He Is Learning English

[catrobyn]

I've had my male cat about 6 months now. He's about 1-1/2 years old. I suspect he's pretty intelligent. (I've had cats ranging from dunces to Albert Einsteins, so I'm able to evaluate them pretty realistically.)

I live in a building with interior hallway, and take him plus my female on a walk down the hall every night. The female doesn't go far from my door, but the male may go all the way to the end of the hall (quite a distance), and sometimes so excitedly that he ceases walking and RUNS down the hall.

The first word we taught him was "Bad". He learned that quickly and knows it means not to do whatever it is he's doing. (Whether he complies or not depends on his mood.) The second word he learned was "Walk". This causes him to make a beeline for the front door, knowing his fun is about to begin. The third word he learned was "Home", meaning the walk (or run) is over; go back home. (Again, whether he complies or not depends on his mood.)

I am now trying to teach him "Bed". Sometimes he spends the night in the living room in his cat tree. Sometimes he sleeps on my bed. I like when he's with me and want this word to be a signal to come to me. My question is, is "Bed" too much like "Bad"? I don't want him to get confused, and I don't want him to equate the two, leading to who knows what bizarre behavior.

Any thoughts?
Thanks!

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

If your kitty is responding well to word cues, like you say, I think "Bed" is too close to "Bad". You could try "sleepy" instead.

I find that words with two syllables work really well with my cat, like the words "dinner", "walkies", "want some?", and need I say, "zoomies", as examples.

 

[furmonster mom]

Yah... bed/bad... sound too similar. I try to avoid that when choosing "command words". I do think they can hear the difference in phrases, though tone really has a lot of effect. I can say "hey!" with different tones, and they will react accordingly.

Some phrases I use:

Hungry?
Let's go (when going upstairs for meals or bed)
Time for bed
Come here/on (yah... go ahead and laugh, but they do... sometimes)
No (sometimes with a handclap if the offense warrants it)
Stop
Get down
Get off
Be nice
Lap
Up
Potty
Go use the post
Where's your toy?
Whatcha doin?

Also, for training purposes, it helps to have an action or reward to go along with the phrase... and it needs to be as consistent as possible. Drives me crazy when my hubby starts using different words for things I've trained them to.

 

[catrobyn]

Good idea. Not exactly Albert Einstein on my part, to have not considered just using a different word! I will give it a try!

 

[catrobyn]

Yah... bed/bad... sound too similar. I try to avoid that when choosing "command words". I do think they can hear the difference in phrases, though tone really has a lot of effect. I can say "hey!" with different tones, and they will react accordingly.

Some phrases I use:

Hungry?
Let's go (when going upstairs for meals or bed)
Time for bed
Come here/on (yah... go ahead and laugh, but they do... sometimes)
No (sometimes with a handclap if the offense warrants it)
Stop
Get down
Get off
Be nice
Lap
Up
Potty
Go use the post
Where's your toy?
Whatcha doin?

Also, for training purposes, it helps to have an action or reward to go along with the phrase... and it needs to be as consistent as possible. Drives me crazy when my hubby starts using different words for things I've trained them to.

 

[catrobyn]

Wow! Your cat (cats?) has learned a lot! Funny, I've had cats almost my whole life and never started trying to teach them words until this current one. I talked to them, but completely inconsistently. I do know, and always have, that they respond to tone of voice. I'm enjoying this new experience of teaching specific words and curious to see how far it will go.

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

And don't forget that your cat/kitten will also respond to familiar loving/ nurturing word patterns you use.

I think it is a good idea to get kittens and cats used to calming, comforting phrases you might frequently use to help them feeled loved, or get them calmed down. This can be very handy at the vet's or if they are under stress! They have a long, loving life ahead of them with you and your speech patterns are something they pick up pretty quickly.

I have several phrases which I use for my kitty, usually always with the same intonations and usually associated with times she is calm, dozey, push-purring on a blankie, or if she needs calming (like when I had to temporarily put her in a crate).