cats meowing

My cat is about 8 yrs old and he has never stopped meowing. I do ignore him and squirt him and yell at him like Im supposed to BUT he doesnt stop! I have kept him out of the bedroom for about 5mo's now and he still meows. I just moved into an apartment and if I keep him outside the bedroom-he will keep the upstairs landlord up!
Please help-I dont know what to do anymore!

Ok, please stop with the yelling and squirting, that doesn't help the matter at all.

Your cat is meowing because it's trying to talk to you and get your attention, so give him attention.

When does he meow? All day? When you are sleeping?
Is he an indoor/outdoor cat? Perhaps there is something outside bugging him that he wants. Maybe he's just bored!
Get some good interactive toys for him, get him a nice tall cat tree or window perch so he can spend his time looking outdoors and keeping hismelf busy.
Play with him often, let him sit on your lap whenever he wants to, as long as it will keep him quiet.
Don't keep him locked up in one room, he needs to roam, play with him a lot right before bed, and give him some nice warmish wet food (canned food) right before bed as well, hopefully that will calm him down.

And on another note, have you spoken to a vet about this? See if he has any behavorial issues, anxiety perhaps?

I give him plenty of attention. I buy him lots of toys and he doesnt keep the interest. He only stops meowing when he is right next to me. I feed him him wet food in the AM but I will start to do it at night. He is an indoor cat and has plenty of window seats. He meows constantly. He even meows when Im in the shower! He meows when Im getting ready for work, anytime he meows! I cant take it anymore. The other sites said to squirt him and/or yell at him and he will get the hint. What do ya think?

Uhhh, no I don't think he will get the hint. If anything he might get upset by the tone and volume of your voice, and being squirted when he's simply trying to seak companionship.
I'm sure just about everyone else will agree the same here.

A lot of the ladies here don't like to squirt cats anymore period.

What kind of toys do you have for him? Something besides a little mouse. Does he have any toys that move? With lights? aka somethign interactive.

Get him checked out by a vet, see what he says maybe if this cat has enough of a problem he may prescribe him anti-anxiety medication, or you can try that rescue remedy so many people love, and it works in most cases. It's basically a substance that calms the animal down.
My cat talk, not too much but enough! and I don't mind. Asim used to howl when he would have to sleep in his bedroom away from me. He has anxiety and depression issues, and he used to (adn still does on and off) have to sleep in his own room at night due to litter box issues and discruction problems.

And last but not least. Perhaps you could think about adopting another cat, to keep your current cat company, maybe then he will be mentally and emotionally satisfied enough to chill out most of the time, cause he'll have something to do. Sometimes this solution works, sometimes it doesnt.

I have a lot of toys that move-balls, feather on a stick, hanging mouse, and so on. I did take him to the vet about it about 6 months ago-he was fine but they did put him on amitriptyline 5mg(low dose anti-depressant). what is the "rescue remedy" and how do i get it?

Hi there !

i learned about cat meowing a lot at a recent cat show that i attended.

One judge said that when cat talks, they are actually talking.

A very nice lady, Ruthe, had a show cage next to mine, and she has a very beautiful Abyss. That darling meows a lot. When Ruthe held her in her arms, he almost stopped meowing. i thought he wanted a lot of attention and cuddles!

My Venus is deaf, and she hardly talks. She emits little soft and sweet trilling sound when playing catch with me.

Daisy, on the other hand, will meow when i first enter the house, whenever i went out. She would want a lot of attention after.

i guess your baby just want your attention. That is the way it is. Some kitties talk a lot, some kitties don't.

Kisses and hugs for your baby!

Cheers!

Holy Cow! I can't believe people told you to squirt the cat when he meows! That is absolutely the wrong thing to do!

The reason he meows is that he has learned that when he talks you pay attention to him. The attention may be yelling or squirting....he doesn't care because even though it is negative attention, it is still attention.

The ONLY way you will be able to stop his constant meowing is to NOT give him what he wants when he meows! In other words, the only way to stop this is to COMPLETELY ignore him when he is making any noise.
And --- this is VERY important --- you must pay attention to him every time you catch him being quiet! So, when he is talking, you must act like he doesn't exist. But the moment he is quiet you turn around and tell him how cool he is and scritch his head. If he starts meowing again, simply turn around and ignore him.

Because he has 8 years of knowing that you will pay attention when he meows, this behavior is not going to change over night! You will need to have a lot of patience and everyone in the house will have to follow the new rule: Ignore meows, praise silence.

If you or anyone pays attention to the meowing at any time, you will simply teach him that he has to meow even more and louder to get what he wants. So, don't start training him to be quiet until you and everyone in the house all aggree to follow the new rule 100%.

I guarantee you that if you all ignore the meows and praise the silence and do this consistently, the meowing will reduce to the level of meowing that we see with most cats!

Hi, I agree with all of the above, no squirting and pay attention when he is quiet! I am one who likes my talking cats, in fact I meow back in attempt to have a conversation, but I ignore thier meow in the mornings for food, because I don't want them to think they can wake me up and get food whenever they want!

also the wet food at night could help, and have you tried the laser light pointers as a toy? It is dangerous for their eyes if you put it directly in their eyes but if you are careful, mosts cats love it and will run and jump and chase for a long time, it is a good exercise to keep the cat content, happy, and tired that the meows may be a lot less!

this play will keep him happy, but ignoring his demands is still a must..

I am sorry but I have to add my 2 cents here..My cats are pretty quiet most of the time..Rocky is more of a talker than Fluffy is, but I know I love it when they do meow at me...I think it is their way of telling you they need something or just letting you know they are there...If you can't stand the meowing, and knowing that cats meow before you got him, why did you get him in the first place? I am sorry, I guess it just bothers me to think of someone buying a cat and then getting mad at them for something that is out of their nature.....I just don't understand why you would want to get a cat knowing they DO meow...some more than others too...I think it is such a bonding thing when they meow (talk) to their owners.....

Sometimes when cats are noisy, there are reasons. It could be they are trying to tell you something- "mom my litter pan is dirty, I don't feel well- I smell another cat- you scared me.." But as lotsocats said, you have created this type of needy cat and you need to stop yelling at him, and stop squirting him. Water bottles do not do anything for a cat except to scare them, and make them more afraid of water, plus if you accidently get water in their ears- look for a hefty vet bill to make that right, so please put the squirt bottle away. If the cat is Siamese, or a Siamese mix- that is just part and parcel of the breed and you learn to live with the excessive vocalization. Ignore him when he talks to you. Read out loud, recite a poem, turn up the music, but ignore him. When he is quiet, praise him and love on him and it will not happen overnight, but eventually he will find out that what used to work in the past no longer stays true.

Max is also very needy. I have found if I raise my voice or show irritation at him, he meows all the louder. I guess I haven't been doing the right thing either though. I coo to him to come to me when he meows and he comes on a run. He stops meowing though as I cuddle him. I figure he's loney, as I am gone all day. I don't blame him for voicing is displeasure. He just wants me to give him some loving. I never thought to ignore him when he meows.

Max's Mommy