MeOW It’s Service Cat Monday…and we’re here. MOL We got a couple questions that have fairly short answers, so we’ll deal with those and then tell ya’ a story. How’s that sound? Me needs to get the business pawrt of this posty outta the way furst tho’. Trainin’ is all ‘bout Repetition and Rewards. As with all our Trainin’ posts, the followin’ will be written in human English fur translation and reader ease. Ifin you’ve missed any of the posts in this series, you can paw the links at the end of this or any Service Cat Monday post. As always, our Service Cat posts aren’t meant to be a step by step training manual but rather, tips, tricks and techniques mommy has successfully used in her many years of trainin’ 4 legged furries, purrticularly the feline species. Ifin ya’ have any questions or post suggestions, not limited to Service Cat training, purrlease feel furee to send us an e-mail, leave in the comment section, or paw on the contact us tab to send us a private message. WhMew That’s a lot of disclaimer stuffs. Anyways, let’s get to those questions.
Our sweet Persian furiend Valentine asked, “Which animal was the hardest to train?” This question was asked in response to last weeks’ post when we revealed that mommy has trained not only cats and dogs, but also pigs and horses. Mommy had to think long and hard on this one, as each animal is different, and the tasks she trained were different. When she got started in training, she was training dogs basic commands and tricks to make them more sociable and fit in with their humans better. You know, things like, stay, sit, down, roll over, high five, etc.. Mommy says every puppy/doggy can benefit from some basic training, and that dogs are generally the easiest to train, because they are so food motivated. Now, that doesn’t mean all dogs fit this category, but most do.
Shad with her pig brofur Cameron
Cats/Kittens can be challenging, at least until you find their motivator, and remember, you’re the one in charge of training. MOL Mommy trained pot bellied pigs things like, sit, stay, come, roll over, use the litterbox and leash walking to name a few. Pigs are intelligent creatures and highly food motivated. As for horses, mommy’s job was to break them, and train them for rodeo roping, ranch herding, and racing. Different horses for different jobs of course. Mommy says horses are by far the largest animal she’s trained and the only animal that has thrown her into more than one barbed wire fence or muddy patch of ground. And while mommy’s specific techniques are seen as bordering on the looney side, they work, at least for her. Mommy says all animals respond to love and affection. She liked to spend a day or two brushing, talking to and singing to a horse before mounting them for the first time. During that day or two she would apply pressure to their backs, put on saddle blankets, bridles and reins. In the end, mommy says, no species was harder than the other, because the tasks trained varied from basic commands to extraordinary tasks.
Our second question came from our furiends at Eastside Cats. They wanted to know if mommy could get any tax relief or other financial benefits/deductions since Raena and me are Service Cats. In a word, NO. Because the ADA doesn’t recognize Cats as Service Animals, there is no financial help or deductions allowed. However, each State, can offer some benefits if they choose. And there are exceptions that exist under the Fair Housing Act, and the Air Carrier Access Act. Most of you are familiar with the clause that keeps landlords from refusing rentals to anyone claiming to have and need a Service Animal of any reasonable species. Mommy says, please, don’t ask to move your emotional support pony into a second story one bedroom apartment. Use some common sense. Landlords also aren’t allowed to charge any fees or make any unreasonable requests or cause undue financial or other hardship to the handler relating to the Service Animal(s).
And Airlines and other Public Transportation service providers can’t refuse to let a Service Animal accompany their handler while using their services. HUD and Rural Development allow the disabled person to submit receipts for the care and upkeep of said Service Animal(s) as a medical cost to be used in the formula to determine the amount of rent the disabled person must pay in a subsidized home. Mommy is able to take advantage of the benefits allowed under the Fair Housing Act. For every $30.00 spent on the Service Animal, $1.00 is deducted from the base rent. (ie; base rent is $400.00, you spend about $1500.00 a year on Service Animal, Your rent is lowered by about $4.00 a month.) It’s not a lot, but mommy says every little bit helps. Especially when we are her largest bill every month. Mommy’s not complaining, she says she wouldn’t have it any other way.
