I can never sit down and just eat a meal by myself. I'm constantly shooing them away. Spraying with water won't work, theyre bengals and love water. I dont want to be constantly yelling at my kittens. I also have 4 other roommates and they dont really appreciate kittens up in their face while they are eating. And I dont want them to get upset with the cats and possibly be mean to them. They get all up in the trash too. Any suggestions?
2007-03-19 07:39:46 · 10 answers · asked by 35073209 3 in Pets ➔ Cats
You have to talk to them and scold them in "cat language" that they understand and establish yourself as the Alpha Cat.
Since they are kittens, now is the perfect time. If they do something wrong, hiss at them. If they don't pay attention, hold down their head (gently) and hiss and growl. This is what a "mama" cat would do. Their response will probably be submissive, ears back and then they will run. Hiss training is easy; yelling is worthless with cats. They just ignore you. But if you copy their behavior you can really get their attention. If you're eating and one is coming on to the food, put your hand on their head and hiss. This is what a cat does when it's protecting it's food and is the Alpha cat. You must establish your position as Alpha. If they are aggitated, you can rub your finger in margarine and put it on their noses and paws and they will be busy cleaning and forget about the food. Just observe their behavior with each other and you'll learn alot about their communications. Cats have a pecking order and they respect it. Try it. Works for me every time. godloveya.
2007-03-23 22:20:56 · answer #1 · answered by Sassy OLD Broad 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Kittens need to eat, they're growing and using lots of energy you may need to feed them more. Up to 6 months they need to eat about 3-5 times a day. Try confining them to a carrier or crate whilst you're eating. You can hiss at them like their mother would too, that often deters them.
As for the trash, use some cardboard and put some double sided tape on it, place it on and around the trash, it should help deter them.
Get a quality dry kitten food and give them a huge bowl so that they know there's always food available. Then you can just feed wet food morning and night.
Another thing that you can do is feed them when you're about to eat, the only problem with this being that it becomes a lifelong habit and if you don't feed them before you eat, then they will probably annoy you through your meal until you get it for them.
2007-03-23 07:10:25 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
This will work with dogs to . Before sitting down to eat it is helpful if you feed the cat (dog) first, this fulls them up and become less of a pest You need to keep a feeding schedule before this will work so be patient with this .If the are jumping up on the cabinets for food as your eating put the food in you microwave or oven until your finish eating. (out of sight out of mind) After eating and they didn't misbehave reward them for a good behavior You'll need to have you roommate follow thought with this if you want this to work. Good luck and remember Al l animal are good it's the behavior that's bad
2007-03-24 10:44:06 · answer #3 · answered by kathleen c 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it will be hard with 4 roommates but my best suggestion is to try to give them their food in another room and leave them in there untill you are done (if you eat meals at regular times everyday they will get usto the idea) and i know it sounds mean (dont hit them hard) but when they do try to get at your food give them a little swat on the nose just enough to let them know that you mean no. Try picking one word or a phrase like "not for you" that everyone in the house will use to let them know that they cant have it... also if you are eating dont give them any of your food they will think that its ok to have your food when you eat it... if you want to give them some give it to them as a reward for not begging once your done with it...
about the garbage my puppy kept getting into it as well, when i caught her in it (make sure you only do this when you catch them in the garbage) she tried to run away cuz she knew shes not allowed the garbage so i caught her and took her back to the garbage (she was only about 3 feet away from it) and put her face into the can and said "not for you" (what i say when she tried to get anything shes not allowed) in a firm loud voice and gave her a smuck on the bum then i gave her a 10 min time out in her room.. but she didnt cry or scratch at the door so afterwards i brought her out and cuddled her to let he know i wasnt mad at her and let her have a nap on the couch with me :)
the idea is to let them know what they are doing wrong when they are doing it and praise them for being good! with any luck this will help with your kittens
2007-03-19 20:40:07 · answer #4 · answered by little missy--->♥ 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you only feed them cat food they won't be so bad about begging but now you have to break them from this bad habit first by trying to ignore them, and get a trash can that they can't get into.
2007-03-27 12:25:30 · answer #5 · answered by ravenhk 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If your cats go outside try to put them out when you eat. You could also feed them their food while you eat to keep them occupied.
Hope this Helps!
2007-03-25 16:16:03 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
i have that same problem with my newest kitten, it is a pain in the butt! what i have started doing is putting her in a seperate room until we are done eating. as far as the trash issue, you might need to put it out on the back porch or something.
2007-03-24 11:07:16 · answer #7 · answered by portarico2007 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
with your trash,keep it up high. stopping your cats from getting on the table entails patients, catch them in the act and as soon as they are about to jump say "NO" and immediately remove them from the table put them on the floor,and repeat it every time,they will eventually get annoyed with this removal technique,BUT, you have to persevere, and mean it..you don't have to shout, just mean what you say..You don't have pets to run your life,"you run theirs", whether they like it or not...
2007-03-27 14:21:08 · answer #8 · answered by beenezz 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you got to cage them while u eat. as far as the trash put it under the k.sink cupboard. they will get the message donot feed them scraps it teaches them trash is for eating.
2007-03-27 14:17:31 · answer #9 · answered by Dotr 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
try putting them in a room when its dinner time its the food theyre attracted to and can smell as they consider you their mom they instinctively come to you when they smell the food
2007-03-24 12:55:32 · answer #10 · answered by ~*tigger*~ ** 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