Cat Chat (please go to cat chat 2)

[Saracirce]

Basically anything meat based is fine. Even high quality kibble they don't normally get, wet food or even use part of their dinner for training. Or you can use lunch meats, cooked meats that haven't been seasoned or hot dogs if you watch the sodium content on all of them. For instance, with my cat (who to be fair is a bit of a glutton) we use samples of Ziwipeak, Acana, Go! Fit + Free but we also have different dog treats. She'll eat almost anything. Meanwhile, one of Transkitty's cats is very specific about what she likes: shrimp. There is literally nothing higher in value to her then a shrimp no matter if it's raw or freeze dried or cooked.

So basically, the animal decides what is rewarding and it's the trainer's job to find what that is.

As far as trick training, it basically comes down to

1) being clear and consistent with your reward marker (the sound used to tell the animal 'yes! That thing you just did is exactly what I want!')

2) building up criteria. You don't start teaching in a super busy room when your cat is already tired or is wanting to do something else. You also reward consistently and generously in the beginning so they think it's a fun game. Duration for something like sitting for a full minute also has to be gradually worked up to.

3) breaking down tricks into baby steps. You don't teach 'play dead' by immediately going to rolling onto their backs and you dont teach a dog how to grab a soda from the fridge in one day. It all gets broken down into small, easy steps that are built upon.

4) understanding that each animal is an individual and has their own likes and dislikes. That can be everything from what food they like to what tricks they're willing to do. My cat doesn't seem to like to lay down so I just didn't try to force her to learn it. Animals can also have good and bad days and some days they just may not be interested in playing the game. Also, if the animal seems to be losing interest or getting frustrated, ask for a trick they like and find easy (my cat's is sit) and reward heavily for it then give your 'we're done training's command whatever that may be.

5) keep training sessions short and sweet. Always end on a good note. Duration can depend on the animal but for a baby kitten, I'd probably say 2-3 minutes tops then as he grows it can be extended to 10-15 minutes.

I highly suggest you watch this video https://youtu.be/wT8SQusV8Uk as well as the other videos on his channel. Kikopup is a good YouTuber as well. Yes, they're channels and videos have dogs but their training is based in science that applies to every single animal from macaws to alligators. Even humans learn the same way.

[fluffycat6]

We are putting my 19 year old cat down. He has a huge tumour in his stomach.

[AGGUA!]

We are putting my 19 year old cat down. He has a huge tumour in his stomach.

Oh my god, that's horrible! What's his name, and what does he look like?
I know what that feels like, sorta... If you want to take the time to read this freaking long story about my cat, Luna

We adopted her from HAWS... Her name was Topaz, but we renamed her Luna. Luna Sky Johnson.
She was the sweetest little shorthair, although she looked like a siamese. And we loved her right from the start. She didn't wrestle with my dog... She didn't fight back whenever my dog tried to tear her into little pieces... She was so calm

And then we found out why...

She had a heart murmur. Her heart was beating too fast... She wasn't expected to make it to her first birthday.
It was mortifying. We could pay thousands for surgery, but she had a 50% chance of survival, and that would only cause her more pain and suffering, and wouldn't do much good... Maybe extend her life for a few more years, but it would be too painful to bear.
So we simply kept her... Everyone ignored the fact that she wouldn't live long. We acted like we didn't know.

Honestly, I wasn't very nice to her, and she wasn't nice to me. I remember when she crawled onto my bed one time and laid on top of my pillow, clawing at my hair. I picked her up by the scruff and threw her out, shutting the door and heading back to sleep.
We were rivals... I guess... But she loved me in a different way than I loved her.

We were at a cross country meet in October, 23, 2015. Me and my family. I got 6th or 7th place out of a heck a lot of people. Later we went out to Buffalo Wild Wings. Had a great time, everything was so pleasant.

Until my dad said that when he had come home today while we were at school, Luna wasn't breathing. He had buried her out in the yard, in the tall grass, or 'forest', as we refer to it. We cried enough water to fill up the Amazon River.

But me? I hardly cried at all. I still regret it, wish I could go back and undo some things... Wish I could get a chance to say sorry to our poor cat.