There are a few other benefits that handlers can sometimes take advantage of. Some VETs offer a small discount for Service Animals. This is not usually posted, so you should remember to ask if your VET offers such a discount. Some of the big Pet food companies will sponsor Service Animals by providing food and medical care for the Service life of a Service Animal. However, this is generally a benefit only available to those Service Animals recognized by the ADA, dogs; and the occasional “media darling”. We’ve heard about a few emotional support animals benefitting from this. Their handlers are ex-military. Please understand, we are grateful those Service men and women can benefit from this, we just wish it was an option for others as well.
Whmew!!! Me just thought these answers would be short and sweet. Me thinks we’ll skip the story fur now, and tell ya’ next week. We’re guessin’ most of ya’ are thinkin’ mommy and Raena haven’t been wheelchair training during mommy’s recovery. Well, ifin you’re thinkin’ that, you’d be wrong. Yep Wrong with a capital R…, or, a capital W…or, well whatever, you’d be wrong. ‘Member, trainin’ is all ‘bout Repetition, Repetition, Repetition. But trust me, you definitely wanna hear ‘bout Raena’s trainin’ over the last couple of days. MOL MOL MOL So, join us next week fur mommy’s loopy trainin’ sessions with Raena. And don’t furget to leave your questions, suggestions and comments fur us. And get caught up by pawin’ the links below or at the end of any Service Cat Monday posty.
Hey, is anypawdy out there? It’s me, RaenaBelle. We sure do wanna fank you all fur your luv and suppurrt. Mommy says it may have been a year since Lexi left her, but it feels like yesfurday. Most of ya’ unnerstand dat feelin’; and we just want you to know, you’re not alone. Anyways, besides the blues, mommy’s also been feelin’ a little out of sorts and extra achy. At furst she just thought it was cuz of the crazy weather and her teeth purroblems. But she’s had a horse and a frog wagin’ war in her throat lately, and coughin’ too. Now I’s not know how a frog much less a horsey can fit in mommy’s throat, but she sure sounds funny when she talks.
Raena, don’t make fun of mommy. That’s not nice.
Come on sissy, you know she sounds funny. You said so yourself.
That’s different. Me was talkin’ to you in purr-ivate. Me wasn’t tellin’ the world.
Oh purrlease, you know we blab everythin’. Anyways, when we went to see mommy’s doctor yesfurday, he wasn’t sure he believed that mommy was sick. He thought she was just havin’ some allergy and sinus issues. So some lady came in and stole some of mommy’s bloods. You know, they didn’t shave her neck or nuffin’. They just stuck somethin’ in her finger and it was all over. Them VETs’ could learn a little somethin’ ’bout blood stealin’. You know, mommy be a redheaded white woman, but when they stuck her, she was a redheaded ghosty. I’s was meowin’ and goin’ crazy pants inside mine’s stroller. Mommy dropped her head ‘tween her knees and Doc came in and asked what all the fuss was ‘bout. He took one look at mommy and ran over and held her in the chair. After a hunnerd few minutes, mommy raised her head, and she was back to bein’ mine’s redheaded white mommy and not mine’s ghosty mommy. ‘Course, I’s had calmed down once Doc came in the room to help mommy, so I’s laid peacefully in the stroller lissenin’ to mommy and Doc talk.
They chatted ‘bout me and how things have changed fur the worse in medicine, and a little ‘bout pawlitics while waitin’ fur those blood test results. Furinally there was a knock on the door and the blood stealin’ thief appeared and handed Doc a piece of paper. He turned and looked at mommy and said, “How are you still walking around?” Seems mommy’s body be fightin’ the infection and sicks like crazy. So he faxed a script fur another antibiotic over to the furmacy and we all said our goodbyes and see ya’ laters. And with that mommy and me headed out to said furmacy to get mommy’s medicine.
Things were goin’ purretty good till we left the furmacy and got to the car. Mommy just missed the step off the curb and down we went. Yep, she was holdin’ on to the stroller, so I’s tumbled over too. Mommy says she was so embarrassed. There she lay on the pavement, with piddle pads flyin’ everywhere. (we keep a few in the bottom of the stroller, just in case) I’s don’t know ‘bout this embarrassin’, but it sure nuff was scary. Mommy recovered like any good kitty would. She looked ‘round and pulled herself up with the help of the car. Yes, of course she pulled me up too. And then we sashayed over to the car door to load up like nuffin’ ever happened.
