[Debbie D]

My DD's kitty, Kenny, is something else. He's 3 months old, and they've had him for 2 weeks. He sits on command, comes when called, and if he's scratching furniture or doing something she doesn't like him doing, she sprays him with a bit of water and he stops the mischief and doesn't do it again!
I've never had a cat, but can cats really be trained like this? I'm impressed!

[mrsD]

Yes, they are trainable, and with time learn language...
so be careful what you say to the kitty! One of the first words our cats learned was TUNA...LOL

They are not great on sentences, but sure do understand words and brief phrases! At least ours do!

[Kitty]

Mine do, too! If I say "are you hungry?" they go to the pantry because they know their food is in there.

I'll ask Tigger "you want a treat?" and he'll go to his dish and sit there until I put a treat in it.

If it's sunny out I'll say "you want to lay in the sun?" and they both go straight to their perches that are in the sunroom window. If I say it and there's no sun they'll just sit there and look at me like I did something with it!

When I get ready to vacuum I tell them "it's gonna be loud" and they both go get under the guest room bed!

They're smart cats!

[mrsD]

When Oreo was about 2 yrs old... and was relatively new to our upNorth (see my profile album)...

I said one day, go over there on the big rock (there are only a million + rocks up there) so I can take your picture. And she just got up and went there and posed for me. No kidding!

That sobered me up, because I had suspected the small language abilities... TUNA, NO, DOWN, IN... etc.. which always worked. Now I had to consider more complex understanding!

What gets really dicey is when they try to talk to YOU.
This will really blow you away.

1). I had a ginger cat once --who said "GOOOOOINNNGGG" every time we put her in the carrier and either took her to the vet or on vacation. One summer she was in her carrier on the dock ready for the trip back in the boat to the cars, and said clearly..... NOOOOOOO GOOOOOOINGGGGG....

2) Sheba, our very old 23+ old Queen.... calls me MA. This started when my son was old enough to take the bus to school and would run in the door coming home, calling ....Maaaaaa!
So then Sheba started going up my husband when I was at work or doing errands, and saying MAAAAAAAA??? And he would say Ma is shopping or at work, and she'd accept that and settle back down!

3) Oreo, our youngest, who I KNOW understands language, says Oooouuuu, OOOOuuuu, for "out" She only does that when she wants me to open a door.

So some cats will try to imitate language if they understand it.
Don't be surprised. It might be a talent, and not every one of them does it, but eventually you will get a kitty who can do it!

[Debbie D]

I am amazed...I didn't know cats were so intelligent...
My DD called today on the way home from a visit to the inlaws'...she said the kitty was clawing and climbing up the back of their couch (they haven't had him declawed yet). She took some water and spritzed him...he never went back behind there again. He found a plant that had hanging thingies, and was batting at them. Again, she spritzed him and he never went back to it.
I'm not successful thusfar in convincing her dad that we should get a kitty when our furbaby goes to Heaven, but I'm convinced that I'd be better off with a kitty than a High-Maintenance puppy, as evidenced by my DS's puppy visit over the weekend.

[TwoKidsTwoCats]

Our cats would make vocal tones that sounded like mamma. As they aged they lost the ability. My oldest son did something he was getting yelled at about and the cat who favored him, would come up to me and make a sound like "stop". We would both start laughing and it eased the tension knowing his cat stood up for him!

Now the one we have left is 17 and she doesn't hear well. If she starts making loud meows/ vocal tones you know to get her outside...she's going to throw up.

They have amused us and amazed us with their antics!

[Kitty]

If I go to bed or disappear from her sight Gracie will make the loudest noises. It sounds like she's saying "Oooouuuuuuuuu". She'll keep doing it till I either yell for her ("I'm back here, Gracie!") or go and find her. It's really annoying when I go back to bed in the mornings and she doesn't know where I am and does this. It's hard to imagine how loud she can be!

[Debbie D]

Wow...thanks, all, for sharing all of this info...it's kind of scary to think they're that smart...
DD also told me that her FIL let Kenny out of his crate Sunday morning...he nudged their bedroom door open, hopped up on the bed, on top of DD, and stared at her as if saying, "It's time to get up...what are you waiting for?"

Another question...how do you know if your cat can find it's way home if it gets out?

[Kitty]

I've never let my cats out so I'm sure they'd be dumbfounded if they ever did get out. There is just too much out there that can do them harm. Plus, I don't want them to have fleas. Indoor cats are healthier, too, with less vet visits. But......we had indoor/outdoor cats when I lived at home and they survived a very long time. One even got her tail run over in the driveway! She spent over a week at the vet for that. I don't think they ever ventured far from home. We lived way back in a subdivision so there wasn't any fast traffic around.

I think cats can be as smart as we train them to be. Alot of it has to do with how much attention you pay and how much you actually talk to them. I talk to my cats all the time. I can tell the difference between a "happy" meow and one that says "feed me!".

Gracie is a typical cat.....she does things on her schedule and ignores everyone until she needs something. Tigger is the opposite. He is a big baby and thinks I am his mother.

[FinLady]

My one cat was relatively easy to train not to do stuff with squirt bottles. The second one - not so much. She'd just sit there getting soaked.