I dunno, I changed my cat’s name after my ex left (she named him Tiny Rick and I thought that was fucking stupid) and he bounced right back. He was maybe 3 at the time. It’s been nearly 8 years and he comes when called by his “new” name just fine.
Sure, I’m not saying it doesn’t work. But it’s probably gonna be pretty confusing for the cat to hear its name for no reason. I’m assuming you didn’t run around saying “Tiny Rick” every day for those 8 years?
To the cat, wouldn’t saying its name at all be for “no reason,” even if it understands its name? It can’t really infer human reasoning unless it’s got something to do with feeding it or offering some other kind of direct interaction.
Getting a cat to come when called mostly hinges on its ability to recognize a benefit to coming over, not on its ability to recognize a specific word (though you can use a word as reinforcement once the desired behaviour is achieved). This is how you can train a cat to come when you say anything at all — its name isn’t a magic word that unlocks secret cat behaviour, it’s about the conditioning behind it.
All that to say that animals can recognize and respond to a new name, word, or action pretty easily when you use treats and positive reinforcement. My other cat (who recently passed away 😭) came running when I tapped my fingers on the ground because that was heavily associated with giving him treats and pets; I didn’t have to use his name to have him look at me or come over, he just did it based on the expectations that I fostered in him.
To the cat, wouldn’t saying its name at all be for “no reason,” even if it understands its name? It can’t really infer human reasoning unless it’s got something to do with feeding it or offering some other kind of direct interaction.
I wasn’t talking about the cat understanding human reasoning. Animals learn to respond to their names because they learn that certain things will happen after (e.g. getting food, pets, getting scolded or whatever). If then suddenly they keep hearing the same name, but all the interactions they’ve learned are stopped, they’ll be very confused.
Imagine if other people suddenly decided to change your name without telling you why, but they keep using your name every day. Wouldn’t feel nice, would it? It’s one thing if you totally stop using the name (like with “Tiny Rick”), but that’s not what the post is about.
If then suddenly they keep hearing the same name, but all the interactions they’ve learned are stopped, they’ll be very confused.
Why would that happen? I’m confused as to why you would stop petting your cat and giving them treats (assuming that this is normal for you) just because you changed its name.
Also I’m trans, so I have experienced being called the wrong name and have noticed that people picked up on verbal cues and used the name others used for me, which is sort of what happens with an animal when you start using a different name for them. They naturally adjust because their name doesn’t actually matter to them.
I (and my family) have adopted several cats who all had completely different names either at their previous homes or at the pound. Tiny Rick’s original name was Thomas, just FYI, so it was changed twice actually. It really isn’t the huge deal you’re making it out to be.
Why would that happen? I’m confused as to why you would stop petting your cat and giving them treats (assuming that this is normal for you) just because you changed its name.
I’m obviously not talking about no longer petting your cat. The whole topic of discussion is “should a cat called Connor suddenly no longer be called Connor”. The cat would still hear the name “Connor” every day, but they suddenly no longer get the interactions they associate with the name.
Am I now being clear? The situation you described (name of cat changes, old name is no longer used) is simply different.
Jokes aside, it’s probably easier for the cat to learn to ignore “Human Connor” than it is to learn a new name for themselves, right?
It’s probably easier for the human to recognise “Human Connor” than it is for the cat to learn a new name, right?
The cat isn’t going to understand ‘human’ either, so it’s just <human noises> CONNER <more human noises, where are the treats?>
Cats can definitely recognize phrases made up of multiple words, as words themselves don’t have a meaning for them.
I dunno, I changed my cat’s name after my ex left (she named him Tiny Rick and I thought that was fucking stupid) and he bounced right back. He was maybe 3 at the time. It’s been nearly 8 years and he comes when called by his “new” name just fine.
Sure, I’m not saying it doesn’t work. But it’s probably gonna be pretty confusing for the cat to hear its name for no reason. I’m assuming you didn’t run around saying “Tiny Rick” every day for those 8 years?
To the cat, wouldn’t saying its name at all be for “no reason,” even if it understands its name? It can’t really infer human reasoning unless it’s got something to do with feeding it or offering some other kind of direct interaction.
Getting a cat to come when called mostly hinges on its ability to recognize a benefit to coming over, not on its ability to recognize a specific word (though you can use a word as reinforcement once the desired behaviour is achieved). This is how you can train a cat to come when you say anything at all — its name isn’t a magic word that unlocks secret cat behaviour, it’s about the conditioning behind it.
All that to say that animals can recognize and respond to a new name, word, or action pretty easily when you use treats and positive reinforcement. My other cat (who recently passed away 😭) came running when I tapped my fingers on the ground because that was heavily associated with giving him treats and pets; I didn’t have to use his name to have him look at me or come over, he just did it based on the expectations that I fostered in him.
I wasn’t talking about the cat understanding human reasoning. Animals learn to respond to their names because they learn that certain things will happen after (e.g. getting food, pets, getting scolded or whatever). If then suddenly they keep hearing the same name, but all the interactions they’ve learned are stopped, they’ll be very confused.
Imagine if other people suddenly decided to change your name without telling you why, but they keep using your name every day. Wouldn’t feel nice, would it? It’s one thing if you totally stop using the name (like with “Tiny Rick”), but that’s not what the post is about.
Why would that happen? I’m confused as to why you would stop petting your cat and giving them treats (assuming that this is normal for you) just because you changed its name.
Also I’m trans, so I have experienced being called the wrong name and have noticed that people picked up on verbal cues and used the name others used for me, which is sort of what happens with an animal when you start using a different name for them. They naturally adjust because their name doesn’t actually matter to them.
I (and my family) have adopted several cats who all had completely different names either at their previous homes or at the pound. Tiny Rick’s original name was Thomas, just FYI, so it was changed twice actually. It really isn’t the huge deal you’re making it out to be.
I’m obviously not talking about no longer petting your cat. The whole topic of discussion is “should a cat called Connor suddenly no longer be called Connor”. The cat would still hear the name “Connor” every day, but they suddenly no longer get the interactions they associate with the name.
Am I now being clear? The situation you described (name of cat changes, old name is no longer used) is simply different.
I’m not sure, maybe we underrate them. I knew of a dog that also answered to being called by two different names, it was so amusing when I saw it.
I mean, who DOESN’T have a pet that responds to both “[real name]” and some variant of “Shithead”?
they don’t respond to shithead, but they get called shithead
Mine responds to: her name, bitch, dog, and puppy.
I don’t doubt that they can learn it, but it will probably take the cat longer than the human. Sounds totally fair to keep that in mind.
The cat been responded to “connor” for so long, adding a “human” or “cat” at the front mean nothing to them.
I think they can learn to ignore “human Connor” fairly quickly when they don’t get the response they know/want.