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Cat meowing all the time
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? |
#2
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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? He is neutered and goes outside daily. Im a stay at home mom and play with him and spend time with them as much as I can. Please help |
#3
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Cat meowing all the time
On Apr 23, 7:56 pm, "mrscomp4707" u43134@uwe wrote:
mrscomp4707 wrote: If you are sure there is nothing medically wrong with the cat, then I would guess boredom may play a role. Do you play with the cat? Interactive toys, such as a laser kitty light works well, as do the toys on a string that you can tempt them with. I am guessing the kitty just wants more loving ;-) |
#4
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Cat meowing all the time
mc wrote:
If you are sure there is nothing medically wrong with the cat, then I would guess boredom may play a role. Do you play with the cat? Interactive toys, such as a laser kitty light works well, as do the toys on a string that you can tempt them with. I am guessing the kitty just wants more loving ;-) We play with with a least twice daily. He plays with the other cat. He is neutered. The Vet says there is nothing wrong with him. He is perfectly healthy. we give him tons of love. The other cat is more independent and so this cat gets the most of our attention. -- Message posted via CatKB.com http://www.catkb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx...ealth/200804/1 |
#5
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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. |
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Cat meowing all the time
cshenk 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 [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] 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. I have tried spraying him with water, it doesnt work. He is a manx. He is more vocal than the other cat we have but this is excessive, we tried the earplugs last night and it helped us sleep but even right now he is meowing and meowing. We can ignore it for the most part, I am worried because we live in an apartment complex and i know that they can hear him. We have been just ignoring him. Any other advice? -- Message posted via http://www.catkb.com |
#7
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Cat meowing all the time
"mrscomp4707 via CatKB.com" wrote
cshenk 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 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? I see below Manx is the breed. I found this as a specific on a manx who acted like this: "You need to take her to a vet. Most Manxies won't meow at all. Or least ours didn't. She could be hurt inside or have worms if she's been outside. And if she's gone from outside to inside only she may want out. Badly. They can be obnoxious when they want something. That was another of Bob's traits. She was rotten and always attention starved". I do not know if this person was right, but saw several others who had had similar reactions by their cats who it turned out had worms. Apologies but I didnt read all your messages so do not know if you have already had this ruled out by a vet. Here's a few other things I saw related, but they were not 'manx specific'. They may help? Feed on a regular basis. a.. Try and feeding your cat at set times/regular intervals so they can anticipate when they're next going to eat. You can also try leaving down the dry cat food/biscuits so that your cat can nibble whenever they get hungry. However, if you cat has a tendency to over-eat, this may not be wise. b.. Install a cat flap. Most cats can never make up their minds if they want to be in or outside. My cat is in heaven during the summer when I can leave the back door open and he can wander in and out at much as he pleases. If your cat is always in and out, a cat flap is a great option. They are fairly cheap and easy to install and you buy ones which have magnets on them so only YOUR cat can get in. c.. Play. Some cats meow a lot because they want some attention and affection. Stroke and play with your cat often to keep them from feeling lonely or neglected. d.. Discipline. Don't let your cat drive you round the bend with excessive meowing - take charge. You can either ignore them which will eventually make them stop if you don't give in (very hard to do!) or you can try the old favourites of a squirt with a water spray or a firm 'NO' and a clap of the hands. Eventually your kitty will realize that constant meowing will get them nowhere. Please ensure you remember to praise your cat and give extra attention to them when they're not meowing. (I'm not totally in agreement with the water squirt as you cn cause your cat to develop other problems with this sort of negative behavior. If you do decide to try the spray route, have been told the nest way to go about it is to spray just the toes and in such a way that they can't see 'you' do it, such as from under a door with you on the other side). One memory spark, one of the cats I had long ago, would meow quite loudly all night if I didnt let her sleep with me. Now, I didnt mind a cat sleeping with me so was able to fix it that way. Do be sure to rule out worms first! Oh on wormers, you may already know this but another may not. It's best (really) to have the vet check for which type of worms first. Reason is they dont all react to the same 'over the counter' meds and you could be just making the cat sick with OTC stuff if it's heartworms or some of the others. Best I can do here as I know little more. |
#8
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Cat meowing all the time
cshenk wrote:
