# Discipline when Eating



## CharleyRogan (Feb 20, 2009)

How can I get Dax to understand, that my food is not his food. I just get badgered all the way through my meals. I put him on the floor everytime he jumps up, say no in a firm voice, and move my food away from him. I don't feed him scraps from my dinner.

He tried vegetable curry (very mild) today whilst I left my food unattended for 30 seconds, and proceeded to vom it back up. 

It is really getting on my nerves, and I have no idea how to discipline him.


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## Cookieandme (Dec 29, 2011)

. Sort of have the same issue, I sit on the sofa to eat so Cookie often gets on there as well. I always hope the doorbell or phone doesn't ring, otherwise I wouldn't have any dinner left. 

If she starts to move in on me, I say a firm no and then sit down - she mostly does, however once I put my knife and fork down, this seems to be the green light 

If I am going to give her anything then I don't do if while we are on the sofa, we go to the kitchen and she gets her treat there.


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## CharleyRogan (Feb 20, 2009)

Isn't it really annoying? Short of shutting him out the room, I don't know what else to do!


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## spid (Nov 4, 2008)

Bomber does this for certain meals - I blow in her face and then if that doesn't work shut her out the room.


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## Cookieandme (Dec 29, 2011)

Happened tonight with my salmon - she said please (obviously she meowed) I said no, knife and fork down - green light . Little did she know I had already put some aside for her in the kitchen 

Shut her out of the room - no that is reserved for her being really naughty


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## Pumlan (Sep 17, 2012)

Our cats "used" to pester us at the table as well. We usually tell them a firm no and lift them down as you do as well. The kitten doesn't quite understand yet but does go away if we gently push her away or lift her off the table. 

Our one year old has got the hint after many "No"s and lifting him off the table. We try to say no before he actually jumps up which seems to work (well at least some of the time). He will occasionally get up on a chair and try to sneak up but generally backs down when we say no. 

I heard somewhere that cats generally don't do things to please us unless there's something in it for them. We therefore try to reward them when they do what we want them to do such as listening when we say no, by praising them or giving them a treat. It seems to work on our older cat. But it has taken a while!


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## wildaboutcats (Jul 2, 2012)

CharleyRogan said:


> Isn't it really annoying? Short of shutting him out the room, I don't know what else to do!


I feed my cats at the same time as having my meals (except for breakfast). They get their breakfast then off they go to play in the garden, they are not shut out. Shutting your cat out may just make him want to come in evan more. We have our breakfast, sometimes they come in, and some times ask for a taste, which i admit they do sometimes get a taste, but not too often. Then i prepare their lunch and ours, so they get given theres so we can eat ours in peace, and eat in the same room (the kitchen). The same at dinner, they get their dinner and we sit and eat ours. They are quite well behaved really, we do not shut them away or make a big deal about it. I think they feel they are eating their meals with us! Perhaps you could try this for a while? so he is busy eating his own meal. But do not leave your dinner unattended, because they will help themselves.  My last 2 cats i could leave a roast dinner on the table and they would not touch it!


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## auspiciousmind (Sep 2, 2012)

Button isn't too bad really, she does like to sit on the sofa while we eat but she just stares usually.. although a few times we've been sat eating and heard a "scraping" noise .. looked across and she's licking the side of a poppadom lol and sometimes if there is something like chicken or were having ice cream if she thinks she can get away from it she'll move up nice and close and cuddle into you.. then slyly try to lick some of it.

The only solution I have found works is feeding her just before we start to eat our meal.. usually keeps her busy.. and a firm "no" works too.

:nono:


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## Jenny1966 (Feb 7, 2011)

Molly used to be really bad at this, but persistance paid off  Keep saying no, keep putting him on the floor, if need be put him in another room ...... it might take a while, but he will get the message eventually! Molly only does it now when the OH has cereal ...... but thats only because he shares it with her 

With Manny, I've been lucky, he has never really been that bothered, but he does like a bit of chicken when we have chinese!!


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## auspiciousmind (Sep 2, 2012)

Jenny.. I still love your Signature. Every time I see it I instantly get a grin on my face..
I just thought I'd tell you lol


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## Jenny1966 (Feb 7, 2011)

auspiciousmind said:


> Jenny.. I still love your Signature. Every time I see it I instantly get a grin on my face..
> I just thought I'd tell you lol


 thank you!


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## Leam1307 (Feb 12, 2010)

Mine has worked with a firm "no" and not lifting them down but rather putting my hand against them and making them jump down on there own ( they seem to think its their idea to get down then) they usually do sit at the side of the sofa and watch incase any bit happen to fall off the plate. and as soon as the plate goes on the coffee table its free rein to have a taste. 

The know that they are not allowed on the worktops if we are cooking and not on the kitchen table if there is food out, like someone else said, if i catch them thinking about jumping up and say no before hand it usually works.

For some reason they seem to LOVE the sauce of heinz beans!


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## Jan Evans (Sep 23, 2012)

I have exactly the same problem with my little 15 week old Milo male kitten. Every time we sit to eat he jumps up despite us pushing lhim away, placing him further away, feeding him at lyhe same time, placing him On the floor. Nothing works it is really annoying me now.

Also he wants to bite all the time whether you are playing with him or not we are both covered in scratches on our arms and legs.

What to do????


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

Crikey, some of you are very long suffering -- I would not put up with my cats pestering me for a second whilst I am eating a meal! 

The only one of mine that ever begged at the table was a 14 y/old rescued cat who was so persistent from the word go that it was obvious she had been 
regularly fed scraps at the dinner table by a previous misguided owner.
Very annoying!

If saying "no" and lifting or pushing the cat off the table didn't work, then it would be a no-brainer for me -- I would just shut them out of the room for the duration of the meal!


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## Calvine (Aug 20, 2012)

Some just see it as a challenge - what can I steal today. My ginger boy, Hamlet, just stuck his foot in the toaster and removed a piece of bread and ran off with it - just for the fun of it. Mine will also wave their tails over my plate as well as stare accusingly at what I have - especially if it is chicken.


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## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

There's no way I'd put up with any of this. My cats aren't allowed anywhere that food is prepared. That includes kitchen worktops, and they know it! My older girl has started chancing her luck by jumping up on the worktops, but she'll not persistently do it as she gets such a telling off. I don't tolerate any cat or kitten hassling me at dinner time. They are welcome to have one, just one, sniff from a distance as I understand they can be curious. Then they either sit nicely on the back of the sofa or they can clear off. As soon as that face comes close to my dinner they get turfed off the sofa. I don't care if I have to do this a hundred times with each cat at each meal, I keep doing it. Because I breed, I don't want to just shut them out as it then doesn't teach them to leave plates alone. I owe it to new owners to ensure that the cats have manners at dinner time, so I put in the work when they're small. It's going to be a nightmare with 5 of them all at me at once though! Can be very frustrating in the beginning.

And yes, mine go mental for bean juice too! My housemate looked away for one second last year, and when he looked back, there was a tiny baby Millie with her head rammed so far into his plate that she had to put her two paws on for balance, and there was bean juice up her nose and in her eyes! Ever since then, she will ask for a taste whenever he has beans, only once mind you, as she knows that prolonged whingeing for food doesn't go down well here when it's not cat food. Might sound tough, but I wouldn't take whining and begging and plate stealing from a dog, so I'm certainly not going to take it from my cats!


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## hazel181 (Sep 27, 2012)

:mad2::mad2: If you think that's bad you should see my cat she eats everything non food.anything from plastic to metal, I cant even use trash bags in her area of the house.


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