Kitten won't learn his name

redhead_dpt

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About a month ago I adopted a new kitten. He is about five months old and generally bright. But the little guy refuses to learn his name! He is as likely to respond to "Eli", his name, as he is to respond to anything else. There is nothing wrong with his hearing (he hates the sound of the paper shredder and goes running when he hears it) and he is as bright as any other kitten I have ever had. The little guy just will not learn his name. Is there anything that can be done to help?
 

jen

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that is pretty much how most cats are, they are not dogs. i forget who said this, someone on here I am sure, but cats seem to not really know their NAME, they just know "that word that people say when they mean me"
 
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redhead_dpt

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I have had many cats throughout my life and they all eventually learned to respond to their names. It just is taking Eli quite a bit of time to figure it out.
 

goldenkitty45

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As silly as it sounds, perhaps he doesn't LIKE his name. With Spooky, we originally called him TC and he never responded. My ex-husband came up with "spooky" cause he was all white. As soon as we said "Spooky" he turned and looked at us. Apparently he liked it better then the TC as planned.

So Spooky became his call name (he was a pedigree cornish rex). We called him Spooky or Pooky and he responded all the time.

Try some other names and see if the kitten responds better. Also have a few treats he really likes and then use the name with "come" and give treats.
 

gingersmom

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Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

As silly as it sounds, perhaps he doesn't LIKE his name. With Spooky, we originally called him TC and he never responded. My ex-husband came up with "spooky" cause he was all white. As soon as we said "Spooky" he turned and looked at us. Apparently he liked it better then the TC as planned.

So Spooky became his call name (he was a pedigree cornish rex). We called him Spooky or Pooky and he responded all the time.

Try some other names and see if the kitten responds better. Also have a few treats he really likes and then use the name with "come" and give treats.


I was going to suggest that you try out some other names on him, and see how he responds.

I waited almost a whole day after adopting Ginger to find out what her name was - the shelter had named her "Jangles" which I hated. After she'd been with me and explored her new home for most of a day, I just started calling her Ginger, and it felt right - she responded to it, so Ginger it remains.
 

epona

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Strange as it may sound, I agree with that. If he's not responding to that name, try some others out until you find one that you can all live with. Both my boys look around instantly when they hear their names, and neither of them took more than a week to learn and respond to their name. Other than those moments of being selectively deaf when they're up to something mischievious of course, but that is not unusual in cats
 

urbantigers

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He may just be employing that selective deafness that Epona refers to! Mosi used to ignore me when I called his name and still frequently does. He knows his name, just chooses not to respond a lot of the time. Unless he thinks there's something in it for him. It was several months before I realised he did actually know his name. Jaffa always responds to his name but that's because he loves food and cuddles and reckons there's a good chance of getting one or the other when I call him.
 

xxtashaxx

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funny story, when a mum cat came to me she had 2 kittens, i was sure (and the vet) that one was female and the other male. so the black female was called candy, and the tabby was called stripes. candy was very loving but stripes hated attention. candy and her mum went of to a great new home while i kept stripes.
a few weeks went by and he still didnt want to know. then i noticed that he was in fact a she *opps* so we called her sophie and withen a day she was all over us. weather it was that she just decided to become loving or for the fact that we changed her name and started calling her a beautiful girl instead of handsom boy or what. but i agree try changing the name.
 

goldenkitty45

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When I bought Ling in from the barn with her brothers/sisters to wean, I named them all "oriental names" - Ping/Pong were her brothers and Ying/Yang were her sisters.

I could tell them apart by the markings and every time I was picking them up, etc. I would use their names. By the time they left at 3 months old, they ALL knew their names and would respond (at least look at you) when you called them. Even tho they were very similar
 

cband5cats

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There was a phrase I always like to use when it comes to cats responding and that is: A dog will come when it's called, a cat will take a message and may get back to you. Like the last post, cats are not dogs. They respond when they feel like it. I wouldn't be that concerned.
 
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