When we got loaded in the car, mommy started cryin’ and ‘pawlogized fur lettin’ me fall. I’s was fine. I’s was just glad mommy was okay too. She’s a little extra bruised up, but all in all, she’s okay. After all that excitement, we headed straight fur home. Without even thinkin’, mommy popped her furst antibiotic dose in her mouth and swallowed it down. Then she went online to look it up. Seems, Cipro is used to treat serious infections; but it has some purretty scary side effects. So, we sure would purreciate any purrayers you can spare.
‘Member these cute little lettuce plants?
Now, do ya’ll wanna hear somethin’ cool? Mommy had her furst grown by her own hands salad this week. Yep, she was furinally able to harvest enuff leaves to make a salad. She said it was amazin’. But she also thinks she must be doin’ somethin’ wrong, cuz our garden doesn’t look or yield as much as the ones on the AeroGarden site.
Check out those salad leaves fresh from the AeroGarden
Yeah Raena, you’re right. But we did tell mommy that fur her furst time, she did a great job. Her lettuce pods have quite a few little baby sprouts that should eventually turn into more salad leaves. She’s been readin’ up and thinks her next growin’ venture should be Romaine. Most of the reviews talk ‘bout how quickly the Romaine grows.
I’s can’t wait sissy. I’s a really good helper. I’s tried to help mommy pick leaves fur her salad, but she kept shooin’ me away. I’s don’t know why she didn’t want mine’s help, do you?
Me doesn’t know Raena. Ya’ reckon it could have somethin’ to do with the fact that you tried to eat a few?
Who? Me? I’s was just makin’ sure they were ready, and not poison. You know, like a taste tester.
A taste tester? Yeah right. Whatever. Anyways, let’s wrap this up and go play.
Okay sissy. Furst we need to link up with Rascal, Rocco and their pawsum co-hosts fur the weekly Pet Parade. We’ll be ‘round to visit when we can. Ya’ know, we gotta wait on mommy to help us type. And we hope you all have a furtastic weekend.
Meow Welcome everypawdy. Do you suffer from achy joints? Is old man Arfur-Itis visitin’ ya’ more and more? Do ya’ have a few extra pounds ya’ just can’t seem to get rid of bearin’ down on your spindly legs? Do ya’ look at the top of the cat tree with longin’ and settle fur a lower shelf? Has your got us and go, got up and went? Well, ifin ya’ said yes to any of those questions, we might have just the thing fur ya’. Bein’ purroud Chewy Influencers, we get to try pawsum purroducts every month and tell you all ‘bout them. Today, we’re gonna tell ya’ ‘bout a great joint health supplement, Cosequin.
Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post. We received compensation in exchange for our honest opinions. Chewy, nor Nutramax are responsible for the content of this post unless otherwise stated. As always, we only bring products we use or have tried and feel would be of interest to you, our friends and readers.
Me is a 7 year old 30 – 35 pound Ragdoll Service Cat. Now me’s not overweight; we Ragdolls are just normally large kitties. There are other breeds that be rather large as well. Thing is, even tho’ we’re not overweight, we’re still luggin’ all that weight around with every jump up or down, climb or zoomy we make. That has an affect on our joints over time, and we might start feelin’ it a little earlier than some of the smaller breeds. But let me tell ya’, doesn’t matter your size, breed, or species, old man Arfur-Itis comes to visit all of us at some time or another, just ask mommy.
Us kitties are notorious fur hidin’ our pains. So what do you do as our human caretaker? Well, ya’ keep an eye out fur those tell tail tale signs: a small limp, not as many zoomies, lower/slower jumps, less play and all ‘round activity and/or more naps. Ifin ya’ see any of these signs, kitty/doggy just might be sufferin’ from old man Arfur-Itis visits’. Of course you should check with your VET anytime you suspect there’s a purroblem. It’s confurmed, you’re beloved anipal is sufferin’ from achy joints and you want to give them somethin’ to ease that pain.
