Okay so, I'm not saying I'm getting a cat--I'd have to clean my house first--but, in the interest of the hypothetical model currently wandering my house (it was originally an imaginary cat; manic episodes do weird things), give me some data here.
Let's say for some reason I did get a cat. It would have to be a friendly cat... okay, let's face it: you go big or go home. Egyptian Mau is the only cat for someone who bothers to check under the hood: the strong social bonding, relatively high intelligence, healthy genetic profile, and broad range of full-power motion in the hind legs makes them more of an interactive companion than a fixture animal, less likely to suffer extreme health problems, and basically the cat equivalent of a sports car 'cause they're literally built like miniature cheetahs instead of miniature tigers.
You can't have a dog when you're working 9-5. The dog hates being abandoned every day. I think the cat hates it less.
Problem: cat needs training.
First question: Is it feasible to train a rather active kitten (Egyptian Maus are highly active) when you're awake for an hour in the morning and then gone until 5pm? Is it reasonable to contain the cat somehow during the day, then spend the evenings reinforcing operant behaviors to control it when it's allowed to roam? I know it will behave if good behaviors are available and made more interesting than bad behaviors; that's trivial. Locking the cat in the bathroom or a small enclosure or something all day until I can deal with it is not ideal.
I can probably limit the range of damage by closing doors. It'd have access to kitchen, living room, stairs(!!!), and bathroom; the only thing it could really destroy in that setup is a shower curtain or a piano, and I'll cover the piano with 6 mil plastic. Is that reasonable, or will the cat become extremely bored and sad, then develop terrible behavioral habits?
Second: What do I do with it?
I have a few rough estimations:
- Litter box
- Cat tree (climbing, scratching; an alternate, reinforced operant behavior made constantly available to prevent scratching other things)
- Cat wheel (should I train the cat to automatically exercise?)
- Come when called
I'm not sure about reinforcing general attendance; these kinds of cats like to climb on and stay near their handlers, but I doubt anything will make it more likely to follow you around. You can feed it a fish every time it gets near you, but then it will come to find fish, get no fish, and then leave.
They'll walk on a leash, but eh. Why?
Is there anything else to do with a cat? Make it not destroy things, make it not eat wires, make it exercise, make it respond when called. Feed and pet?
I guess they don't need a lot of structural behavior, like dogs. Dogs you insert every behavioral parameter; cats don't listen to that shit and will not learn to stay off the couch or fetch a beer from the refrigerator.
Submitted March 21, 2016 at 11:34PM by bluefoxicy http://ift.tt/1RdyWYt cats
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