Times like this, I am reminded how lucky I am to have a cat that runs to windows to stick her face against the glass during thunderstorms. She would rather die than share her Churu with another cat, though.
“Man, what a week. First all that darned fireworks noise put my nerves on edge, then my girl Glamour had an ouch. At least she got better. … I need a hug, Dad.”
No, he gets his points across. We got him a few months ago and he has been in the shelter 10 months! His previous owner had left him alone a lot and he literally chewed his tail off. He's got a stubby tail now. He's come so far it's unbelievable. We love him to pieces and the feeling is mutual. He hasn't really learned to play without some biting but we're working on it. We laugh because sometimes we get the stinkeye, like he's playing it cool. He was a "take a chance on me" cat. He's the best.
@@nadinenc3097 I had a cat like that once, except that he was a kitten when I got him and he still had his tail. He was the best. I bet I still have some of the scars he gave me, but we had an understanding.
There is a very famous video of a gorilla who is able to use ASL. His mother was murdered by poachers when he was a baby. He had never talked about it and they hoped he had forgotten but then one day he described the whole thing in ASL. It was gut wrenching to watch. You could feel the permanant scar on his soul. I will never forget that. We constantly underestimate animals and it's so stupid of us.
I have a few words in multiple languages and sometimes have to think for quite some time as to which words to use, Todd is just taking time to process from cat to English
When he first said "then", I was wondering if he was trying to ask if the fireworks are going to happen AGAIN. I know he understands "before" & "then", but "then" might be the closest word he has available for asking about the future. Using the "hmm?" button would clarify it's a question, but I don't think he tends to use the "hmm?" button much, does he? Maybe if you focus on modeling that button more, he'll use it more to clarify himself better. After watching the whole video, I agree he could've been sequencing events, but my first thought was, maybe he needs an "again" button!
It’s so impressive, time is such an abstract concept, but I guess just growing up around a human speaking English makes it easier to teach when it gets put into a button. I always say my dogs understand English even without buttons. I would love to get some just to see how many words they could actually say back to me
Was thinking that too about “then.” How can a car understand then and before! I’m a huge proponent of animals and their emotions and intelligence and I’m still astounded by what seems to be an understanding of time words.
@@kristinr5551 Great question. As with most of Todd's training, it is all modeling. I generally wait for Todd to ask for two things, let's say it was Pets and Belly Rubs. For Then I would say on his board after we were done Todd Pets Then Belly Rubs. For Before I would say as soon as he asked for Belly Rubs. Before Pets Now Belly Rubs. IN time he makes the connection to the time words.
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalks How far past, can you tell? 😮 I remember reading somewhere that cats remember things as far back as 16 days, but imo they remember much longer, I don't know who came up with the 16 days and why exactly that, either. 🤔 Would be great to know what Todd thinks of it. He is adorable! Glamour is very cute and pretty, and Paulie too! 😊❤
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalks Bravo to you for training your cat family, very impressive relationship you have established with your cats ! Please keep posting updates on their progress. You’ll definitely garner a million followers! I’m a big fan now!
@@Esti-xg7tg I know when Todd was a kitten and very ill he got some prescription immune system-boosting treats that he loved like they were candy. For the first week, I put them in a drawer in my desk then moved them when I saw him trying to open the drawer. Todd is now 7 and to this day if I open that drawer he comes running as fast as he can and wants to look to see if there are any in there.
See, there was this noise before, Dad...then Glamour had an ouch, but then she ended up happy. He really is like a very young child telling you about his week!
The full week recap is new. He has often told me things he is going to do like take a nap or single events that have happened in the past but never about 3 things that happened during the week.
I noticed the activities before he pushes the buttons, also. When doing energy work, my instructor says yawning, especially, is a sign of energy being released. Todd is using a lot of energy in his efforts to communicate. Bless his little heart for wanting so desperately to speak with you and be a spokesperson for his fellow housemates. He's too wonderful for words!!!
Yeah, he does do this a lot, just for the sake of communication with his human. And some people still think the buttons are just a learned behavior for food rewards.