Glucosamine and Chondroitin have been acknowledged by the medical community as bein’ helpful fur those achy joints. Nutramax has several formulas available fur both kitties and doggies. We tried out the Cosequin joint health supplement for cats. We received a box of 30 capsules which cost $8.96. These capsules are intended to be opened and sprinkled on our food. Me will tell ya’ that mommy’s initial reaction was not pleasant. So much of Feline medicine is based on what works fur Canines. Most doggies will eat anything no matter how bad it tastes. Us kitties…Not so much. And ifin you ever taint our favorite noms with medicine? Yeah, we’re not eatin’ that again. MOL Let’s take a look at what Chewy says ‘bout the Nutramax Cosequin Supplement fur Cats.
Key Benefits
#1 vet recommended formula provides powerful joint support
With a blend of manganese, glucosamine and chondroitin
Recommended by veterinarians to support bladder health, a major concern for cats
These capsules can be broken apart and sprinkled on or mixed with your cat’s favorite wet food
Helps maintain healthy joints to keep your furry friend happy and healthy
Now what’s contained inside those capsules:
Ingredients
Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Sodium Chondroitin Sulfate, Manganese. Other Ingredients: Gelatin, Natural Flavor, Water, Magnesium Stearate, Titanium Dioxide(Color), FD&C Red #3, And FD&C Blue#1.
Now let me break down those active ingredients fur ya’. Each capsule contains a minimum of 1mg of Manganese, 125mg Glucosamine Hydrochloride and 100mg of Sodium Chondroitin Sulfate. Dosage size is based on the size of the animal. Fur me, it takes 2 capsules a day; 10 pounds and under would be 1 capsule. That means the 30 capsules we received would last ‘bout 2 weeks. The box claims it will take ‘tween 4 – 6 weeks to see results. And once the desired response has been achieved the dosage can be cut back to every other day fur maintenance. You may increase the dosage as needed.
Now, let’s get to the testin’. Against mommy’s better judgment, she opened said capsule and started sprinkling on me’s food. She soon realized that like most “sprinkle/mix on food” supplements me would have more medicine than food, and that was only one capsule. So mommy stopped adding after ‘bout a third of the capsule. Then, she gave it to me to eat. Yeah, No. Me wasn’t havin’ any of that. Me instead, stole sis Raena’s food and mommy had to make her another plate. Mommy really wants to make sure me’s joints are healthy, so fur the next dose, mommy mixed me up a little “Butter Spoon”. Mommy offen hides nasty medicine in a dab of butter. Most kitties will gladly lick a “Butter Spoon” clean. So it was no surprise when me licked up that “tainted” butter like it was the last butter on earth.
A little Cosequin sprinkled over me’s freeze dried food before water added. Yep mommy sure is messy. MOL
So me would rate the Cosequin two paws up. Me didn’t take it long enuff to really see any results, so we can’t speak to that, but me did gladly take each “Butter Spoon” dose fur the next 14 days. Ifin you have a really finicky kitty, we definitely suggest you NOT add this supplement to their food, but rather find another medium to administer it, such as butter, baby food, olive oil, maybe a treat pocket or the likes. Raena’s not yet a year old, so she didn’t try the Cosequin at all, but she did have a blast with the box. Cuz mommy was able to get me to take the medicine, she gives it a thumb up. We’ve heard great things ‘bout Cosequin and feel it might actually work ifin you take it as directed.
As me said earlier, Nutramax does make several formulas and sizes. Fur our pawcket book this would get a little pricey over time. But you all know, mommy would do whatever she could to make sure we kitties have what we need. So all in all, we would recommend the Nutramax Cosequin joint supplement fur Cats or Dogs.
As always, we fank Chewy.com fur allowin’ us to try a great purroduct. You all know we luv our Chewy boxes and shop there regularly. We have noms, litter and supplements on auto-ship, so we don’t have to worry ‘bout runnin’ out. And when we get blest with gifts of noms or litter, mommy can go in and skip, cancel or delay any auto-ship we have. Chewy also offurs speedy free shippin’ on all orders of $49.00 and over and a speedy flat rate fur all other orders. They also carry just ‘bout everythin’ you might need fur all the anipals in your household so be sure to check ‘em out. And Chewy has the bestest Customer Service ‘round as far as we’re concerned. So don’t worry, you can shop with confidence. And don’t furget the pawsum boxes and packin’ paper. Ya’ get a great toy with every shipment. MOL
I’s might not have tried da Cosequin, but I’s did luvs da box.
