his "godfather" (who tamed him). At least Smokey rhymes with "pokey." This boy sure does love his pokes. (I think you're stuck with Pinky) --Fil > > So I've had Pinky how long now? Several months? And of course, I had to > > have *some* name for him to put on the vet papers. And to call him by, of > > course. Cats *must* have a name, even if it *is* Pinky. > I'll keep trying. But I'm afraid the guy may be stuck with Pinky for life. Does he respond to Pinky? Maybe you could try and drop the P and call him Inky? You know, ink - black... I knew when I got Caliban that I would soon have to think of a new name for him (his fosterers called him Leo, which I didn't think suited him at all). I couldn't go on calling him stripey boy (randiga killen in Swedish) forever. And since Miranda (who was named from Shakespeare's The Tempest) hated him that first week and kept hissing at him all the time, I decided to go with Caliban. I think it suits him very well, and the first time I said it aloud, he looked at me as if to say, 'what do you want?' He responds to it when he wants to, unless I say I say CaliBAN! in a menacing voice, when he will ignore me completely. ;) SignatureMarina, Miranda and Caliban. In loving memory of Frank and Nikki. > I knew when I got Caliban that I would soon have to think of a new name > for him (his fosterers called him Leo, which I didn't think suited him > at all). I couldn't go on calling him stripey boy (randiga killen in > Swedish) forever. And since Miranda (who was named from Shakespeare's > The Tempest) hated him that first week and kept hissing at him all the > time, I decided to go with Caliban. Not being well educated in Shakespeare, I looked this up in Wikipedia. Here's what it has to say: "Caliban is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's Theo Tempest, a deformed monster who is the slave of Prospero..." You named that beautiful boy after a deformed monster?? :) Joyce (I hope you know I'm just teasing) > Not being well educated in Shakespeare, I looked this up in Wikipedia. > Here's what it has to say: [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Joyce (I hope you know I'm just teasing) I know you're teasing, but I still need to defend my choice. :) That is quite a simplification of the character of Caliban. There are many interpretations of him (like most Shakespeare characters). He is often seen to represent the earth, while another character in The Tempest, Ariel, represents the air. When I got Caliban, I knew I wanted to continue the theme, and there were three characters in The Tempest that I was thinking of, Caliban, Ariel and Ferdinand (whom Miranda falls in love with). Well, the stubby, chunky little guy didn't seem to me like an airy creature, so Ariel was out. Miranda hated him, so Ferdinand was out. With his short stubby legs and his love of food, he seemed like quite an earth-bound creature, so Caliban it was. :) SignatureMarina, Miranda and Caliban. In loving memory of Frank and Nikki. >> You named that beautiful boy after a deformed monster?? :) >> >> Joyce (I hope you know I'm just teasing) > I know you're teasing, but I still need to defend my choice. :) That is > quite a simplification of the character of Caliban. There are many [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > out. With his short stubby legs and his love of food, he seemed like > quite an earth-bound creature, so Caliban it was. :) Thank you for the more detailed and nuanced explanation. As I said, I'm hardly a Shakespeare scholar, so I defer to your much better knowledge of the material. The photo on the Wikipedia page seemed to focus on his ugliness, which doesn't seem apt, but I'll go with the match on elements. He certainly seems to live very much in the material world. :) Joyce SignatureTo send email to this address, remove the triple-X from my user name. > I'll keep trying. But I'm afraid the guy may be stuck with Pinky for life. > > Be careful what you name your cat -- even if it is supposed to be > "temporary". You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? What's your secret? >> Be careful what you name your cat -- even if it is supposed to be >> "temporary". > You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? > What's your secret? All my cats know their names. Of course, whether they respond when I call them is another matter. Joyce SignatureTo send email to this address, remove the triple-X from my user name. Ours all know AND respond to their names. The bitties in particular will come when called. Nocturne will flick an ear in vague acknowledgement unless she feels you have something good to offer her. Smokey looks at you as if to say, "do I HAFTA move?" --Fil > > You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? > > What's your secret? > > All my cats know their names. Of course, whether they respond when I > call them is another matter. > Ours all know AND respond to their names. The bitties in particular > will come when called. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] >> All my cats know their names. Of course, whether they respond when I >> call them is another matter. All three of mine will come consistently when called. For the older two, it was a combination of giving them treats every time I called them when they were younger and then no matter what they were doing, they always get attention when they come when called. It doesn't matter if they have just knocked something over or are scratching inappropriately or if I just want to give them attention. There is always reward of some kind for coming. For my youngest cat - who does not do treats - I just would call her name and she got attention for coming or looking at me or any response and all and when she actually came to me she got enthusiastic attention. So at this point, all three cats will come to the appropriate name when called. It helps that all of them really like to be held and scritched and petted. That reward for coming when called is really important. Bridget bastXXXette@sonic.net wrote in news:47927850$0$36385 $742ec2ed@news.sonic.net: > >> Be careful what you name your cat -- even if it is supposed to be > >> "temporary". [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > Joyce Zak always came when I called him. He was not the brightest cat I ever had but he was very attentive. Topper would always come when I called also. He _was_ my brightest cat. He had a large vocabulary and communicated quite well. Anytime one of my cats came when called I thanked them. I always thanked them for doing what I asked and _most_ of the time they did. With the two brothers I expect things will be different as they don't seem too enamored of me so far. At least I think they will know which name belongs to who but I am not sure they will care. So far they come to me with two messages: 1. food dish emtpy or close to it 2. want to chase the red dot; come and make it go oh yeah the third message is for each other: help help! The human is close to me! sigh Andy On Jan 19, 2:23 pm, bastXXXe...