Wow. I can’t beleve it is Friday already. Every day has had new discoveries. Today, I learned a microwave lesson. IThe half can from yesterday was in the fridge and I heated it up in the microwave. Just 15 seconds, but they could tell the difference. So I quicly ran back out to get a fresh can. Hmmm… whose training whom? Walker was right next to me eating and not paying any attention, I thought I could catch him for a pet when he finished, but instead he got away. So…. Looks like now that I’ve found the food he wants, to make him come to me to get it and hold him while he eats it. That may be easier said than done. But he did come back for a play session.

The funny thing from this morning was cleaning the litter box. They normally ignore me when I do this activity. Today, Monroe got curious, then Walker came over to see what the fuss was about. As soon as I got it clean, Monroe had to go into the box and use it. Then Walker followed suite. Too funny.

The mid-morning session was much like the others. I’m not sure if I’m making much headway. But I guess some days are like that.

Afternoon wasn’t much different. I’m still working to get Walker to be comfortable around me. After this quiet play session, Walker and Monroe began rough housing. I sit out of that ruckus, but it’s good for them to get it out of their system. Even after I left the room, I could hear them bumpping around in there.

Mid Afternoon was quiet, they were lounging in the hutch. Walker came out and played a bit but Monroe ignored us. I think she got really tuckered out!

Evening

The first evening session was much like mid-afternoon. I coaxed them out of the hutch, they played a bit, but their hearts were not in it. Rule #1 with a cat, when they don’t show interest – ignore them. Nothing gets a cat’s interest more than being ignored. Eventually, they came up on the bed to see what this human was up to. I was just reading a book.

The second evening session was a bit more rambunctious after a slow start. What I didn’t get videoed was the treats. I put 5 treats in my hand. When they were both close, I held my hand out with 1 treat on the first two fingers. They both sniffed, but Walker walked away. Monroe took the treat. The second time, Monroe took the treat again. So I waited until Monore’s attention was elsewhere and I had Walker’s attention and tried again multiple times. Eventually, he sniffed a little longer, but backed away and laid a few inches from my hand. I gently put the treat down and moved my hand back a few inches. He took the treat. I then opened my hand with one treat on two fingers. He came up and took the treat from my fingers. Monroe got wind of what we were doing and came up. So I opened my hand with the last treat. Monroe started for it, but Walker jumped ahead and got it!

Warning: teaching kitties to eat from your hands can be a bit dangerous. It can lead to them nibbling, then eventually biting. The only reason I’m doing this is to get Walker to think of hands in a positive association.

Who would have thought a Dog could teach a Cat a new trick?

So who is the Pavlov guy I keep talking about? Ivan Pavlov was a Russian physiologist who as studying the digestive process. He won a Noble Prize in 1904 for his work. He and his assistants would introduce different items and measure the saliva production in dogs. Some of the items were edible and some were not. He noted that the stimulus to produce saliva was not a conscious action. He hypothisized that salavation was a learned response. Many text books I’ve read say he rang a bell. Some articles say he used a metronome. Then one article said it as the white lab coats. The basic gist is — the dogs began to associate something with food and when that something, be it a bell, metronome or white lab coat came around the dog, the dog reacted as if it were going to be fed.

Classical Conditioning. Positive Reinforcement. Call it what you want. The basic premise is we learn to associate things. Bell means food. Woof! Hand means hit. Run away! I want Walker to associate hand with good. We’ll start with food. When he learns that petting feels good, we’ll graduate to treat and holding. It will take a while and a lot of patience, but I believe we can get him there.