Moon's Graden

I have for me a serious meowing problem. I know none of you may see it
as such.

I am very frustrated. My cat is putting me in a terrible mood every
morning.

Help please!

He won't shut up.

AMy

Amy, first of all, what exactly is the problem?  Is the cat meowing in your
face in the morning and waking you up?  Does he sleep in your room?  If so, I
suggest shutting him out of your room, either right when you go to bed or in
the morning when he starts to bug you.  If he is already barred from the
bedroom, try shutting him in the bathroom as soon as he wakes you up in the
morning.  Cats are intelligent, he may learn that his meowing is causing the
confinement.  If not and it is still a problem, get some earplugs and sleep in
peace.  Usually with earplugs you can still hear alarms and things.

Good luck!

Tracy

I realize that you intended sarcasm, but your
comment is also instructional.  

Many of the first-time cat owners who frequent this newsgroup
do not realize that there is a difference between vocalizing
(healthy cats that like to "talk") and incessant meowing
(sick cats trying to tell their care-giver that something is
wrong).

On balance in the present case, as it is briefly presented by
the care-giver, the human factor looms large in my mind.  It
would seem that we have a vocal cat (healthy extrovert) that
is bugging the human care-giver who is *not* a morning person.
If that is, in fact, the case (and, of course, I have no way
of knowing), my advice stands.

Upon the insistence of the vet and against my wishes,
my own vocal cat was kept overnight at the clinic for
"observation" after he was neutered.  I was unable to
pick him up until about 11 a.m. the following day.  By that
time, the entire clinic staff was nearly worn out listening
to him.  As for my Snooper, his volume had not decreased
even a little bit and I heard him hollering even before I
opened the clinic door.

The bottom line is that not all noisy cats are sick.  
And not every human care-giver can live with a
healthy vocal cat.

Peace be within you.
--
Alan
Consciousness, Physics and the Holographic Paradigm:
(subtitle:  BEYOND ZEN: The Footsteps of the Dragon)
http://www.livingston.net/hermital/intro.htm

writes:

Then, are you doing something to make him meow?  I used to have
to get up at 5:00 for work.  I'd shower, then feed and water my cats.
A couple years later, I no longer had to get up at a specific time, but
they would stand on me and meow every morning at 5 am until I got
up.  I stopped feeding them at such regular times and eventually they
stopped being *** alarm clocks.  

Mandy still is kind of vocal - especially when I'm on the phone or doing
anything in the kitchen.  After a while I just got used to it (fortunately,
she's not a morning cat and isn't noisy then!)

Marguerite

Alan, I agree with this.  When I got my kitten from rescue, I was
considering a "***age" kitten, and had nearly decided to take her home with
me.  Then I picked her up.  The kitten meowed so loud and so long, it was
incredible.  I held her for 5 minutes, and she did not shush the entire
time.  I set her on the floor, and she continued to happily wander around my
legs, "screaming" her head off.

I realized that the frequency and volume of her vocalizing had already
started to wear on my nerves, and wisely chose a different kitten.  I am
very happy with Abby, who is sometimes almost *too* quiet.

If over-enthusiastic vocalization is not your thing, please choose a quieter
kitten, if possible.  I would not want to be a kitten or cat whose
purr-sonality irritated my human.  I can't imagine it being good for the
cat/person relationship.

Shelia

Try shutting your pet out of earshot, with litterbox and waterdish
nearby.  As long as he is not in a cold ba***t, he should be fine.
Remember, your sleep is vital to you.  Your cat doesn't care about this,
since he sleeps 18 hours per day.  Isolation for our cats on
particularly meowy nights has solved lots of problems.  Hope this helps,
and please email your strategy.

Jennifer

I appreciate the advice.

For those that said, get a different cat, not a consideration, I love my
boy. My love for him is not an issue.

For those that said take him to the vet. I have. There is nothing wrong,
he is perfectly normal. No ailments. It has been determined that he
sneezes to get attention. As well as the meowing.

There is a very high window in the bedroom, he meows at, I moved the
tall cat tree near it, seems to be helping... a bit.

I tried the locking him in the bathroom, with the overhead heater on, so
it won't get too cold in there, unfortunately, that is not far enough
away. And the racket from his banging on the door is worse.

I go to bed earlier, and get up when he does, this is a drag.... I try
squirt bottles... no good.... earplugs, he gets them, and pushes my
head.

Is it possible Albert Einstein is living in my cat? I think we shall
continue the endeavors, clever solutions would be appreciated.

Amy

Have you looked at URLs
http://home.att.net/~rwrede/my_business.html or
http://www.io.com/~tittle/cat-faqs/behavior.html?

Shut him out of your room and *then* try the earplugs.

Tracy