As a human who's had to take meds for UTIs.... Can attest it smells very very bad. As a human we know that it will directly help us. Hopefully Billi knows that's what Mom's trying to do is help her ouch.
@@BilliSpeaks I once had to give a foster cat a really foul medicine paste and the only way to get it done was to put in on my finger and force it onto his tongue. It must have been horrible for him but he NEVER bit my finger.
I can pill my girl with capsules so much more easily than I can try to get that nasty liquid in her. UTI medicine is default liquid, so I have to ask politely for pills, which I then cut up and put into pill capsules which she likes SO much better. And boy, I can see why...the capsule hides the flavor and the smell. Blurgh, so gross in it's original form!
Such a good girl !!! You need to do " Medicine help ouchie go ByeBye" It always amazes me when I watch her. But it also makes me miss the gray cats I had that passed away 3 years ago. They were pretty, just like Billi.❤
She just had to process. Clever girl. I had a cat on insulin back in the day. Every morning we’d go to the fridge together and I’d give her insulin. One morning I came home really tired after a long night shift. She stood in front of the fridge just yowling at me. It took me 10 minutes to realize I had forgotten her insulin that morning. As soon as I gave her the insulin she walked away from the fridge. It didn’t take too long for her to train me that if she sat at the fridge yowling she needed her insulin. My smart girl. I don’t know if it was just the routine or if she realized it made her feel better. I miss her still.
i definitely think it’s a combo of both tbh. my aunt has a cat who seems to get excited when it’s time for his daily medications, he acts like he does when u pull out a toy or his treat bag and sits patiently for the injections lol
@@platannapipidae9621 seems like a perfect example of classical conditioning. medication -> feel better is definitely not too complex for a cat to understand when it happens over and over.
@@christophkogler6220 it takes some time for medication to kick in. not even all humans can connect consuming something and feeling worse/better after an hour.
@@platannapipidae9621 Better believe it, bud. Cats and dogs can, and will, understand long-term patterns when exposed to them. If it was mere routine, then they wouldn't understand the concept of weekends being different than workdays. They understand that. Hell, I'd even go so far as to say that cats might even be better able to understand long-term patterns than dogs, because it makes them more efficient hunters.
man, I know this is far off - but helping animals understand and maybe even make decisions on their healthcare is mind blowing. yay billi, you are helping yourself and future animals!
Not entirely far off. My dog is sometimes sore in her joints, and if I think she’s hurting, I ask if she’s ‘owie’, and if I get a positive, I offer her her pain medicine. She decides to take it or not. She usually takes it, sometimes refuses. I know she doesn’t like the taste, so I have to think she understands that it makes the pain better.
Crazy to think about. Our intelligence as a species has led to a level of autonomy where we can now start giving other animals higher levels of autonomy. Insane.
@@xaviersandoval1765 Could lead. It's not done yet. And let's not forget that with our intelligence, we're destroying life on this planet rapidly. Cats taking pills on their own won't make up for that.
This is actually a thing! Commonly referred to as 'cooperative care', it gives the animal the choice to opt in or not for whatever is to be done, whether it's something like a nail trim or getting a medication or eye drops, etc. This approach recently worked great for warm compressing and shampooing my own cat's chin when he developed severe chin acne- the churu treat was worth allowing the treatment, and he knew he was free to leave at any time if he wanted it to stop.
I always called my boy's meds his "feel betters". He learned that the "feel betters" really did make the ouches feel better. He also got 3 blueberries a day to keep his uti away.
@@jasminerosewater3891 blueberries are even better than cranberry juice for utis. I checked with the vet to make sure he could have them, he was a fiend about those and green veggies like asparagus and brussels sprouts as well as mandarin oranges, and she said sure if they didn't hurt his tum. I eat them too because I can't have cranberry juice.
@@jasminerosewater3891 Thank you. Sadly, he passed in 2021 from lymphoma. Xander was my soulcat, slept in my arms for 14 years every night. My constant companion, 24/7/365 he was by my side.
