General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: It Looks Like I Slept In A Raspberry Patch... An Update on the Little Deaf Kitty. [View all]Moonwalk
(2,322 posts)--at your hand, interested to know why you've got one finger out
I think they're doing right in actually touching the kitten, which would have felt the rumble of mom's purr and her licks and nips and such while it was in its blind state. Meow (Mao?) there is used to translating touch into meaning--hands are likely still toys to it like the dog's paw and the cat's tail. So touching the cat in different ways is a good way to signal it. A tap on the head for "no," a scratch on a favorite spot for "good"--and maybe stomp a foot so it feels the vibrations thought the floor if kitty needs to be startled out of doing something naughty.
And yes, I know we all want to stop the cat from afar with a wave or gesture, but I promise you that my cats, who can hear, do NOT listen to me when I shout "NO!" They keep doing what they're doing till I get up and walk towards them. That's cats for you ("Oh, you were serious about that "no"?...okay...." .