We have incorporated "no more, all done" when something distressing has passed and is not expected to continue. Its puts them at ease in distress and lets them know what to expect when getting treats.
Awesome. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I will help if I can. Also, the link in the video description will get you 12% off anything totaling over 50.00 at checkout.
How much is it in total, you guys? This is AMAZING, I've never seen anything like it!! My girl and I would be in constant contact and have many conversations, she knew so many phrases, even knew when I was spelling something. They are so smart!
The only thing I’d mention is you should use more of the words on his board when speaking back to him. For example, you told him “Glamour isn’t up here” when you could have used the words he actually knows like “Glamour downstairs”. He might not understand “Glamour isn’t up here” leading to miscommunication. Or when he said “Want Glamour Floor Time” you assumed “want Glamour” was a separate utterance from “floor time”, when really he was specifically wanting floor time with Glamour. I would have said “Glamour downstairs. Dad help Glamour upstairs floortime” then went and got her. I think consistency and repeating only the words he knows and understands back to him when communicating would help take this to the next level. When Glamour finally appeared you did intermittently mention a few of the words on his board such as “Glamour”, but I think you could have been a little clearer, such as: “Todd want glamour floortime before” “glamour upstairs floortime Todd now.“ “Todd happy, hmm?” or something to that effect. You’re doing great though, this has been eye opening. These have been very rewarding to watch.
WOW!! That was a cohesive 7 word sentence that definitely made sense in light of the week's events. Todd really is amazing!! 🥰 For anyone who thinks that the cats and dogs using these buttons are just pushing them randomly, why would Todd go around to the other end of the mat to ask for floor time?? If it's just random pushing, it would make sense for him to sit in one spot and just push the buttons in front of him, or walk on the buttons and just press them all. But he thinks very carefully before using a button, and he tries very hard not to step on buttons if he walks across them.
I feel like the only limitation in our communication with them after seeing Todd's interactions with Dad is our own inability to teach the concepts for the buttons. My poor boy Brutus spends ALL DAY yelling at me and I know that he needs the whole suite of buttons ASAP, because he wants to tell me something.
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalks you already know how much these cats love you and we can tell. I literally ran to my parents to show them this video and how smart Todd is, and that can only happen in a nurturing and loving environment
It's actually a 9 word sentence. Noise, NOISE, NOISE before! To emphasize how much noise it was and how loud it was (as he doesn't have a button for this). Not just any random noise, exceptional noise!
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalks I understand :) but technically, they aren't just repeats, they change the meaning of the phase. he doesn't have adjectives to emphasize that it was a lot of noise and that it was immense. Many languages actually do this too, repeat adjectives to mean 'very X' or verbs to mean 'Xed for a long time'
@Yutah1981 and I did teach him that multiple pushes means an increase in want, time, and/or need. When I travel, I tell him Dad home later x how many days I'm gone, then I talk to him each night through the camera and update him on how many layers till dad gets home.
No question, a recap of the week in exquisitely succinct form. The use of "then" to separate the elements makes it really clear he was telling the story. Not only can animals learn to talk in language we understand, but their individual personalities and souls are exhibited in the things they choose to talk about, point out, complain about, ask for, and in the way they put those communications together. Hey, just like humans!
It shows that they can tell a series of events in the correct order that they happened, as well. Before, this happened, then this, then this. It's something tested for in psychological testing in humans.
This still blows my mind that cats can form complex thoughts. And this doesn’t include dogs either. They are a whole other beast that can effectively communicate. We underestimate the intelligence of animals, and it makes me appreciate them more.
Maybe he was trying to tell you before that the noise (fireworks) hurt (his ears and maybe Glamour jumped causing the back issues) but now glamor is happy and feeling better. ❤❤❤ You're such a great Cat Dad.
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalks I speak cat. It's a difficult language, so those buttons are great. But that is what he's trying to say. Pretty sure, 99%.