cshenk 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 I'll start with this excerpt: 'It is important to know that some cat breeds [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] Is your cat perhaps partly at least one of these? I see below Manx is the breed. I found this as a specific on a manx who acted like this: "You need to take her to a vet. Most Manxies won't meow at all. Or least ours didn't. She could be hurt inside or have worms if she's been outside. And if she's gone from outside to inside only she may want out. Badly. They can be obnoxious when they want something. That was another of Bob's traits. She was rotten and always attention starved". I do not know if this person was right, but saw several others who had had similar reactions by their cats who it turned out had worms. Apologies but I didnt read all your messages so do not know if you have already had this ruled out by a vet. Here's a few other things I saw related, but they were not 'manx specific'. They may help? Feed on a regular basis. a.. Try and feeding your cat at set times/regular intervals so they can anticipate when they're next going to eat. You can also try leaving down the dry cat food/biscuits so that your cat can nibble whenever they get hungry. However, if you cat has a tendency to over-eat, this may not be wise. b.. Install a cat flap. Most cats can never make up their minds if they want to be in or outside. My cat is in heaven during the summer when I can leave the back door open and he can wander in and out at much as he pleases. If your cat is always in and out, a cat flap is a great option. They are fairly cheap and easy to install and you buy ones which have magnets on them so only YOUR cat can get in. c.. Play. Some cats meow a lot because they want some attention and affection. Stroke and play with your cat often to keep them from feeling lonely or neglected. d.. Discipline. Don't let your cat drive you round the bend with excessive meowing - take charge. You can either ignore them which will eventually make them stop if you don't give in (very hard to do!) or you can try the old favourites of a squirt with a water spray or a firm 'NO' and a clap of the hands. Eventually your kitty will realize that constant meowing will get them nowhere. Please ensure you remember to praise your cat and give extra attention to them when they're not meowing. (I'm not totally in agreement with the water squirt as you cn cause your cat to develop other problems with this sort of negative behavior. If you do decide to try the spray route, have been told the nest way to go about it is to spray just the toes and in such a way that they can't see 'you' do it, such as from under a door with you on the other side). One memory spark, one of the cats I had long ago, would meow quite loudly all night if I didnt let her sleep with me. Now, I didnt mind a cat sleeping with me so was able to fix it that way. Do be sure to rule out worms first! Oh on wormers, you may already know this but another may not. It's best (really) to have the vet check for which type of worms first. Reason is they dont all react to the same 'over the counter' meds and you could be just making the cat sick with OTC stuff if it's heartworms or some of the others. Best I can do here as I know little more. Thanks so much for the response. We do play with him constintely, I really think he just wants outside all the time. We cant let him go outside without a lease and harness we live in an apartment. He sleeps with us in between his spurts of yelling. We leave the door open so he can roam and play. We do feed him at certain times, people thinks its funny that he has meals but it works for them. He has been a talker since we got him but has gotten worse. The Vet says there is nothing wrong with him. We feed our cats organic food and treats so we know its not a tummy ache. I think he just wants to run wild. Thanks again for a response. -- Message posted via http://www.catkb.com |
#9
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Cat meowing all the time
Suddenly, without warning, mrscomp4707 via CatKB.com exclaimed
(4/25/2008 7:00 AM): Thanks so much for the response. We do play with him constintely, I really think he just wants outside all the time. We cant let him go outside without a lease and harness we live in an apartment. He sleeps with us in between his spurts of yelling. We leave the door open so he can roam and play. We do feed him at certain times, people thinks its funny that he has meals but it works for them. He has been a talker since we got him but has gotten worse. The Vet says there is nothing wrong with him. We feed our cats organic food and treats so we know its not a tummy ache. I think he just wants to run wild. Thanks again for a response. Just because his food is organic, doesn't mean it can't give him a tummy ache. In this vein, it is possible, I suppose, that he might be allergic to something in his food. Have you tried completely (but gradually) changing his food? For instance, if you feed only chicken cat food, find cat food with no chicken. Or try changing brands. Cat are often allergic to grains, so you could try foods with no grains. Does he stop meowing when you play with him? Either he's sick (vet could have missed something - perhaps try a second opinion?), as other posters have mentioned, or something you're doing is reinforcing this behavior. You have to figure out what. If it's attention-getting you might try this: Leave the room when he meows. Close the door to the room he's in, or go to another room and close the door. As soon as he's quiet for like 10 seconds, open the door and praise him. Rinse and repeat. Other things to try: Never initiate play or attention, or even talk to him, when he's meowing, only when he's quiet (even if he's quiet for only a few seconds). Make more of a point of ignoring his meowing, by turning your back on him and refusing to look at him, until he's quiet. With this method, you might find that he's quiet, but when you look at him or reach for a toy, he meows. Immediately stop and go back to "ignore" mode. After a while, he'll realize that when he's quiet, he gets attention, and when he's meowing, he gets pointedly ignored. Talking too. When he's quiet, praise him. He'll figure it out. And if all the suggestions you get here fail to work, seek out and hire a reputable feline behaviorist. jmc |
#10
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Cat meowing all the time
"mrscomp4707" u43134@uwe wrote in message news:8321773d6d6f7@uwe... 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 Would you want someone telling you to shut up if you had something to say? Errr ok. You walk him regularly? How? and we have tried spraying him with water and yelling at him, taking him off the window sill, putting him in a different room. If you did that to me I'd do more than just meow, I'd slash your throat as you slept. 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? He needs something that you can't or won't give him. If you care about him, make the effort to find out whats bothering him instead of punishing him for communicating in the only voice he has. |
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