The Way of Cats

Cats know their names. They will even come to their names; when we call them only for good things.

Here is RJ, responding to his name. Of course he knows his name. He knows all his nicknames, too.

He also knows to come into the bedroom when it’s breakfast time, which is an even more sophisticated task. Early on, we knew what he wanted when he bounced onto the foot of the bed, but we are working on his communication, so we pretended we didn’t. We asked him if there was something he wanted to tell us.

This stymied RJ momentarily, and he looked out the bedroom door, to the hall, where Mr. Bond was lurking. Like the parent of a preschooler on Halloween night, Mr. Bond was making sure the message got through. This is a cooperative task between two cats, which is an even higher level of planning and strategy.

When we see this obvious evidence of intelligence, it might seem puzzling that cats don’t come when they are called. But it doesn’t mean they don’t know their names.

Cats don’t come when they are called if they don’t know what will happen if they do.

Cats have a constantly consulted database in their heads that they build their whole lives. Once an entry has gotten into the database, such as, I came when I heard my name called and they crammed this pill down my throat, this entry, with its bad connotations, will come up first. It takes many, many entries like, I came when I heard my name called and got a fishy treat! to make up for it.

Before we can even start any new entries in the cat database, we have to get the cat to come when called again. Good luck with that.

Unlike dogs, cats have no hierarchy of leadership, or compulsion to obey. That is why their name behavior is so different from dogs. Maybe outside, off-leash, or when they know it’s bathtime, maybe then dogs will pretend they didn’t hear us. But in the house, dogs always come, because that is their nature.

It is not in the cat’s nature. They have the cat database, with a constant reminder of what might have happened when they are called. Even if the answer, from the cat’s point of view, is nothing, that is not a sufficient reward for dislodging themselves from a lovely nap or tearing themselves away from a window. If they have any bad memories of coming when their name is called, that is a trigger for avoidance.

So don’t trick them to their detriment. They will remember. It’s okay to confuse them, or get them to think, or make them realize something new, if they get a reward of some sort for it. But we cannot use their names, their special many names, to do anything they wouldn’t want.

That would be a betrayal.

Got here from a Link or Search?
There’s more to raising and training a cat with The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See my CAT TRAINING TIPS.