There is a lot going on in that adorable little head of Todd’s. I do think he was mulling over the weeks events that had impacted him. It was nice to see all of your sweet fur babies together! What a blessing they are 😻😻😻
Wow! Todd's communication skills just get more impressive. I liked how he waited to make sure you understood what he was talking about before he asked for Floor Time. And the video of Glamour washing Todd was so sweet. He looked so relaxed.
Amazing. Simply amazing. Todd told you the sequence of the last several days. And the way he used the connector "Then" to sequence and connect the events chronologically. THAT'S really amazing.
I think he was recapping the week, too. It does match events and make sense. It also fits what we know of both cats and Todd. Cats, in general, like to schedule things. They're really into one thing happened and then another thing happened or is going to happen. Usually I see them scheduling things for the future, but it does make sense that they might recount the past to put things in perspective. But it sort of fits Todd specifically. That time when the jingle ball got crunched and he went upstairs when you got home and sort of seemed to be talking to himself, trying to put what happened in the past in context for himself. I'm glad Todd got rewarded for passing messages. Or just for being a good boy that day. Makes me wonder how specific cat body language is when interpreted by cats.
I am very much not a cat person. I don't have anything against cats, and if a dear friend needed me to take care of their cat because they couldn't any longer, I would truly love it and care for it until the end of its life. I'm a dog person. But there's something about Todd. ❤ He's special. Thank you for sharing.
It was an extraordinary week with two special events: fireworks and Glamour’s bad back that Todd told Dad about and helped get it better. Definitely worth remembering and conversing on. 🎉❤❤❤Todd is very good at talking: one of the best talking cats. Stella also show this trait: planning her day ahead and sometimes talking about what happened that was memorable. It’s phenomenal. 😂🎉❤I’ve no doubt toddlers do this but cats and dogs, wow this is a little more than even I ever expected. Boldly going where no one anticipated buttons could show us. I’ve always believed cats and dogs had the capability of talking. Bunny tells us about his dreams. Love all of it!
Wow, I am speechless over Todd’s press release, reporting on important events in Cat Life! Do I think Todd thinks about his life? Of course, in fact : Todd thinks ergo he is! Watching the three kitties get their treats was quite fun. Queen Glamour does not share very well and wanted to nudge out poor Paulie, and she also quickly decided to hunt down the empty treat tube on the table before Dad had to grab it away. She sure likes to be in charge,,but frankly the sight of her grooming Todd in his basket gave us a whole new perspective of the Queen. Maybe she is the Queen Mum….😺
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalksShe reminds me of my senior girl, also tortie, who sadly passed this January. She would rarely if ever let the youngster clean her ears etc, often hissing at him as if simply out of principle, but when the youngster was ill, she was nosebooping him etc. As soon as the youngster was healthy again, she would hiss at him again and not let him come near her. She wouldn't share her treats btw but always let the youngster eat all her other food etc. We both miss her dearly.
Todd understands time and events. Todd got the chronology right !! Some young children can't even get the chronology of events correct. I remember in 1st and 2nd grade we had to read a small paragraph and then answer questions about the chronology of the events and a lot of us little kids had problems with that at 6 & 7 years old. But not Todd !!❤
I wish I could find a gentleman who is not crazy but also was as enamored with cats and word buttons and animals and pets and the beauty of the little creatures as I am and as is the gentleman who has this channel
I think Todd was definitely talking about the events of the week, it's clearly been quite the week as far as he's concerned, worthy of note. I congratulate you for managing to feed a liquid treat to 3 cats at once, my girl is a Churu addict and has very little patience when she sees me get one out of the box, I don't think she would be as polite as your 3 .
He will often plan out his days telling me what he wants to do now and then later when I get home from work. In the evenings he will tell me what he wants to do in the morning.
That was so very nice of Glamour to show affection to Todd now that she's feeling better.❤ What a 🙂 nice and loving way to express her appreciation to Todd for communicating her need to see the vet. ❤
I’m going to set up some talk buttons, Todd is a good example of how our babies can communicate if we make it easier for them….excited to hear what Ralphie and Bella might have to say! Love your channel!