It was after watching your videos that I started to view my cat Henry in a different way, I always knew my dog was communicating with me but had never considered the level of communication from Henry, now we communicate much better, Im sure if he could he would thankyou because I do.
The "all done" was freaking adorable. I was thinking too diabolically, and wondering instead at what point she'd try to convince you to give her extra medicine in order to secure more food.
What a journey that was. I got a little teary in the middle when you finally decided to offer it to her with no hiding in a treat and she eventually understood medicine then food. And that Yes to medicine then food omg. What an accomplishment you and Billi have done!
To me, this proves that learning to communicate with our pets more effectively can be life changing. Even if she "doesn't understand" the way skeptics think she should be able to, she gets enough of what you are trying to tell her to do what needs to be done. This is amazing!
agree, it's very probable that she dosen't understand the way we do, but that's how training works. sound = action. super cool. and i do believe it increase trust
Well, I think she is understanding something about "now", "soon", "later", and "later-later"...but in this case, the visual signal of shaking the medicine, then the bowl of food seemed to help as well. Still a very effective technique to go hand-in-hand with the oral cues.
@@LadyDragonborn yah, most of mine are good at just taking them if i take time to work with them. I have one little torti who has severe allergies - Carmi has needed meds all her life. Show her the pill and she looks like a baby bird with her mouth wide open. But try to hide them in a pill pocket? Nope, they eat everything except the pill. It is almost as if they are offended that i would try something so stupid
I know a dog owner who has a diabolical method of getting her dog to take his heart worm meds … she drops the pill like it fell off the kitchen counter and suddenly says “oh no, Timber, don’t eat that!” It’s gone in a flash. This is a large 100 lb dog.
@@M1nn0w Yes, language is training, language is conditioning. So what ? It doesn't change that it helps her express things, it helps Kendra to communicate with her. It does not make it any more fake. It's hilarious seeing you pathetic deniers having to find more and more ridiculous "explanations" with each time Billi gets better at using her buttons.
I remember when I had to give medicine to my cat, I had to force open his mouth with two fingers for him to swalow the pill. And then give him 3× the regular amount of treats because I felt bad about it.
@@thewanderingmistnull2451I don't want to be that guy but "medicine then food" is straightforwardly conditioning, even if spoken and understood. Billi doesn't want the medicine, later she even tries lying to avoid it, but the thing changing her willingness over time isn't her comprehension, it's the positive associations with food, praise, lack of pain, etc. Humans can be conditioned too, it doesn't make Billi any less
It is amazing to see a cat being able to reason and make decisions based on communication. We have all been there when we try to help our animals but can't tell them why we do stuff and we wish we could just tell them.
How sad for our brilliant Billi to have these ongoing health problems, and how wonderful that the state of modern veterinary care made it possible for her life to have been saved by surgery two years ago (allowing the world the privilege of enjoying this senior cat's ever-more-sophisticated understanding and use of human language)!
You take such wonderful care of her. What I would have given to have the communication tools to let all my pets over the years know that all the medicine, nail trims, allergy skin sprays, ear cleaning, etc is to HELP them, not torture them. What a comfort it must be to both of you!