@sonic.net wrote: > All my cats know their names. Of course, whether they respond when I > call them is another matter. Tell me about it I haven't seen Sarrasine since about 7.30 this morning and I am starting to get a bit worried about her then again with the weather this awful she's probably found somewhere to burrow in. She did this yesterday and I was getting more than a bit worried when she suddenly walked past the living room door and looked at me as if to ask what the fuss was about I tried calling her but she doesn't answer Mind you, she's probably annoyed with me for this morning. Last night we were playing with the Feather Onna Stick and as I was feeling tired I put it back in the bag and left it on the sofa instead of putting it back in the drawer,,, This morning the bag containing said Feather Onna Stick was placed on my chair as if to remind me what I had to do this morning. (I'll get it out in a while, that should bring her out of hiding if it doesn't then I can start panicking) Lesley Slave of the Fabulous Furballs > Tell me about it I haven't seen Sarrasine since about 7.30 this > morning and I am starting to get a bit worried about her Dave opened a box of chocolate brownies (Sunday treat) and Sarsi walked in from the bedroom (I've been in here for a couple of hours and not a peep from her) to see if there was anything worth begging for (not that I would let her have chocolate of course!) then stolled into the kitchen for a nibble then walked from the bedroom into the living room then the kitchen, which judging by the way she's getting in her box in the living room right now the sheer effort has exhausted her! Lesley Slave of the Fabulous Furballs > You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? What's your > secret? I've taught all mine their names by repeating the name over and over again while petting the cat when I first got them. Then, the first few weeks with them, I make sure I say their names several times while they're eating. This has worked for me. SignatureMarina, Miranda and Caliban. In loving memory of Frank and Nikki. >> You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? What's your >> secret? [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > weeks with them, I make sure I say their names several times while > they're eating. This has worked for me. Yep, I use the saying-names-while-feeding trick. Got so much into the habit of it that I still do it, even though they all know their names by now. But every day it's still, "Here ya go, Cosmo,", "here's your food, Jackie", "Good boy, Trill", etc. Ginger-lyn SignatureHome Pages: http://www.moonsummer.com http://www.angelfire.com/folk/glsummer (homepage & cats) http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~summer/index.htm (genealogy) http://www.movieanimals.bravehost.com/ (The Violence Against Animals in Movies Website) >> You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? What's your >> secret? [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > weeks with them, I make sure I say their names several times while > they're eating. This has worked for me. Oh, I didn't mean they were unaware of being addressed, or ignorant of their names! (However, that does NOT mean they choose to pay attention!) >>> You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? What's your >>> secret? [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > ignorant of their names! (However, that does NOT mean they > choose to pay attention!) I find one cat will pay attention if another is called, they clearly don't want to risk missing out on something. SignatureAdrian (Owned by Snoopy & Bagheera) Cats leave pawprints on your heart http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk > I find one cat will pay attention if another is called, they clearly don't > want to risk missing out on something. My boycats have always done this. If I called Nikki, Frank would come. If I call Miranda, Caliban will come. If my sister calls her girl, Ronja, her boy, Linus will come. SignatureMarina, Miranda and Caliban. In loving memory of Frank and Nikki. >> I find one cat will pay attention if another is called, they clearly don't >> want to risk missing out on something. > My boycats have always done this. If I called Nikki, Frank would come. > If I call Miranda, Caliban will come. If my sister calls her girl, > Ronja, her boy, Linus will come. What about if you do it in reverse? If you call Caliban, does Miranda come running? Joyce SignatureTo send email to this address, remove the triple-X from my user name. > What about if you do it in reverse? If you call Caliban, does Miranda > come running? No. :) But then, she's not at all interested in food. SignatureMarina, Miranda and Caliban. In loving memory of Frank and Nikki. Marina <frankiennikki@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in news:5vit1oF1ls12hU1 @mid.individual.net: >> What about if you do it in reverse? If you call Caliban, does Miranda >> come running? > > No. :) But then, she's not at all interested in food. Miranda looks like she'd be most interested in adoration. She just has that look. Mine know their names and respond to them. However if I am in the kitchen and rattle a spoon in a dish, I have the whole crew. This is what I do when we have tornado warnings, instead of calling and chasing to put in the carriers, I do the dish thing with some treats in my hand, give them a treat and pop them in a safe place. > >> I find one cat will pay attention if another is called, they clearly > >> don't [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Joyce >>>> You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? What's your >>>> secret? [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > I find one cat will pay attention if another is called, they clearly don't > want to risk missing out on something. Hehe - that's the truth. I know darn well they all know their names, but all I have to do is call *one* ("Hey, Trill!") -- and I have an entire group of cats around my feet. I suspect it is a conspiracy of some sort ;-) Ginger-lyn SignatureHome Pages: http://www.moonsummer.com http://www.angelfire.com/folk/glsummer (homepage & cats) http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~summer/index.htm (genealogy) http://www.movieanimals.bravehost.com/ (The Violence Against Animals in Movies Website) > Oh, I didn't mean they were unaware of being addressed, or ignorant of > their names! (However, that does NOT mean they choose to pay attention!) No, that's a whole nother matter, of course. :) SignatureMarina, Miranda and Caliban. In loving memory of Frank and Nikki. >> I'll keep trying. But I'm afraid the guy may be stuck with Pinky for >> life. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > You actually have a cat that pays ATTENTION to its name? What's your > secret? ROFL Well, most of them know their names, and they pay attention -- when they *want* to ;-) Ginger-lyn SignatureHome Pages: http://www.moonsummer.com http://www.angelfire.com/folk/glsummer (homepage & cats) http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~summer/index.htm (genealogy) http://www.movieanimals.bravehost.com/ (The Violence Against Animals in Movies Website)
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