 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion GroupsGeneral TopicsCat AnecdotesHealth and BehaviorRescue CatKB.com Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map |
Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / December 2006Advice Needed
My cat is not a grazer. He can not leave any food in his bowl so we have put him on a schedule. He eats when we get up in the am and when we get home. The problem is that he begins to try to wake us up around 5:00 am everyday - instead of waiting for the alarm clock like he used to. I was thinking that I would start waiting to feed him until I was about to leave the house instead. 1) is this cruel? 2) any suggestions on how to turn him into a grazer? 3) how long until he stops crying because he isn't getting fed first thing in the am? Thanks for your advice. KitKat's Mom On Wed 13 Dec 2006 08:08:13p, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav <news:1166058492.940508.113160@73g2000cwn.googlegroups.com>: > My cat is not a grazer. He can not leave any food in his bowl > so we have put him on a schedule. He eats when we get up in the [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > KitKat's Mom I think this is a good plan. I don't feed my four immediately when I get up in the morning, and I don't feed them right when I get home at night. They used to think they could come wake me up and I'd feed them, but when I didn't, they got used to it. It isn't cruel at all.  SignatureCheryl Thanks cheryl, he is kind of stuborn. How long do you think we will have to live through the crying before he gets used to it? > On Wed 13 Dec 2006 08:08:13p, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav > <news:1166058492.940508.113160@73g2000cwn.googlegroups.com>: [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > I'd feed them, but when I didn't, they got used to it. It isn't > cruel at all. Thanks cheryl, he is kind of stuborn. How long do you think we will have to live through the crying before he gets used to it? > On Wed 13 Dec 2006 08:08:13p, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav > <news:1166058492.940508.113160@73g2000cwn.googlegroups.com>: [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > I'd feed them, but when I didn't, they got used to it. It isn't > cruel at all. > Thanks cheryl, he is kind of stuborn. How long do you think we will > have to live through the crying before he gets used to it? I'm not Cheryl, but I do know that some cats adapt in just a few days. My weirdo cat, Rudy, *still* cries at breakfast and dinner time even though we've had an automatic feeder in place for weeks. I have to go jiggle the food with my finger before he'll jump up to his shelf and start eating. Hehe. SignatureLynne http://picasaweb.google.com/what.the.hell.is.it/ That is not encouraging!! :O) We considered the auto feeder, but felt the same issue would happen. How would he even know to go check befor trying to wake us up? > on Thu, 14 Dec 2006 02:55:52 GMT, Telecomd...@aol.com wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > http://picasaweb.google.com/what.the.hell.is.it/ I don't think they would check, as they are used to the routine. I got to where I left some food in their bowls at night so the anxiety wasn't there over empty food bowls in the morning. Now, even if their bowls are pretty full, they will still want to be "fed". So I look at the food, and then they start eating. Go figure! StephanieM On Wed 13 Dec 2006 09:55:52p, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav <news:1166064951.960013.167230@l12g2000cwl.googlegroups.com>: > Thanks cheryl, he is kind of stuborn. How long do you think we > will have to live through the crying before he gets used to it? Hehe, depends on your endurance. I just ignore them. I'm stubborn, too. :) They're fed at 6am and about 5:30pm-6pm, sometimes later. If it's later than 6 when I get home from work, I will feed them after I get in, change clothes, and turn on the news, so they only have to wait then about 15 minutes. The key is to not immediately do it as soon as you walk in the door. My worse offender is a former feral girl, and she'll climb on my chest and yowl at me as soon as she thinks I'm awake. That's better than when she used to jump on me to wake me up! With some of them it can probably take some time. So how obnoxious is he when he tries to wake you up? SignatureCheryl He has actually gotten better. I keep a squirt bottle by my bed now. He used to jump up and he got some nice blasts. Now he will only put his front paws up on the bed and cry...or just stand in front of the door depending on wether he has seen the bottle come out. Basically from approx 5 am to 6:30 when I get up I have to keep the bottle in my hand and jiggle it so he hears the water before he will run away for at least 15 min. > On Wed 13 Dec 2006 09:55:52p, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav > <news:1166064951.960013.167230@l12g2000cwl.googlegroups.com>: [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > -- > Cheryl On Thu 14 Dec 2006 07:26:00a, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav <news:1166099160.099833.55190@l12g2000cwl.googlegroups.com>: > He has actually gotten better. I keep a squirt bottle by my bed > now. He used to jump up and he got some nice blasts. Now he [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > up I have to keep the bottle in my hand and jiggle it so he > hears the water before he will run away for at least 15 min. I guess I just don't consider this intolerable behavior. I don't use water bottles for a couple of reasons - they are ineffective, and they can invoke fear. Ineffective because your cat isn't going to associate your reaction to his want for food, and your desire for him to stop begging, especially since you are in bed and not the kitchen. He's going to associate the water squirtings to his general interaction with you. You can already see that because he runs from your room when you jiggle the water bottle. You have invoked a fear response, not trained him to wait for a meal until you have gone to the kitchen. SignatureCheryl > I guess I just don't consider this intolerable behavior. I don't > use water bottles for a couple of reasons - they are ineffective, [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > -- > Cheryl I agree with Cheryl. I don't use a water bottle either. If one of the cats starts acting up before the alarm (which is rare), I will simply lock them out of the bedroom. It doesn't matter if it's 5 minutes before the alarm or an hour, I will not say a word, and gently pick them up and put them outside of the door. Neither cat likes to be separated from us, so they quickly learned that waking us up early = separation. I rarely have to do this anymore. Good point.....I have trouble with the whole..dont' punish for bad.....reward for good thing. > On Thu 14 Dec 2006 07:26:00a, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav > <news:1166099160.099833.55190@l12g2000cwl.googlegroups.com>: [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > -- > Cheryl > My cat is not a grazer. He can not leave any food in his bowl so we > have put him on a schedule. He eats when we get up in the am and when [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > KitKat's Mom Cats, just like dogs (or kids, for that matter), need rules. And eventhough they're stubborn, they can be trained to a point. But be persistent, cause if you don't train her, she will train you...very efficiently:-) |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.