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- #21
For the past several days, I have been discouraging Elliot's mouth licking and it's starting to have effect, already.
Whenever the cat tries to lick me, I just close my mouth. He's allowed to lick my cheek but not my mouth. I can always get a wash cloth from the bathroom. Right?
It's kind of hard to keep it in mind when you are awaken in the middle of the night but, after a few tries, it becomes automatic. When he sniffs my face, I just pretend to be asleep. If he tries to lick my mouth, I zip my lip and still pretend to be asleep.
Then, AFTER he's done sniffing around, I pretend to wake up to give him some snuggling and attention. When he doesn't get the reaction that he wants, he just stops because he knows it didn't work. Then, when there's been enough of a pause between the incident and my reaction, I let him lay down for some snuggles.
The first day, it took about thirty seconds for Elliot to give up by, after four days, he just tries then gives up almost immediately.
And, so it goes... That's how to UN-train a cat when you've accidentally trained him to do something you don't like.
Whenever the cat tries to lick me, I just close my mouth. He's allowed to lick my cheek but not my mouth. I can always get a wash cloth from the bathroom. Right?

It's kind of hard to keep it in mind when you are awaken in the middle of the night but, after a few tries, it becomes automatic. When he sniffs my face, I just pretend to be asleep. If he tries to lick my mouth, I zip my lip and still pretend to be asleep.
Then, AFTER he's done sniffing around, I pretend to wake up to give him some snuggling and attention. When he doesn't get the reaction that he wants, he just stops because he knows it didn't work. Then, when there's been enough of a pause between the incident and my reaction, I let him lay down for some snuggles.
The first day, it took about thirty seconds for Elliot to give up by, after four days, he just tries then gives up almost immediately.
And, so it goes... That's how to UN-train a cat when you've accidentally trained him to do something you don't like.