lindalove

Do you call the animal by it's real name or nickname?

I was thinking about this bizarre habit of mine yesterday...

I never call my pets by their actual names unless I'm mad at them or want them to do something. Taz alone has gobs of nicknames --Tuna, Baboon, Doodles, Pup-Pup, Tuna-Baboona, Land Shark and Mr.Stubby just to name a few. However, what he hears when I'm mad is...

"Taz! Leave the cat alone!" "Taz! Knock it off!" "Taz! Shut up! " and the most common one "Taz! Get your own damn bunny! Go ahead, bark your fool head off! I refuse to get your crusty bunny!"

In the end, I always end up picking up the green stuffed bunny off of the floor because my dog is too lazy to get his furry ass off of the bed, but I have to say something about it. Must not let the pets know how well the humans are trained after all...

Then there are times when I'm not mad at him, he just decides not to co-operate, like when I want him to "speak" but he ends up "whispering" instead. When I say "Speak" I expect him to to "BARK" but when I want him to "whisper, I expect him to use his inside voice which in writing would look like bark He is told no when he does the wrong one until he gets it right.

I think I figured out why I do this. It goes back to my childhood when the only time I would hear my first and middle name being called is when I was in trouble for something. Occasionally even now I hear "Linda Anne" when my mother wants me to know that something I said doesn't sit with her well. When I'm not busted for something I'm greeted with terms of endearment like "Toots!" and other assorted names.

I do this with all my pets, Taz just happens to be more troublesome than others, but even my birds cannot behave themselves.

Pepper wanted to go to bed the other night, so I covered him. A few minutes later I had to get something out of the paint supply tote that just so happens to be near his cage at the moment, so the bird that insisted on going to bed a few minutes prior decided to it was time to chat while hanging upside-down like a bat. That conversation went something like this:

Me: *sound of a Lowes plastic bag crinkling*

Pepper: Hello?

Me: Pepper- Go to sleep

Pepper: *makes birdy kissy noises*

Me: Pepper...Go To Sleep!

Pepper: Ahhh, Pretty Birdy!

Me: No, you're not a pretty birdy. Look at the mess you made on the floor!

Pepper: *laughs*

Me: Laugh it up dirty bird! I just might have to stick you in the oven.

Pepper: Whatever!

Me: * I found what I wanted. Leave the room saying "Good Night Dirty Bird!"

Pepper: *sends more birdy kisses and laughs*

I usually call Pepper Peepers or Poopers, but because I wasn't in the mood for his commentary, he was called by his name or the insulting "Dirty Bird" name.

Anybody else do this? I can't possibly be the only one. LOL

ShaniFaye

I usually call Morgana by name when Im trying to *get her attention* any other time I call her pretty girl or Morg

I very rarely get mad at her lol but when I do I def use her full name

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fresnelly

I try to, but I usually yell at one cat using the other's name by mistake.

I imagine I'll have the same problem with my kids.

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StanT

I can't say I ever get mad at my dog, but we do have an occasional "I'm the owner, you're the dog" talk. When she was younger, this generally involved sitting on her until she conceded.

I listens fairly well to most anything I call her; but she was trained with her full name. It is always used if she is given a command.

Willravel

My dog's name is Jack, and he likes to attack the various waste papper baskets in my house. Do I get mad? Yeah, for a split second. He's just a dog though. Taking into consideration his cognative abilities, there really isn't anything to get mad at. I call him Jack or puppy. Maybe I'm just not creative. I like the Tuna-Baboona nickame.

