Why is my cat untrainable?

[Daisypaisy]

She is a nightmare! So cat is approx 10 months old, DD got her when cat was about 5/6 months as a therapy cat. Cat goes between here and DD’s fathers, so we have shared care of both!

This means that cat is a house cat as not sure she would cope with being allowed out at both houses, not get lost etc.

She’s a bit naughty, but she has learnt to use her scratch post/the door mat rather than the furniture.
She is very vocal! And will have a run around the back room and kitchen during the day, I work from home so had company. DD spends time with her on an evening. Cat is not allowed upstairs so doesn’t have free rein, similar set up at DD’s fathers house.

Issue is that she just refuses to be trained not to go on the kitchen worktops/mantelpiece/bookcase top. I’ve tried click training, water spray, firm no, tap on the nose. Nothing works. It’s driving me a little bit mad. She had down time, naps on the sofa in the day, comes with is in the lounge in the evening when we are in there.
So not lonely/bored/hungry/starved of affection.

I know she’s a cat and free willed, she and DD are made for each other! Any ideas welcome, thank you!

cupsofcoffee yes they are a complete food.

Veterani I am aware that fish is not an appropriate whole diet for her. She has pouches and complete dry food also.

Blueskytoday haha, I wish I could help you!

Sorry miss named you Blueskytoday06

Not sure you train a cat! Mine go all over - the small one can jump or climb everything!

Mine know they're not allowed on the dining table while we're eating - and not on worktops when I'm dishing up food. But other than that they sit in them at all other times!

I agree that cats aren't untrainable- they just decline to be trained!

@Daisypaisy

*cupsofcoffee* yes they are a complete food.

Veterani I am aware that fish is not an appropriate whole diet for her. She has pouches and complete dry food also.

It's not just that it's not a complete diet. It's that it contains an enzyme called thiaminase which actively destroys thiamine absorbed from the complete l food you're feeding her. So she can still become deficient even though she has access to a nutritionally complete diet.

Are you aware of that?

I disagree that cats aren't attached to people though. Two of mine are definitely attached to DS and they pined for him when he went away for the week. The little one also came running in when she heard his voice on the phone!

No I wasn’t aware of that re the fish, thank you for the info. She does have other foods to balance this though, it isn’t her main source, it was an attempt at humour.

If you are saying that cats shouldn’t have any fish at all then thank you, I will take that on board along with the other advice, which I appreciate.

One day she'll jump on the worktop and you'll go, ok, just this once because I'm too exhausted.
And voila, you have been trained.

I've been saying a firm NO to my lot (6 of them) for the best part of 8 years. They still get on the kitchen side. Antibac/disinfectant spray throughout the day is the way to go. It genuinely doesn't bother me, nor does it seem to have caused any of us (me, dh, ds5) any harm 🤷🏻‍♀️. Mine don't go upstairs either (I want at least the bedrooms to be relatively hair free). But they have the run of downstairs, worktops and all, and are inside/outside as they please.

There is no such thing as a “therapy cat”.
You got a cat because you thought it world help your daughter but “therapy + animal” has a very specific meaning although it’s often misused.

You seem to want your cat to behave like a dog and you can’t have done any research. You’ve got the cat now so you really need to play catch-up and research and accommodate your cat’s feline needs.

I honestly though this post must be a spoof taat at first: “I bought a bicycle to do the school run with a toddler and newborn DS3 but it only has one seat and it’s freezing in winter and I get very tired after pedalling 5 miles as we live in Sheffield and it’s really hilly. How do other people manage with their bikes?”

I’m a bit nonplussed assuming this is real.

Stop moving her around. You say she’s not stressed but you also just don’t seem to understand cats. Not using her litter tray is a sign of an unhappy cat. And it is odd to limit a cat to just a few rooms. It sounds like you think a cat is just an easy version of a dog, and it really isn’t, they are very different animals.

moonbedazzled she jumps up now! I haven’t been attempting to train her every day since we got her, I accept I need to pick my battles!

