Cat shock collars???

I'd be tempted to call animal protection...

Personally, I wouldn't do things to my cats that I wouldn't do to another person. It's like raising children. Would we put shock collars on them?

I know about them because my roommate wanted me to get one for my kitty Spooky to keep him from running out the door (which he does EVERY time you open it).

The cat ones he found were not the kind with a remote where you could shock them at will, but rather like an electric fence. If they got within a set range of the transmitter (2-12 feet) it would give them a warning beep, then had 3 levels of "correction" (shocks) that would continue in severity until they stopped approaching the transmitter.

I still put my foot down and said no, not to my kitty. I wish the best of luck to the cat in question, though I don't see there's anything anybody can do if that's what their owners wish to do to them.

I would report them. There is no sense in that whatsoever. I would suggest in a round about way that they consider using sticky tape because eventually when they take their cat to the vet, the vet would want to know what caused the sores on their neck and then they would get reported anyways.

Wow. Just wow. That is horrible and inhumane. I don't like shock collars for dogs either. That poor kitty. I agree with others about reporting them!

OMG that is so horrible. Is that even legal to hurt your cat like that? Cant you call the SPCA and report them? Im pretty sure thats cruelty. I dont get why some people have cats, so sad

Personally,I would N0T use shock collars on a dog OR a cat.I think it's not fit for either Just because things are out on the market...doesn't mean its "safe" for pets...think pine& cedar bedding for rodents [its actually not "ok" for any small animal...or reptile out there],betta bowls& goldfish bowls [enough said...1 adult goldfish needs 20gallons,& I wouldnt house any fish in under 5 gals,personally I dont house anything under 10gals ] & many MANY more things out there i'm sure!
I'd love to see shock collars taken off the market >.< Poor animals...

Originally Posted by Yosemite

I'd put the collar on them and then frantically squeeze the shock button.

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Me too!

Originally Posted by furbum

I'd be tempted to call animal protection...

Personally, I wouldn't do things to my cats that I wouldn't do to another person. It's like raising children. Would we put shock collars on them?

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Research the Judge Rotenberg Center. It's a special school for autistic kids. They use shock "treatment" on them. And we're not just talking really low-functioning kids, either. A lot of them have only got Asperger's... others are "emotionally disturbed" or mentally retarded... It makes me really mad because I'm autistic too and that makes me feel a real kinship with those kids. They don't just get it for really crazy stuff, either. They get shocked for little things like getting out of their seats at school... One kid got shocked something like 70 times in a day.

Apparently you can still mistreat people if you can claim that you are "helping" them.

Originally Posted by CruiserMaiden

Ok this is my first post here so I hope it doesn't make everybody hate me

They actually have shock collars designed specifically for cats now. I think they are for animals from 5 to 20 lbs or something, and have different shock levels. The receivers are supposedly smaller so they are easier for kitties to wear.

Now the disclaimer: I don't agree with putting a shock collar on the cat.(especially for something silly like getting on the counter!) I just wanted to offer a LITTLE hope for y'all worried about the health of the kitty.

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Get a grip everyone! CruiserMaiden, can you direct me to a site where the sell shock collars for cats/small animals?

I don't worry about my 2 cats getting up on counters, furniture, clothes, whatever... what I DO worry about is my cats leaving our yard and being mistreated by strangers or eaten by coyotes. We enjoy spending a lot of time in our back yard. Our cats (that we love very much, btw) want to come outside with us. Of late, they have gotten adventurous and have hopped the fence/wall and spent the day (and sometimes night) in the neighbor's yard or wandering the neighborhood.

We would like to train them to stay off the wall and stay in our yard by "zapping" them whenever they get up on the wall. They love being outside and, now that they know what they are missing, we think that it would be more cruel to keep them locked inside than to zap them a couple of times to train them to stay in the yard.

Assuming that zapping them would do the trick - which it may not...

Why don't you just put a harness and tether on them? Or build an outside enclosure. I would think "zapping" a cat when they are jumping on a wall is just as likely to freak them out and have them run off than teach them anything. You want to keep your cats safe, contain them.

Skipping ahead here, but there are shock collars specifically designed for cats.

