Ok, stange question: is there any way to train a cat not to meow for food?
The only time Kipling ever talks to me is when he wants food which I know is normal, but for some reason, his voice just grates on my nerves, especially first thing in the morning.
Due to his weight, he is kept on a strict feeding schedule. He is fed three times a day, morning, after work and before bed. This schedule has not changed for the last few years. The absolute moment my alarm goes off he starts and I'll admit, I'm not a morning person so this is REALLY annoying. The moment I walk in the door from work, he starts. The moment 9:00pm comes he starts. Obviously he knows he's getting fed at these times because he only meows at those times. I've tried varying the times, but he watches me and for example, at 9pm the moment I make any movement at all regardless of whether its toward his bowl or not he starts. I've tried waiting till he takes a breath so that I only put the food down when he's quiet...well he's not quiet long enough to get the bowl down so he still gets rewarded for meowing (I only use positive methods to train my critters, never aversives). I've also tried free feeding him, but not only does he get too fat, but he still meows at me when its feeding time and then runs to his room to eat.
I know most people would not find this a problem, but he just has one of those voices that grates on my nerves.
amanda and kipling
The only time Kipling ever talks to me is when he wants food which I know is normal, but for some reason, his voice just grates on my nerves, especially first thing in the morning.
Due to his weight, he is kept on a strict feeding schedule. He is fed three times a day, morning, after work and before bed. This schedule has not changed for the last few years. The absolute moment my alarm goes off he starts and I'll admit, I'm not a morning person so this is REALLY annoying. The moment I walk in the door from work, he starts. The moment 9:00pm comes he starts. Obviously he knows he's getting fed at these times because he only meows at those times. I've tried varying the times, but he watches me and for example, at 9pm the moment I make any movement at all regardless of whether its toward his bowl or not he starts. I've tried waiting till he takes a breath so that I only put the food down when he's quiet...well he's not quiet long enough to get the bowl down so he still gets rewarded for meowing (I only use positive methods to train my critters, never aversives). I've also tried free feeding him, but not only does he get too fat, but he still meows at me when its feeding time and then runs to his room to eat.
I know most people would not find this a problem, but he just has one of those voices that grates on my nerves.
amanda and kipling