Cats are so smart. This is basically how I trained my cat to take her medicine too - she loves to chew on plants, so I trained her that she gets to chew on a plant each morning as a reward for taking her medicine. She never fights me and will remind me with meows and staring if I forget to give her the meds. ;)
Some houseplants can be toxic, so be careful. If it's a random weed outside, it's probably ok. Have you ever thought of growing some "cat grass' in a pot for her? Cats needs greens for digestion and sometimes to help them hork up hairballs. The "cat grass' you can buy is nothing but oats, so if you can get some basic raw oat grains, then those will do fine. :)
Yeah, I didn't think she was so much lying as she was trying to renege on the deal she had previously agreed to! She was probably feeling better and thought she didn't need it anymore. Kendra, when it's a medication that's only needed for X number of days, maybe it would help to tell her up front how many days she has to take it and hold up that many fingers. And then you could count down (or count up) each day like that. This could help her with counting and understanding "days", and she would probably appreciate being able to see a light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. If it turns out she needs it longer (or has to switch to something else), you'd just explain that, and I bet she'd forgive the apparent "lie". :)
Any cat caretaker knows what a huge relief that is. Just amazing that she was able to reason through it and begrudgingly accept it. That’s about as much as I do for my own terrible medication. 😂
For medicine. I'm only half sure, that my cat understands the following: When I say, " this...fix..". (I've shown him me glueing a snapped stick) or "This....kill....ill". (Ive modelled "kill" with a stabbing action/him killing a mouse. "Ill" I've modelled by pretend throwing up)
@@jonbaker1697 “help ouch” did seem to garner a response, and cats have a better grasp of time and disconnected events that we previously thought, so I don’t think it’s impossible. But experiments have shown that many animals have a bit of trouble in general with doing something unpleasant now in order to end/avoid a negative stimuli later. It’s a similar reason why punishments don’t work well, and kids aren’t great at it either.
My 13 year old cat was recently diagnosed with a chronic condition. At first the pill pockets worked great, but then she got tired of it. I've started saying "Medicine then treat", so far it's working! The fact the treat is a calorie supplement is a win/win. Thank you for the idea!
Billi is so brave!! I was so shocked when she made the decision to eat the stinky yucky medicine all by herself. I love the idea if she understood that medicine would make the ouch go away, and that mom was trying to make it less unappetizing!
So thankful my elderly cat only needs a half of a tiny Thyroid pill twice daily. She stopped fighting after a few days and takes it like a champ. Well done both of you!
My cat takes the topical thyroid meds in her ear. She still gives me the sideeye, but I've learned that she isn't running away from me, she's running to her favorite spot so we can do it in a place she's more comfortable.
Ask your vet if you can get the thyroid cream that you rub in your cat’s ear. I used to get it from a compounding pharmacy where they mixed it up according to my cat’s veterinarian's instructions. It’s so much easier than trying to get a cat to swallow a pill.
OMG what an endearing doll. When you called her on her little white lie of "all done" that ridiculously innocent look she gave you is sending me. "What, mommy, you don't believe me?"
this is really groundbreaking stuff. anyone doubting the ability for cats to learn and understand words - and the utility of an owner going through the years it takes to do so - needs to see this video. truly amazing, everyone who has tried to get a cat to take a pill will be blown away by this.
Hooray!!! I’m in awe Kendra. Truly. Just love the 180 you did and Billi’s eventual understanding and acceptance. She’s so amazingly smart and trusts you implicitly. TY for including the process. Can’t speak for others but I thoroughly enjoyed how long it was. A big hug and well done to you both!😊
I am a zoologist. I would love to study Billi, and see how she communicates, because this is potentially blows up everything we knew about biology and evolution, and I'm not sure you realize how groundbreaking this is. I particularly want to focus on her potential understanding of abstract human language constructs, such as conjunctions ("this AND that" vs "this OR that"), and syntax, how the sequential order of words in a sentence changes the meaning. Like when you say "medicine then food" is different than "food then medicine", and "medicine ouch bye". The reason I want to document this so badly is because everything I just described above, is completely unheard of in the animal kingdom. Not even our closest relatives understand syntax. When trained to use a word board exactly like Billi's here, chimpanzees and gorillas cannot grasp the difference between "me come eat" and "come eat me". The point is, our human brains have evolved to be able to use complex language in this way. (And yes, that does mean Koko could not actually talk to people. She was an unfortunate victim of a very unscrupulous and exploitative researcher, but that's another story). Would you be willing to speak with me on this?
I know this is very late, but you should talk to the FluentPet people, they are the button manufacturers and so they know most of the button-using pets!