Dane Bramage

my dog and I get a long fine... she is the sweetest thing ever. never acts up and is quite mellow for a border collie mix. her name is penny, named after Odyssius' wife Penelope. her nicks include, poopy, puppydog, blackdog, poopydoo.

the cat, Sir Nigel the Brat, is a different story entirely. he is a pest beyond pests. he's a lover, a fighter, a biter and a whiner. he can't just sit in your lap, he has to "make biscuts" with his sharp @ss claws, bite (and he bites hard) and just be a general nusinance. occasionally, he gets thrown accross the room. his nicknames include... dumbass, shithead, stupid... you know... the general stuff. i love him to death, don't get me wrong. he has got to be the coolest cat on the planet... more like a dog then a cat, but boy is he a PITA!

oh yeah... i almost forgot, his first nickname was Braticus. he has a brother. they used to live together. his nickname was Faticus. nigel is a big kitty, but his bro is even bigger.

but all in all, i gotta agree with you. the only time i use thier proper names is when i'm trying to get them to do something. stop barking, stop being a brat or just generally STOP!

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pornclerk

My cat's name is The Cheat. His nick names are Cheater, Cutie, Fuzzy Bear, and when I'm mad I call him Stupid.

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raeanna74

I call all my pets by their actual names all the time, except for my older cat. I call her all kinds of made up names based on my mood. Lately it's been 'Lard Bucket' cause she's been stealing the kitten's food and she's getting FAT. Usually I just call her Kitty cat or Catrina.

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Glory's Sun

I don't call my dog anything. I just repeat the command softly and then correct as needed. A simple snap of the fingers, whistle or look will cause my great dog to do what's he's supposed to. He's only 6 months old too I think most people forget that when you say a command to a dog you should never say the command harshly.. this creates a negative connection in the dog's mind with the connection. So next you want Fido to sit, don't yell the command, say it in a normal, calm voice.

dksuddeth

I use my pets given name whatever the issue might be, if i'm petting him, praising him, or punishing. That's also why I only choose names that have one or two syllables. It just makes a person look really strange to see them yelling at their animal with the name of 'Baxter Bartholomew' and have them call it BB when they aren't mad at it.

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Toaster126

Or at the least confuses the animal.

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hambone

I have absolutely no idea why, but I can't seem to stop chuckling about this.

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Grancey

I never get mad at my cats. Really. They look at me with those big eyes and I melt. If they are doing something that they shouldn't be doing I will say no, or clap my hands. If you say their names harshly when you are mad at them they will start to associate you saying their name with being mad. Then they may stop responding positively when you say their name.



Well, I got mad today. The window in the bedroom was stuck, so today I got Red to work on it so that I can open it since the weather has been beautiful lately. Well, my "sweet" Sophia loves to jump on dressers, tables, etc. and knock small items off onto the floor. So, today (after I had opened the window) Sophia jumped onto the dresser next to the now open window, bumped into a piece of pottery that just yesterday I had put all of my extra pens and junk into, knocked it off the dresser onto a chest causing it to land upside down with everything spilling out. Standing there I yell, "Dammit, why did you do that?", right out the open window. Instantly, I'm peering out the window to see if anyone was walking by who may have heard while Sophia is just laughing at me.......

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Lady Sage

Ahhhh I am the classic nut case. My pets have middle names.

When I am angry with them it isnt aww hows mommys lil Sapphy?
Its SAPPHIRE JADE! or SIR LANCELOT MICHAEL!

Which equals... oh crap, moms angry, I better go lay down now.

streak_56

I definately do this.... with my moms dog... her name is Shiney New Nickle. We call her Nikki for short but I call her Nicola... only because I really like that name... or when I'm mad... its dirty little s**t and she usually responds to that better.

Elphaba

Heh. My sis had a darling Wheaton Terrier (male) that she named "Toots". Her work mates complained that wasn't manly enough so she then appended a middle name. How does "Toots Harold" sound?

I'm pretty sure she used his full name when he tested his mom.

la petite moi

When I get mad, I call my Tinycat "Cat." His real name is Mittens.

Meditrina

My cat's name is Simba. When he is doing something wrong, his name comes out more like a hiss. ssssssimba! He knows it is time to stop whatever it is he is doing.

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TexanAvenger

My cocker gets never gets called his full name. Captain Hook is just a bitch to say no matter what. My husky does, however. The short "Tink" quickly becomes the full "Tinkerbell," much the same way my kid sister gets her middle name added.

