Talk Too Much

“You talk too much, you just worry me to death. You talk so much you even worry my pet. You just talk, talk too much” were the lyrics in a song written by Joe Jones and Reginald Hall. That song was about a human, but many people have experienced the same thing with their cat!

Some cats are more talkative than others. A very talkative cat can be annoying to his family and close neighbors, especially if the cat is more vocal at night when people are trying to sleep. Siamese and Siamese mixes tend to be more vocal than other cats. Some unaltered cats are very vocal, which is one good reason to have kitty spayed or neutered.

If your cat is altered and is still making enough noise to be a problem, have a complete veterinary examination to insure that there is no physical condition or illness causing the cat to complain. If your cat is altered and healthy, it is time to determine why your cat is making excessive noise.

You may be able to identify things that are happening at home that may be encouraging or reinforcing the behavior. For example, when your cat first started vocalizing, did you try to figure out what he wanted by offering him a variety of rewards such as food, petting or playtime? You may have unintentionally rewarded his behavior, and your very smart cat may now be reinforcing your training to reward him by meowing.

The key is to identify your actions that may be unintentionally rewarding the unwanted vocal responses. It is not easy to interrupt this behavior, and you must not respond to the vocalization. This may be extremely difficult. You can try to interrupt the meowing with a little water from a toy squirt gun, but direct physical punishment of any kind will only make your cat fear people.

If your cat is especially talkative late at night or in the early morning, she may be trying to spend time with the family while you are home. DO NOT reward her with food or attention to try to quiet her. Make sure that you give her an active playtime during the evening on your time schedule. Discourage her from taking late afternoon and evening catnaps. Get up early enough to spend time with her before work. In other words, adjust her schedule to better fit your own. If these suggestions fail, you may need to talk with someone who is knowledgeable about cat behavior, like Kate Gamble at www.catbehaviorbykate.com.

Cats are highly intelligent animals. When they experience something they like, they quickly learn to replicate an action to get the desired results again and again. If you are having a problem with a cat who “talks too much,” after you make sure she is spayed and healthy, see if you can figure out what she has trained you to do when she talks. Retraining takes patience and persistence, but the reward will be a fantastic feline friend for life who is adjusted to your lifestyle.

 
Founded in 1965, Pets In Need receives no federal, state or local government support.

Published in the San Mateo County Times, October 12, 2002