Glad you've found a way to negotiate successfully with Billi on the medicine issue. I'm still trying to figure out how to do the same with my cat and her liquid allergy meds. Half the time I can squirt it far enough back in her mouth and then distract her with play, and the other half of the time she convinces herself that I'm trying to poison her and just barfs it back up. Meds can be such a struggle with cats.
I have noticed one of my cats hates liquid meds. But he takes pills without any issue, except one specific type of antibiotics, which I had a very difficult time with. The way I give the pills to him is to hide his pill in a glob of wet treat. The kind that looks like gogurt. The brand I use is the petco brand type. The consistency of the wet treat is not runny so it holds the pill well. My cats slurps it up. I hope this helps.
Boy do I relate to your cat! I have involuntarily barfed up liquid meds as a kid, I think I am closer on the side of super taster and could not handle those liquid meds. I started taking pills as soon as possible!
Billi did a great job! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 I had a renal failure cat that had similar struggles with medicine. You may already be familiar with BCP Veterinary Pharmacy. They were a true life saver for me and my cat. They compound prescriptions into multiple types of flavorful doses. Liquid, pill or treat size chews. My cat was in calcitriol which was not tasty at all. They made a liquid chicken flavor compound for her and she used to run when I sang the calcitriol song telling her it was time for her dose. They will auto ship as well. Just a great professional compounding pharmacy exclusively for animals and the issues we face trying to medicate them. Much love to you and Billi. ♥️
You should make a special video just for little kids explaining the reason why taking their medicines are so important. You can then show Billi taking hers as an inspiration. The kids would ❤ it. I know I would. 🐱
@@darkfox2401 lying is a natural human behaviour, especially for kids bc they haven’t developed empathy or understanding of social rules yet, and so they just do what will get them what they want. I’m talking like 2-3 year olds rn.
My cat, may she rest in peace, had a thyroid issue before she died of cancer. The medication was a liquid in a little bottle and often when she heard me opening it she would come to me to get her medicine. Imagine my surprise the first few times. She was such a good girl.
That's amazing! I can't imagine how stressful it must've been as Billi's caretaker to have her refuse to take something while you KNOW it will help her live a longer, happier life. It must've truly driven near mad to end up just pleading with her. I know we don't have any solid proof that the explanation with the buttons is why, but it must've been a bit of a salve on your mind to at least be able to signal to her that you're not just trying to feed her something gross- it's something else entirely! It's not super likely, but I hope that she got the gist of "medicine help tummy ouch bye" You're a wonderful mom to her and honestly as someone looking to get a cat in the next few years I really look up to your decision to be completely honest with Billi
@@Pocket-Watch I think they can be more useful when you're around the house in another room or at the balcony and you have a phone in the pocket. Like in the situation from that film with Billi talking to Kendra while she was on the balcony and was mad because she didn't respond immediately and didn't take her with her (that one video with "I was watering the plants"). Billi doesn't use buttons when nobody's home.
Billi learning v to eat her medicine is a great achievement! You did so well and she was spectacular! Her lying to you shows how powerful she knows words to be!!!!
I had to give my kitty medicine once and trying to be sneaky with it didn’t work. I pleaded with her to please eat it and she did! It’s amazing how transparency and explaining it to her worked! Cats are so amazing when you communicate and treat them like part of the family
What I find really interesting is how Billi watches Mum's button pressing, turning around to see it when thr button is behind her. Suggests the learning is at least partly around respective positions of relevant buttons, not just the sound of them, which I hadn't quite realised?
Can finally bear to rewatch these. Darling Billi!! “Medicine then food.” “Yes.” A momentous conversation on so many levels. I hope the hearts of Kendra and family are healing a bit.
WOW! As a cat worshipper, I know for a fact that these babies are INCREDIBLY smart. They have their own language that they speak to each other, so they understand that we are also capable of communication. The only real problem is that not only is our spoken language a barrier, but our body language is, too. So that barrier is harder to crack nonverbally. You’ve done an AMAZING thing!
