Cats might meow when they’re hungry, want to play, or simply want to talk to you. Some cats take this to the extreme and seem to be meowing constantly.
You’ve likely tried ignoring your cat’s meows or even gotten fed up and tossed a sock their way but they just won’t stop meowing!
Don’t worry, you’re not left to live in a world with constant cat noise. The following training will reward your chatty friend for their quiet behavior so they’ll want to be quiet more often.
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How To Get Your Cat To Stop Meowing
The key to getting your cat to stop meowing is to reward your cat before the meowing even starts. That way your cat is getting rewarded for being quiet instead of you trying to get them to quiet down after the fact.
If you’re new to clicker training, read about what positive reinforcement is, easy clicker training basics, and the tools I recommend before starting.
Supplies:
Training Steps:
- Try to stop the meowing before it even starts by immediately clicking and treating at the beginning of a session if they’re being quiet.
- If your cat is meowing, wait until they are quiet before you click and treat.
- Starting out, you’ll want to click at even the briefest moment when your cat is not meowing. Then slowly build up the length of time your cat must be quiet before clicking and giving them a treat.
It’s easiest to train one behavior at a time. If your cat is meowing when you’re training a different behavior, it’s easiest to get your cat to be quiet first.
Then when you start training other behaviors, your cat won’t be meowing throughout the training session.
This training came from my book, How To Clicker Train Your Cat. If you want more fun and easy tricks to train, you can check out the book here.
Why is my kitten meowing non-stop?
Kittens meow when they need something. This could be something like attention-seeking or more important like needing food, wanting water, or being in pain.
I’ve you’ve provided everything your kitten could want and they’re still meowing, making a veterinarian appointment should be your next step. That way the vet can rule out disease or illness as a reason for the excessive meowing.
Why is my cat meowing at night?
Your house cat evolved from wild cats and still has many of the same instincts. Wild cats typically hunt in the mornings and evenings and rest mid-day.
Your feline friend at home didn’t get the memo that they don’t need to worry about food and can change their sleeping habits. While your cat is awake in the middle of the night, they may be meowing so that you’ll wake up and spend time with them.
One solution I’ve found is to give your cat puzzle feeders before you go to bed. Then your cat will be able to “hunt” and leave you alone.
Why is my cat meowing while playing?
When cats play with their toys their prey drive kicks in. Even the calmest cat will get excited when they’re stalking and chasing after their toys.
If your cat is making a chattering sound, this is showing excitement towards prey. If it’s a normal meow sound, even when carrying around a toy in their mouth, your cat is trying to get your attention to show off their catch and interact with you.
Positive Reinforcement Trainer & Enrichment Specialist
Stephanie has over 12 years of experience training and enriching exotic animals as a Zookeeper. During this time, she received a certificate in Behavioral Husbandry from the Association of Zoos & Aquariums and is an expert in animal behavior.
In her free time, she uses positive reinforcement to train her numerous pets at home and is always thinking up creative ways to prevent her pets from getting bored. On Curiosity Trained, Stephanie now helps people make their pets’ lives better by giving them easy to follow tips and science-backed information.