If the voltage is appropriate, it can potentially be nothing more than startling. My concern though would be to thoroughly research the product, as many that I have seen are cheap Chinese brands and its a small niche product so you aren't bound to find many reviews. As far as I know, there is no regulation or real research on the proper amount of voltage for cats. Testing it tied around your wrist for potency and ensuring it can't operate continuously would be important self-checks, and ensure w/ your vet that the cat is healthy enough to tolerate the shock provided.

BTW, I have personally worn a dog shock collar, although w/ a turtleneck inbetween it and my skin since I was chicken and that more appropriately mimics a dog that has fur between it and the skin, and it is NOT that bad. I think a lot of people are concerned that its the same intensity as a taser, and I can assure you those hurt so bad, and at least the one I wore was not that strong.

Cats do learn from association, and just as a cat can avoid a litterbox due to associating the box with discomfort from urination, a cat can surely learn to associate a counter or something similar with a short brief zap. It would in fact be more effective than a spritz of water since there is no concern of being associated with the punishment.

The path of least resistance though would be to simply use a product like the SSSCAT which doesn't have any safety concerns and doesn't require the cat to carry around a bulky and uncomfortable device on its neck.

For the yard, a passive system would also be recommended, and there are various options for cat-proof fencing solutions.

Doh, I just realized how ancient this thread is.

Thanks Ducman69. I'll give SSSCAT a try first.

That is mean, so mean, mean and mean. I wouldn't wvwn want to know that guy. Call animal protection services and get that guy carted off.

To me that's animal abuse! He should be reported to the authorities for cruelty to animals!!!

Originally Posted by Yosemite

I'd put the collar on them and then frantically squeeze the shock button.

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Ditto!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by Allie Cat

Thanks Ducman69. I'll give SSSCAT a try first.

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Good luck, and one other benefit I forgot to mention is that I don't think I've ever seen a shock collar that was break-away, and unlike dogs, cats are much more likely to get themselves into a situation that they can be strangled by their collar.

So while with appropriate voltage and safety features, I'm not entirely opposed to a shock collar for a dog to dog-proof a fence for diggers, that's just another safety concern for a cat.

For cat owners who think shock collars are all that's available to keep their kitties from going over a fence--which I assume they think from no one mentioning anything else--and you've got a high metal fence:  Please know you can use a common fence charger and run a single hot wire on insulators inside the fence about a foot down from the top.  This takes some doing to keep the hot wire from touching the fence (place insulators close together).  I did with wonderful results.  My cats got shocked not more than twice then were broken apparently forever of climbing out.  You can leave the charger on, however.  Because young cats usually learn their lesson from the first zap, and old cats aren't climbing anyway, there probably is no risk in using a livestock charger, but I have seen smaller ones.  I am sure my solution will be attacked by the same anti-any kind of electric shock people who are against shock collars.  

BBaxterMatheny said:

For cat owners who think shock collars are all that's available to keep their kitties from going over a fence--which I assume they think from no one mentioning anything else--and you've got a high metal fence:  Please know you can use a common fence charger and run a single hot wire on insulators inside the fence about a foot down from the top.  This takes some doing to keep the hot wire from touching the fence (place insulators close together).  I did with wonderful results.  My cats got shocked not more than twice then were broken apparently forever of climbing out.  You can leave the charger on, however.  Because young cats usually learn their lesson from the first zap, and old cats aren't climbing anyway, there probably is no risk in using a livestock charger, but I have seen smaller ones.  I am sure my solution will be attacked by the same anti-any kind of electric shock people who are against shock collars.  

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Welcome to TCS.

Just want to point out that this thread was started in 2008, with a few posts added last year. Most of the people who posted here will probably not see your reply.

We have a forum for New Cats on the Block. We'd love to have introduce yourself and your cats there.

I taught mine to stay off the bar with dozens of mousetraps - I think it was harder on me than them.  This became the effort of last resort after they continally I cleared the area of bottles and straws and knick nacks that had been bounced off.

Before anyone jumps on me, the mouse traps were set and put UPSIDE DOWN with about an inch between them.  So when one popped, they'd all pop.  Never hurt a kitty, and only hurt my pride when I'd get the last one down only to bump them and have them all dance and go off.

Took exactly three times for them to decide that it wasn't worth it.