Me’s gonna wrap it up now and see ‘bout playin’ a while. Don’t furget to check the Chewy blog Hop fur other great purroduct reviews. Ya’ll have a great week.
Welcome. Fank you fur celebratin’ our 3rd Blogoversary with us. Every year we learn a little more ‘bout this wonderful world of bloggin’. Which brings us to the topic fur today…Service Cat Monday. Raena’s trainin’ is movin’ right along, and we’re purrleased to have your purrticipation through questions and comments. As with all our educational postys the followin’ will be in human English fur translation and reader ease. Our Service Cat and Training posts aren’t meant to be a step by step trainin’ manual, but rather tips, tricks, and entertainment. ‘Member, trainin’ is all ‘bout Repetition and Rewards. Ifin you’ve missed any posts in this series, you can ketch up by clickin’ the links below. Well, the business is done, let’s get to the fun.
We got a great question from awnty Vanessa. She wants to know, “How can I get my cats to stop begging for human food?” We’re guessing there may be quite a few of you out there with this problem. And we know some of our doggy pals are for sure making meal time a real challenge for their peeps. Now we replied to awnty Vanessa by saying that she “oopsied” by giving kitty a bite from the plate. She didn’t respond, but mommy says that in her experience, cats aren’t typically beggars, especially of human food. That is, until they’ve been offered their first tasty bite. As most of you know, sis Lexi was a pizza fanatic, and then me joined the fan club. It’s not because we kitties think pizza smells so delicious we’ve just got to have a bite, it’s because mommy introduced it to us. We don’t have pizza very often, but when we do, we get the pizza first and mommy gets any leftovers. She created pizza monsters. MOL Another human food we’re totally crazy about is turkey. But again, only because mommy gave us our first bite. We’ve not had many turkeys, but we’ve never once tried to jump on the counters to scavenge the bird. But you’re not here to hear about our human food likings.
Yummy, nommm, meez luvs pizza.
As with all training, it’s easier to train kitty/doggy “NO” by never allowing them to have that first bite. But you did, so now you want to know how to stop them from begging. Now this doesn’t mean that you can’t give kitty/doggy a few bites of their favorite good/okay for them human food. But, it does mean, they don’t get it from your plate while you’re trying to eat. This is one of those training tips that’s good for all anipals to have. The last thing you want is kitty/doggy jumping on the table and swiping food when you have guests. Because this is about food, no treats are allowed as rewards. Love is the only reward allowed.
Raena’s not actually begging here, but alerting. However, this
is often what begging looks like.
Remember, training is repetitious and must be implemented by every one in the household. That cutesy kitten/puppy behavior isn’t so cute when they grow into large adults or you have company. So, you’ve prepared your meal with kitty free counters (see our Discipline: Stop Countersurfing Kitty post), and are ready to eat. We should add that you might want to feed kitty/doggy their meal while you’re preparing yours, or about 30 minutes before your meal. Or, you might want to feed them their food while you eat. Other than a raw food diet, their meal shouldn’t have any of those delicious human foods from your plate.
Yep, me’s beggin’ fur some of sis Lexi’s “butter spoon” (medicine).
Let’s take a look at where you eat first. Do you eat at a dining room table, or are you sitting in your favorite chair/sofa in front of the teevee? If you’re at the dining room table, don’t allow kitty to jump on the table. This isn’t often a problem with dogs, but if you have a dog that can/does jump on the table, stop allowing that behavior. The above “Discipline” post applies to you as well. If kitty jumps on the table, remove them while saying “No” in a gentle but firm voice. You may have to get up, because you want to put kitty in an appropriate area and reward them with a little love…”NO TABLE SCRAPS!!!” Mommy says not even if it’s the tastiest whole chicken ever.
Yep, only the kitties eat on the dining room table here.
And remember, Don’t Yell, Hit, Spray with Water/Air, Push, or any other negative reaction you might think of. Positive reinforcement is far more successful than Negative reinforcement. Sitting at your feet staring at you is not an appropriate spot; so remove kitty/doggy from the room altogether. The only exception to this rule would be Service Animals. They should be trained to lay beside your chair or under the table beside your feet (Please remember they are there and don’t kick them). Kitty/Doggy should be trained the simple commands of Lay/Down and Stay. (See the Proper Training Methods pt. 1 and 2 posts below). Remember, kitty/doggy should never be given a bite of human food from your plate. We’ll get to that in a minute. As long as you and everybody in the house follow the rules, kitty/doggy will be totally disinterested in your meal time in no time.
