The "How Do Your Pets Respond To Your Commands? Story

It was an ordinary day.  Watching our two cats enjoying our new home at Woodcrest Villa.  Our large sunporch is a big draw for them. We have two sofas on the sunporch and they love sitting on the backs of the sofas, looking for any movement that might pass by the windows.  The Gray Lady is the smaller of the two and loves to watch the squirrels move from window to window as they search for the peanuts that my wife throws out for them.  Snickerdoodle is almost twice the size of the Gray Lady, but is scared of just about anything that moves too fast or makes too much noise.  Someone asked me recently if my cats know their names being that their names are so different from normal pet names.  At times I'm not sure, but one thing they never forget is the sound of their food being placed on the floor at meal time.  So, if it wasn't mealtime and I called Snickerdoodle...would he come to me?  Sometimes not...but he usually comes to me because he knows my voice and he knows that I am one of two people who gives him his food.  I read recently that cats do respond more to their names only because  they know the sound of your voice rather than understanding what you are saying.  If a stranger would call Snickerdoodle's name, he probably wouldn't understand it as well as if I called him, since he knows my voice.  One way to get your cat to recognize his name is to have a treat ready to give to him when you call his name.  Do that enough times and he probably will come to you when he hears your voice.  Naturally...he will be expecting a treat!  Cats are just as trainable as dogs.  But, cats tend to have more moods that dogs do.  Sometimes it takes longer to get a cat to come to me no mater what I do if he or she doesn't want to come.  They seem to be more independent that dogs.  Our two cats have been part of our family for over five years now and when we call them they may or may not come.  They do know the word bird and eat, but tend to just stare when we say most any other word.  As far as knowing their name...nah, they don't seem to know their name.  They do know the phrase "are you ready to eat" and the word "treat," but as far as other words...they will ignore us unless they know it is close to breakfast, lunch or supper.  Then you can say anything to them and all they do is stare at you  until you give them something to eat.  We can call them anything we want and unless it is near meal time, they more than likely will not respond to our calling them. And, it doesn't matter whose name we call them, they respond to sounds rather than words.  But...we love them no mater what.  They are like children to us.  Our children are now adults and have their own pets by now to feed and call names.  And...as long as our four-legged "kids" come running when the dinner bell tolls, we will continue to love them to death!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.