MeOW Welcome to Service Cats and Everything Feline on Furidays. We spent the last 3 weeks givin’ ya’ll a little background into how long it took fur us to learn some of the tasks we purrform fur mommy. Ifin ya’ missed any of those posts you can read them here, here and here. And don’t furget you can check out all our Trainin’ posts by clickin’ Training Tips and Everything Feline from our menu. We’ve covered lots of great topics and offured tons of Training Tips that are good fur not only kitties but woofies too. Keep those questions comin’. We dedicate these posts to answering any and all questions you may have regarding the health, behavior or anything else you wanna know ‘bout your anipals, cats in purrticular. Leave your questions and/or post suggestions in the comments below or send us an email via our Contact page. Let’s get the business outta the way and get to today’s topic.

The followin’ post will be written in human English fur reader and translator ease. Our Service Cat posts aren’t intended to be an all inclusive Trainin’ Manual but rather Tips, Tricks and Techniques used/developed by mommy A thru her many years of animal trainin’, cats in purrticular. And to offur insight into your questions about Everything Feline. Always remember, Training is all ‘bout Repetition and Rewards.

We’ve discussed our Training to call for help by using a land line telephone many times. In response to that we were asked, “What do you do when a call is answered? Are you trained to meow a certain number of times?” As we stated last week, part of our telephone training is learning to listen for the voice on the other end of the phone signaling that our call has been successfully made. Mommy says she’s been blessed with chatty kitties. Meaning, we love to chat it up…all the time. MOL

Anyways, before we answer this question, let’s take a look at how emergency calls are handled. And remember, It’s a Crime to call 911 if you don’t have an emergency. So, if you’re Training your anipal to call for help, be sure the phone has been disconnected, or better yet, use a pre-programmed number to a friend or family member that can imitate the response of an emergency operator. Or maybe you would rather have a friend or family member be your emergency call. With the ability to pre-program numbers into your land lines, it makes calling for help that much easier. There’s fewer buttons to Train your anipal to dial. It is our opinion that cell phones can’t be used by your anipal to call for help. So, if you need your Service Animal to perform this task, you must have a land line with basic service. We use Magic Jack at a cost of about $40.00 billed yearly for unlimited calling anywhere in the U.S. and Canada.

Now, let’s take a look at that Emergency Service call. When a call comes in to an Emergency Services operator, they can see the number the call is made from and the name and  address associated with that number. That means they already know where they should send emergency personnel. Again, this is when using a land line. Altho’ most places have implemented GPS locators for cell phone users calling 911. Some telephone companies work in conjunction with Emergency Services to provide additional instructions displayed to the 911 operator when an Emergency call comes in from certain numbers. Years ago mommy filled out one such form that told the 911 operator to send an ambulance if they received a call from our number and either heard nothing or only meowing. You might check with your local phone company or Emergency Services to see what options may be available to you in your area.

So, what is it that we do when we call for help? First let me tell you that in all the time me’s been with mommy, we’ve thankfully not had any such emergencies. However, mommy makes sure to keep our Training current just in case. When mommy falls or passes out, we get quite worried and don’t like to leave her side. That being said, we’re Trained to make that emergency call and start meowing when we hear a voice on the other end. Altho’ it’s not uncommon for us to start meowing the minute mommy falls or passes out. Typically, we meow in the direction of the phone, run to mommy, back to the phone and then back to mommy again. We are Trained to repeat these steps a few times before finally settling in beside mommy until help arrives or she can get up and around. Me’s particular love of the phone means that me will often bring the phone with me to rest at mommy’s side. And, like Shad and sis Lexi before me, me has been known to make calls to other pre-programmed numbers from time to time. As me’s told you before, me does love the telephone. Mommy says me’s a typical teenage girly curious cat.

As for Raena, she has this signature “hum” sound that she’s made from day one when she jumps up/down or starts to run. She tends to “hum” a couple of times before starting to meow. She’s not nearly as obsessed with the phone as me is. Mommy says that’s a good thing. At least we don’t fight over who’s going to make the call. The bottom line is that if you want to Train your anipal, you must have a land line phone. What they do after making the call is up to you. Any call made to Emergency Services must be investigated. So, even if your anipal doesn’t meow or bark, police will be sent out to the address on file. 

Well, that’s a wrap for today. Always remember, Training is all about Repetition and Rewards. If you’d like to read the Training Tips on how to Train your anipal, click here. We also discussed options like the “I’ve fallen and can’t get up” buttons/boxes here. Remember to leave your questions and/or topic suggestions in the comments below or send us an email. When asking behavioral questions, purrlease be as specific as pawsible. You can check out all the Training Tips we’ve covered so far by clicking on Training Tips and Everything Feline from our menu. We look forward to hearing from you. And don’t furget to meet us here each week when we answer all your questions about the furry purrers in your life. We’re also linking up with Comedy Plus fur Feline Friday. 

Till the next time…………………………………………..Be Blest!!!

Luv and Hugs and Kitty Kisses

Deztinee and RaenaBelle