We got her grave a nice stone a few weeks ago. It said 'I Love my Cat' on it, and we laid in there. It was nice and flat, and it worked nicely. It wouldn't blow away in the wind or anything.

But really... She had 4 days left until her first birthday... The birthday she'll never get to celebrate

I was on a trip a day ago and I got homesick... which I never do, but I did. But then I thought of how my cat was watching over me, and I toughed it out.


But enough about my cat... I'm really more of a dog person, and I stink with words, but that's horrible.

[asteraceae]

@sunny sandy + fluffycat6 - I have a similar story, myself. And I'm sorry for both of your losses.

I had a longhair black cat with green, Detroit. She was a bit scrawny, with croaking meows. She had a blunt face and short ears that always stuck to her head as though as she was annoyed. Detroit had strange markings around her face as though cake crumbs were left on her muzzle. She also had weird gray markings above her head which made her look more grumpy. I remember her biting me when I was young, but I surely forgave her.

My dad got her from a friend whose cat escaped and mated a tom. The cat was supposed to mate with a pure-breed cat and have the owner profit the kittens off. Since the Detroit lions won a game, my dad received one of the kittens because she could not be sold for much. She was so small she could sit on your shoulder.

One day we found her wheezing as though it hurt. We took her to the vet and she discovered Detroit had a tumor in her throat. We let the vet run lots of tests and gave her medicine every day. However there was no cure. So we had to put her down at age 20.

And me as well? Yes I'm sad, but I have 3 cats that are wonderful company now. I'm not a dog person though, they're okay. I used to love them when I was about 7.

[Lydia♡]

I don't have any tear jerking cat deathes to depress you people I just wanna say my old kitty Hecuba is turning 14 soon. She's a very healthy if a but overweight kitty keeps trying to go outside-sges older then me-where buddy's.
Elkren@ btw 20 years is quite a long life for a cat don't feel like you let her down dude. That's kind of amazing I don't think any of my cats will live that long

[Nyxeva]

I don't have any tear jerking cat deathes to depress you people I just wanna say my old kitty Hecuba is turning 14 soon. She's a very healthy if a but overweight kitty keeps trying to go outside-sges older then me-where buddy's.
Elkren@ btw 20 years is quite a long life for a cat don't feel like you let her down dude. That's kind of amazing I don't think any of my cats will live that long

20 years is the average lifespan of an indoor cat, so yes! She lived a full lifetime!

[leijonamieli]

I was longboarding in the suburbs and saw a really cute cat that looked almost like mine. Of course I had to stop and pet it. x) It was so small!

[plum]

Any tips on making a 14+ hour car ride with a cat?

She's a pretty decent traveler but this'll be the longest car ride she's ever been on. She'll have a carrier that she can go in (but she'll be allowed out whenever I'm not driving) and I plan on buying a couple disposable litterboxes that she can use in the car. Anything else I should keep in mind?

[Nyxeva]

Any tips on making a 14+ hour car ride with a cat?

She's a pretty decent traveler but this'll be the longest car ride she's ever been on. She'll have a carrier that she can go in (but she'll be allowed out whenever I'm not driving) and I plan on buying a couple disposable litterboxes that she can use in the car. Anything else I should keep in mind?

Don't be surprised if she doesn't use the litterbox due to the stress.
When I knew I'd be making a 12 hour drive with my cats, I made sure they were very comfortable with their crates. They were fed in them, they slept in them and our games involved them going in them. That way the crate would be familiar when they were put in the moving truck. A car should be less stressful since it wont be as loud as a truck.

Anyway, be prepared for a lot of crying and scratching at first. When I took my cats, it took about half an hour for them to settle and about an hour for them to actually go to sleep in their crate. I also stopped a lot and let them out to roam the truck for 15-20 minutes at a time. During this time, I offered them water, litterbox access and special treats. I also noticed they seemed much more comfortable if I covered their crate, so that might be worth considering!

If you're going to be crossing state lines, make sure her rabies vaccination is up to date and keep the proof with you/on her!

[yoyo226]

I have 5 calicos in my aprement, theres hair eveyrwhere! but we make it work lol