Brooke The Cat

And for giggles:

TJ was an outdoor cat who lived on our block. This cat was the most affectionate cat I’ve ever seen, and also the most matted. He loved to be pet but was honestly kind of disgusting to touch.

Two years ago, TJ went missing. This isn’t uncommon with outdoor cats, especially in the winter. I was sad but unsurprised at his disappearance. Fast forward to about 6 months later, I ended up talking to TJ’s owner about him, and his story surprised me. 

TJ hadn’t been hit by a car or froze to death, but had been picked up by a construction worker working on a house a block away. He saw the friendly, matted cat (with a collar, mind you), and put him in his car and took him home in a town an hour away. He took TJ to the vet because he had bald patches and was matted, and low and behold when the vet scanned for a microchip they found one. They phoned the original owner to let him know where his missing cat was. He ended up letting the construction worker keep TJ because he had already given the cat to his young kids who had renamed it Pumpkin and loved it very much. 

The construction worker very well could have refused to take the cat to the vet to get it checked for a microchip, and the original owner never would have known what had happened to him. I’m glad that TJ’s story had a happy ending that many outdoor cats aren’t lucky enough to get.

I was never entirely sure whether he was abandoned, or whether my sister just kidnapped a neglected cat, but either way Marm was much better off with us.

I would hate to lose oliver and mango just cause some kid picked them up and didnt care that they already had a loving home

Like any other property you own, the best way to keep it safe from theft is to keep it secure somewhere. This could be in your house or an outdoor catio. You wouldn’t expect people to not steal your bike if you just left it on your front lawn with a sign saying “owned by _____”. Doubly so if you just left your bike laying in the middle of the sidewalk halfway down the block. So why would it be any different for an unsecured cat?

And that’s not even the worst I’ve seen. Two of my favorite neighborhood cats as a kid randomly went missing and one of them was discovered to have been eaten by a coyote. Another one was found nearly dead in the street from kidney problems that his owner didn’t even know he had, and then got wounded outside and the owner didn’t notice until the wound was infested with maggots and ultimately fatal. My own childhood indoor/outdoor cat drank coolant and I had to watch him puke twenty-eight (28) times before my mom managed to extract herself from work to rush him to the closest vet. I’m so grateful that he lived to be 19.

It depends very much on the specific cat, and how much you know about it’s preferences.

A cat you don’t know much about or have an established relationship, ignore.

A cat you’re building a relationship with, maybe lightly try touching nearish the tummy on an area that’s known to be ok, and proceed according to their reaction: if they seem to find it pleasant, move closer to the stomach in small amounts for short durations of contact; if they seem annoyed or start to show signs of getting amped up (emotional arousal), abort.

If you know the cat well, proceed based on that knowledge - but don’t do too much at any one time, or pet vigorously. Overstimulation even from a positive stimulus can cause a cat to bite or swat.

Most importantly, remember that what just because one person can do belly touching with a specific cat doesn’t necessarily mean that cat will tolerate the same interaction from all people. It’s a very relationship-based interaction because it’s a vulnerable area for cats. They have to both trust you and not find the stimulus overwhelming or unpleasant for it to be a positive interaction, and that type of relationship takes time to create.

Despite my best efforts, I haven’t met all the cats in the world yet.  By this, I mean I can’t say FOR SURE that every single cat in the world is trainable.  But, in my experience, most can learn a few tricks.  It’s just a matter of finding what motivates them.  Dogs tend to learn quickly because we designed them that way.  We bred them to WANT to please us (for the most part; shiba inu may not apply).  Cats basically designed themselves.  Purebred cats were never really bred for obedience or a desire to learn from humans; we basically bred them for appearances sake, not for a job.

So, to start training your cat, first find a good motivation.  For some cats, it’s food.  For others, it’s a preferred toy.  Others are highly motivated by attention.  Most are food motivated, and it’s just a matter of finding their Absolutely Number One Favorite.  Fish is a good place to start, unless your cat is on an iodine-restricted diet.

Rub some fish (or whatever food they love) on the end of a target stick (which doesn’t have to be a fancy target stick, tbh; you can use a pen, or pencil, or even your finger, although I don’t advise that last one because cats have very sharp teeth and will try to bite the target at first).  When the cat sniffs the stick, immediately reward them with a treat.  Once they begin poking their nose (or paw; some cats will paw quickly, otherwise will prefer using their noses) at the target regularly, start attaching a word to it (”Touch!” is my go-to word).  Eventually, they’ll realize that the word touch means ‘touch this object’. 

From there, you can use the target stick to direct their attention to whatever you want them to touch (like a hand for high-fives).  They’ll learn that ‘touch’ means ‘touch this NEW object’.  It’s a bit slow, but cats can learn it quite well.  This is the technique I generally use to teach cats to give me a high-five— to switch your cat from nosing a target to using their paw, just move the target a bit higher.  They’ll naturally want to pull it down to their nose and try reaching it with their paw.  Just start rewarding that action.

Recall is easier.  Just give them a treat whenever you say their name and pretty soon they think their name means they’re going to get fed.

Tips!

1.  Keep sessions short.  Cats generally don’t have very long attention spans.  They get bored of doing the same thing and will generally wander off after 3-4 minutes, no matter how good the treats are.  This is fine. 

2.  Try to end training sessions on a good note.  Your cat has managed to touch the target once?  Good enough!  That’s an excellent place to stop.  You DON’T want to overwork your cat into frustration.  If your cat seems frustrated, stop and try some playtime instead.

3. Keep portions in mind.  You don’t want to overfeed your cats treats or risk unbalancing their diet.

Yup, seniors and black cats. Cats with resting bitch face; cats with missing limbs or eyes; cats that just aren’t that pretty, or have medical issues; cats that hide in the back of their kennels or hiss at people who get too close.