How to Talk to Your Cat

Many people think that cats are stupid, because they feign disinterest, when it isn't stupidity at all. Cats are very smart! They can build a much larger vocabulary of understood words than dogs can. It depends on tone and "picture association" to build the vocabulary. A cat will ignore you unless it sees some reason why it should pay attention. If every time your cat hears it's name, you have food in your hand, your cat will pay attention to you only when you have food in your hand. Many cat owners say that their cat will come if called, and many cats will come to be pet, admired, stroked, fed and otherwise made a fuss over. Some cats will come every time they hear their name, and other cats know when you are talking about them rather than to them.

Some owners will carry on a conversation with their cats and the cats seem to know what is being said. Other cats will look at you sympathetically, knowing that eventually a treat will come of this. Some cats will get down from a counter or piece of furniture when asked to do so, others will look at you not knowing why you are making that horrible noise. Of course, punishment doesn't work with cats, so "spanking" a cat doesn't do much good, either.

So, how can you talk to cats so that they will understand? How can you contribute to their vocabulary of understood words? I have a method I will share with you. It isn't easy, but can be done by most people with a little practice. It includes words being spoken in the same tone or inflection.

Let's get some definitions sorted out and then it will be easier for me to tell you how to do this, all right?

TONE: The sound of your voice. Your mother had "that tone" that let you know you were in trouble when you were growing up. She might still use it to express her disapproval. Your cat hears it, too. Always use a neutral tone, like you were carrying on a conversation with a friend, or in the case of a word like "stop" to always say the word in a commanding tone, instead of a teasing, not serious tone.

INFLECTION: Whether a word is a question or a statement. Questions usually go "up" at the end, while statements do not.

VISUALIZATION: Seeing a desired behavior in your head in pictures. You "see" the cat walking over to you (maybe trotting, or sauntering, but never running) when in fact your cat is asleep in another room. You "imagine" it in your mind, and see it clearly. The "image" must be clear or it is less effective.

OK, now let's put things together. The technique is fairly simple. You visualize what you want to happen, add words to enforce it, and somehow, your cat gets it in full. Now, I don't know if cats are psychic or not, but I find this to be a very effective training tool. Once the cat (or dog) is trained in this way, it usually responds easily to the words alone. But for training, this is the way to go. Of course, you can add the clicker for additional reinforcement, and using the clicker is a wonderful way to modify behaviors.

You want your cat, Fluffy, to come to you. You "visualize" the Fluffy coming to you. You call her to you and use words like "Fluffy, come here." At first, you might not see much reaction from your cat. Try it again. The next time your cat is sauntering past you, do this again. Your cat will pause and either continue on its way or come to you. Always pet and praise your cat when it does what you request.

Clicker training is very fast. To use the clicker as reinforcement in Clicker training, you need to catch your cat in the act of doing what you want The basics are: action, click to mark, name, and treat. However, by getting your cat to do what you want by the visualization method, and then reinforcing with a clicker, training is even faster.

Now, let's say you want to have a conversation with your cat about something deep in your heart. Perhaps a pet or person has passed away in your life. You are grieving and so is your cat. You may have noticed your cat acting out because she has no other way of expressing her grief. So, sit your cat down for a nice heart-to-heart chat. Use the name of the departed person or pet, picture them in your mind in a nice way (grandmother sitting on the chair and petting your cat, Fido playing with his favorite toy) and talk to your cat. Spend some time, and cry if you need to. Your cat will understand and share your grief with you. By using the visualization technique, your cat will find relief for her grief, too.

This is an extremely powerful tool, but it is hard for some people to manage. To keep an image in your mind while using words does not come easily to many people. It's like splitting your mind into components; one visual, the other verbal. Some people can manage it easily, and will have no trouble doing this. If you can do it and your friend can't, please don't push. This isn't something that can be pushed. It's rewiring the brain, and some people just never get the hang of it. It's like someone manipulating numbers in higher math or painting a picture. Not everyone can do it.

I don't know why or how cats respond to this. I just know that they do. Work on developing the technique. Your cat might even help you!