Raena and me eat in the living room so we can keep an eye on mommy.
So, you don’t eat at the table. You prefer to watch teevee while you eat. There’s a couple of different scenarios here. Some of you may have trays, desks or some other small table or you may just use your lap. Treat those trays, desks or small tables just like you would a dinner table. No kitty/doggy allowed especially during your meal time. If you’re using your lap, treat your body and the immediate area around you like the table; no kitty/doggy allowed on the chair or sofa beside you or behind you while you eat. Again, sitting and staring at you is not an appropriate spot. If you have a gate/room divider where you can separate kitty/doggy from you but where they can still see you, you might want to use it at meal times. Mommy does not like moving the anipals to a separate room and closing them behind a door. This doesn’t teach them not to beg. What it does teach them, is that while their family gathers for “fun”, they’re not wanted.
I’s offen lay right here at mommy’s feet while she eats in her
chair and watches teevee.
So how do you keep kitty/doggy out of your plate and off the furniture while you eat? The same simple steps of putting them down while gently but firmly saying “NO”. You may also implement the Lay/Down and Stay commands. Do Not throw any toys to redirect their attention. Dogs especially will see this as a game of fetch. Trust me, you’re not eating in peace if you have to keep throwing the slobbery toy. If you have one of those cool electric toys, you might want to start it up before you sit down with your plate. For the kitties, a Yeowww nip toy might be a welcome distraction before you sit. Just remember, don’t let your pet tempt you into an interactive play session while you try to eat.
Always remove kitty/doggy from your surroundings while you eat. Even if they appear to lie down peacefully on the other end of the sofa. If you allow it, before you know it, they’ll be right back to begging and sticking their paws in your plate. Provide kitty/doggy their own sitting/sleeping spots, such as a Cat Tree, Perch, Bed, etc., so they will have somewhere to go other than next to you. Service Animals should be trained to lay quietly at your feet. DO NOT Yell, Hit, Push or Spray with Water/Air. Always use positive reinforcement in the form of love. A pet on the head along with a little praise is sufficient reward. You do want to get back to your meal before it gets cold, right?. MOL
You can see in the background, me has food and a nip nanna.
Purrlenty to keep me busy while mommy eats.
Training is all about Repetition and everyone has to be on board. Finally, you’re eating in peace with kitty/doggy totally ignoring your plate of delicious goodness. Feels great doesn’t it? Only after 5 consecutive days of eating undisturbed can you reward kitty/doggy with a few bites of that human food they so wanted. Do Notlet them eat from your plate!!! Do Notlet them lick your plate or utensils!!! Do Notfeed them at the table or sofa. After you have finished eating, get up and put those bites into a “special dish” and give to kitty/doggy in their normal dining area. You can also implement a “Special Place” for those “Special Bites”. As soon as they finish, pick up the “special plate” and put it away for the next time. Mommy likes to put our special plates on the counter while she eats. We see her placing them there and know that when she gets finished, we’re getting something special. We’re happy to leave her alone so she can finish faster and we can get our bites.
I’s have a Yeowww toy to keep me busy too.
So to sum up this training post, Don’t start kitty/doggy on human food treats while you eat in the first place. If you did, STOP. Alwaysremove them from the area and reward them with love; No Treats, No Food. Once training has been successful, you may reward them with a few tasty bites on their own plate at their own space. Positive reinforcement and Repetition will always be successful, it just takes time.
We love ya’ll.
We hope this posty has helped ya’. Purrlease ‘member to leave any questions or comments in the comment section below. You may also email us any questions you might have. We try to answer all training questions in a post, cuz mommy says ifin one purrson’s askin’ there are 10 more with the same issue. Purrlease click the links below to check out other training tips and stories. And most of all, have a great week.
Do you (your anipal) beg for human food?
Do you humans feed your anipals human food from your plate while you’re eating?
Is there a particular human food you (your anipal) goes crazy/begs for?
Service Cats U.S. 