@Daisypaisy

No I wasn’t aware of that re the fish, thank you for the info. She does have other foods to balance this though, it isn’t her main source, it was an attempt at humour.

If you are saying that cats shouldn’t have any fish at all then thank you, I will take that on board along with the other advice, which I appreciate.

The odd bit probably won't do her any harm. But avoid regular feeding of fish that contains thiaminase:

Atlantic salmon, trout, cod, flounder, which are common fish that might be fed to cats or dogs, does not contain thiaminase. But, whitefish, goldfish, catfish, bass, smelt, tuna, mackerel, herring, does contain thiaminase

tinierclanger she hasn’t used her litter tray overnight on two or three occasions in several months, hardly an every day occurrence.

You may think it’s odd to limit a cat to a few rooms, I do not. I don’t want her to have access to all of the rooms.

I’ve had cats over the years, from being a child. Just never an indoor cat. I have said that I will look at cat shelves, a catio and other things to make life more interesting for her.

If she was displaying ongoing signs of stress and anxiety then I would of course look at her staying at one house only. She isn’t, so that arrangement will stand for now.

Veterinari thank you! She does have mainly cod, but has some tuna also, I’ll stop giving her the tuna.

Daisy is it because you don't want her on your bed?

Could you not just shut the bedroom doors? I just think given she's an indoor cat the exercise of the stairs would be good for her. Mine sometimes loves a bonkers 5 mins of running up the stairs like lightening!

Yes it is Sweak. I’m currently decorating the hall and stairs, and need bedroom doors that close properly (new house, bit of a project) The minute I let her upstairs she takes delight in installing herself on one of the beds! So when the doors are on then she will be able to run up and down the stairs.

I think, Daisypaisy, that she picked the battle and she won. Hehe. Next will be that nice comfy bed.

You are new to this but don't worry, she knows what she's doing and she'll have you knocked into shape in no time. It won't be long before you're feeling rejected because she doesn't come and sleep with you.

Daisy I will be honest..when I first got my cat I didn't want her on the bed either. I lasted two nights I think!

Now I'm disappointed if I wake up and she's not at the end of the bed 😂

Haha, she will NOT be sleeping on the beds!
She is really good at night to be fair, but she loves her cosy fluffy bed!

Moonbedazzled
“ You are new to this but don't worry, she knows what she's doing and she'll have you knocked into shape in no time. It won't be long before you're feeling rejected because she doesn't come and sleep with you.”

Never thought that it would take a cat to train me! Good men have tried and failed

Cats are professionals, men are amateurs. Haha.

Enjoy your cat. They are brill! ❤

Don't bathe her paws!

Don't bleach your surfaces either. If she ingests it from licking her paws you could make her ill. Ensure they are clear of food though.

All the talk of down time and nap time etc. She is a cat, not a child.

Agree with previous posters that moving from one environment to another regularly is far from ideal, and probably highly stressful for her.

Keep her at one place only and buy the child a stuffed toy or something to take with her instead of a living creature.

Therapy cat.

Words I hardly swaddle her and put her down for a nap she does her own thing, the nap was in the context of the comment.

I have already stated that cat does not display signs of stress. She is very used to both houses now, it’s not an issue.

Maybe therapy cat was the wrong phrase to use. We got the cat as a distraction for my daughter when she was struggling with her mental health, as I have already explained upthread. DD is a teen, struggled immensely in lockdown and having the cat, the distraction of her, the looking after of her, the company of her, has helped my daughter.

I don’t really know why I’m explaining myself, but there we are.

I think it all sounds a bit confusing & stressful for the cat tbh.

Cats really are not transportable as such, especially between 2 houses. This would be very confusing as they like to have defined territories.

Add to this that the cat is not allowed upstairs in either house & that the cat has no access to outdoors then you really are vastly increasing the chances of the cat developing behavioural issues as it has very limited space to explore & enjoy.