Watching Todd think about how to say what he wants is fascinating. His sense of the order in which to "say" the words seems to require lots of consideration. It's possible that in the cat world the order in which you communicate ideas is not as important as it in English...
From what I have seen in other talking cats this may be the way they think as many others that use multiple words do it too. I have always said if you think in terms of the way Yoda talks Todd is easy to under stand. Happy No. Morning Now. Etc
That did seem like Todd rehashing the week's events. I see all 3 cats like that cat treat. And Glamour REALLY liked it, climbing up on you to get at it! LOL So sweet seeing Glamour grooming Todd at the end.
Sorry, I just missed the premiere 😏 Noise before, then ouch, then Glamour happy… clever Todd!!! He’s had an eventful week in kitty terms and now he wants floor time pets to unwind. Glamour giving Todd a bath seems like real progress!
What a clever cat it’s amazing how their memory works a lot of people say that cats will forget certain things but this just proves that is not true at all ❤
We’ll done Todd! Our kitties also love red tube treats! Everyone is friends when that comes out - licking each other’s tongues in a hurry to slurp it down.
And the fact that he knows what "before" is and when it was, is just astounding !! Now I'm speechless. I'm going to sit here in awe and silence and watch this amazing feline
I really think you got a recap! That's nuts!!!!! Positively. Who knows cat's mind could go that far.... you are creating a huge jump on animal's psychology. I think. I sau the buttons used by dogs, but we used to think that cat were .. like... stupider or just lasy or mean :P Todd is adorable!
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalks I agree, they are super smart, miles ahead of us. Like 'how can I explain to my human in simple words they will understand?'
Glad to see Todd communicating his thoughts so clearly. I’ll be honest, I didn’t watch Todd before, because I was a Billi loyalist. 😂 But with Her MADjesty over the rainbow bridge, the algorithm brought me Todd. He’s a sweet boy, and I’m happy to see that Billi wasn’t an anomaly. Anyone who says cats are just pressing buttons at random is completely wrong (I’m looking at you, Jackson!). “Noise Noise Noise Before” absolutely nails the experience of the first week in July in the US! 😂
Welcome, I'm glad you are here! Billi was the best and she and Kendra are the reason Todd and I start with the buttons and we loved her. It was a tremendous loss when she passed and I did not know I get that upset about a cat that was not mine. Yes, I have no doubt Todd was giving me a recap of his week.
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalks By the way, do you also use the text app functionality FluentPet buttons provide? that way Todd could send you messages while you're on business trips!
This sequence (noise noise noise before then then then ouch then Glamour happy), apparently recounting a series of past events, in the order in which they occurred in the past, is really an important piece of evidence regarding domestic cat cognition. I know most people are just enjoying these videos because they are super interesting and sweet, and so they are!!!, but as a person who studied animal language capabilities in grad school (in fact, this is precisely what I wanted to do, but the tech was not available then), I'm fascinated with what is being documented here.
@@TheChroniclesofToddToddTalks Continuing to think about this sequence, it is interesting that Todd ALMOST said "Todd" before he then said "Glamour." I keep pondering what that might mean. It might mean that he wanted to say how happy he was after Glamour was feeling better, but decided he should indicate Glamour as the focus of the happiness. It's also possible that in some way Todd is identifying with Glamour and this "indecision" is actually reflecting the reality of their bond in some way that is hard to express. Also possible that Todd was actually experiencing Glamour's pain in some way that most humans do not experience others' pain (although some humans do report this). Just layers of ponderings here.
It’s incredible that Todd knows how to use time in his sentences! I also love that you ask your cats if it’s okay for you to touch them instead of just petting them whenever ❤
I love how all these talking cats prove, that they aren't as egoistic and loner as they are always described. They know what's going on with every living thing in the household. Russel straight up chooses toys to play with for the other kitties. He even went so far, that when Winnie was occupying his spot, he said to his momma that he wants to play laser (Winnies fav toy) to get her out of his spot.
That's exactly what he's saying!❤😊 Notice how glamour is licking probably the exact spot where her back was hurting to indicate to him that she was thankful😊