I'd also like to add the name "Tinkerbell" was not, in any way, my idea. The name in contrast to size is simply ridiculous. In fact, I was against another Peter Pan reference all together.

aberkok

I heard somewhere that cats only respond to one syllable of their names, so when I got to name the youngest - Miles - I made it mono-syllabic.

My point: I can't use his full name when I get pissed - that's all he's got!

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Mark23

I have a budgie, and he can get very annoying sometimes. Especially when it involves trying to get him back into his cage. He will climb onto your finger and wait until you walk all the way across the room, and then just at the last minute when you have him about an inch away from the inside of the cage he will fly off, circle the room about three times and land on your head. Very frustrating!

Another annoying trait involves his incessant warbling while you are trying to watch tv. Sometimes I think he just waits until my favourite program comes on for his cue to start screeching.

I used to have a cat called brambles, and he knew his name quite well. Enjoyed your post about the peter pan naming Texan, I'm presuming that was your daughter/wife's idea!

777

I just stop using Keeko's name all together. "Shht!", "EH!", or "Hey!" are usually what come out of my mouth when there is something that should be in my little dog's mouth. He's a chihuahua.

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noodle

Apparently, choosing the cat at the shelter that was separated from the rest of his litter because he kept them awake all night was Not A Good Idea. This animal starts yelling at around 5:30am, gets hit with a pillow, then comes back around 6:30 or 7, gets whacked with the pillow again, and then will return every two hours just for fun. He also gets up on the dresser, looks at me, and then knocks as much stuff off as he can in the time it takes me to get out of bed and threaten him. His name is Isaac. He knows by my tone if he's in trouble. But if he's really really in trouble, it's a long string of dirty words and that's when he plays "Can't Catch Me!" He likes to knock over any beverage to sample it, fly off the bed and run into the living room... to stare at the ceiling, eats everything including cockroaches, and will knock things off any surface if he's not getting attention. Lately his most oft used nickname is "What the F*ck is Your Problem Now?!"

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Grasshopper Green

My cockatiels rarely do anything that makes me mad, except for poop on my shoulder. I don't think they have the cognitive ability to understand that upsets me, and it's not that big a big deal anyway. Therefore, I never yell at them, and I use their normal names anyway.

The one thing that our lutino bird, Roofus, responds to is a short burst of air. She likes to chew on our lips (I think it's a grooming thing, because birds groom each other too) and sometimes it hurts...a short puff of air makes her stop.

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Zeraph

My pets don't have any nicknames, oddly enough. And I only ever get mad at my bird (when he's too loud) in which case I can only ignore him.

Grancey

Well, I got mad today. The window in the bedroom was stuck, so today I got Red to work on it so that I can open it since the weather has been beautiful lately. Well, my "sweet" Sophia loves to jump on dressers, tables, etc. and knock small items off onto the floor. So, today (after I had opened the window) Sophia jumped onto the dresser next to the now open window, bumped into a piece of pottery that just yesterday I had put all of my extra pens and junk into, knocked it off the dresser onto a chest causing it to land upside down with everything spilling out. Standing there I yell, "Dammit, why did you do that?", right out the open window. Instantly, I'm peering out the window to see if anyone was walking by who may have heard while Sophia is just laughing at me......

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lindalove

What kind of bird is it? I'm blessed with 2 blue fronted amazons. Just the two of them alone have the ability to make a otherwise quiet household sound like a total nut house.

The one that doesn't talk sounds like a crowing seagull, the other has an extensive vocabulary, so anything can come out of his mouth, although he did stop swearing all the time. The only time he swears now is if he hears me drop something, then I hear "Oh shit!" coming from the other room.

Grasshopper Green

This reminds me of a friend I had in high school...her family had an African Grey that they adopted from a friend who owned a bar..and the bird lived in the bar for a brief while. It had a very colorful vocabulary

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