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Old April 24th 08, 03:12 AM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
cshenk
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Default Cat meowing all the time

"mrscomp4707" wrote

I have a cat that is 2 years old and meows all the time. Almost all day and
pretty much all night. We walk him reguarly and we have tried spraying him
with water and yelling at him, taking him off the window sill, putting him
in
a different room. Nothing is working. I read somewhere that we should
ignore
it and reward him when he is being quiet. Is there anything else? Is there
some way to keep him entertained? We have another cat and he is just fine.
Any suggestions?


Lets assume you have a healthy cat here and no medical problems.

I'll start with this excerpt: 'It is important to know that some cat breeds
are just naturally more vocal than others. These breeds include the
Balinese, Burmese, Cornish rex, Japanese Bobtail, Korat, Siamese, and
Tonkinese.'

Is your cat perhaps partly at least one of these?

Now for dealing with it: 'Excessive meowing can be most annoying when we
are trying to sleep. Some cats have the habit of meowing and/or scratching
in front of the bedroom door until we let them in. The first rule of thumb
is do not respond directly to the cat's meowing. The cat is doing this to
get your attention. Getting up to see what the cat wants, shushing or
yelling at the cat is the worst thing to do because you are reinforcing the
undesirable behaviour by giving the cat attention. Your attention is its
reward. The easiest solution is to get a pair of earplugs. If you do not
respond to the cat's meowing it will probably stop within a few days.
If that does not work, you can try some of the following tips:
· Keep your cat extra busy during your waking hours and especially in the
evening with toys, extra play etc. This will help it sleep when you sleep.


(personal comment, this next one is not going to work for you as it's not a
night meower issue)· Squirting - Have a spray bottle ready and when your cat
wakes you with its meowing wait behind your closed door. At the very next
meow, spray the cat's paws from under the door. The cat will learn to
associate this behaviour with a squirting.