Oh my... At about 6:22 after Billi agrees 'yes' and you pet her and say 'good girl', I swear her expression changes to a smile! I assume that although it looks like that to me, it's really a random mouth movement or maybe I'm just anthropomorphising but either way, it's really cool and utterly charming
I can only agree lol, after I too had kept replaying that "smiling" moment a dozen times or more myself, before then noticing your post in the comments! We do tend to get overly anthropomorphic with our furry friends for sure, and for some of us 🙋 more times than is healthy - but if a cat can use and understand human speech patterns the way Billi does, it's hardly a giant leap to suppose they can mirror our facial expressions too! (in fact the phrase that came to mind, was that it must be child's play to them... lol!😳😆)
Of course it looks like that. Cats have good range of movement around the eyes, and not so great as ours in their mouth. The "slow eye blinks" are considered a sign of a comfort for a cat (Russell's "love you" word basically equals "slow blinking gesture"). Our eye muscles very actively squint when we smile, thus we use them as a landmark to recognize genuine smile. Basically we're not that much different in this area from the cats.
i hope this becomes the future of animal care--that animals routinely learn to communicate with buttons and can have understanding and collaboration like this.
I actually have no doubt you did teach her that she can only have food after medicine and she made a free choice. With the buttons you taught her about "then", so: things can be in calculable succession. What is the most interesting part is the whole "not tricking you" thing. That's mind blowing.
It's brilliant is what it is. How many times have cats been stressed out at the vets because they don't know what's going on. Now we learn that all this time we could have explained it if we'd just taken the time to give them language skills.
The note in the description about good vs bad foods really hits a chord with me. It's easy even with human food to start making bad vs good foods and that's what started my eating issues. It's so important to remember that nutrition and health are individual. Im still working on things, but once I became aware of that mentality, I was able to make a lot of progress. Much love to anyone out there dealing with the same❤
I am unfortunately trying to train my cat to take his hyperthyroidism meds twice a day, but he's so smart he keeps out-smarting me. I tried the pill then reward system, and he will tuck the pill somewhere in his mouth, then spit it out AFTER the reward! Been a challenge for both of us, but I'll keep trying cuz I love him! Great job with Billie! I wish our cats didn't have to go through this.
RIP Billi. We are going to miss you so much. We are all pressing the MAD button because you went away. I hope you are pressing the happy button across the rainbow bridge.
It's really scary how smart your cat is and it's really sad to think how many other animals are also that smart but don't have the tools to show that. Thank you so much for showing this emerging intellect!
There have been sooooooo many times I wish I could talk to my cat so she could understand me: nail trims, flea treatments, medicine, when she had to wear The Cone, when a new cat joined the house, etc. And you and Billi have that which is just wonderful ❤😊
I have two cats of my own, but I'm away at college and watching Billi has helped me not have such a high level of withdrawal from them. I love her so much!
You literally learn the cat to speak... this is amazing. Even could call it a small "mile stone" in humankind history. But a process of doing the learning curve had to be exausting for both of you. Really cool stuff. Congrats!
@@dwsel Blli has an "ouch" button and uses it appropriately. But the difficult concept is medicine (for many days in a row with antibiotics) makes the ouch go away. 🙂
Yeah, that's a sign of a pet with some experienced! A lot of medium to large dogs are easier to dose if you get them so excited about a treat they will gulp down...smaller pets with smaller mouths are often going to want to chew anything you give them, so it is quite important to ask if the pills are a time-release structure that can't be chewed, or broken up. If you CAN break it up, it can be ~easy mix it in with something, but it has to be a stronger flavor...
I am so amazed at how you and Billi communicate. I think your adding in the Medicine button was a great idea so that now she really is part of the conversation. It is so neat to see her express herself. It is simple terms but it is a wonderful communication. It's cute when she is mad at you.
I've been following Billi for a few years, and I'm still in awe of her language skills. I don't know if anyone has tried this with a dog. The plain fact is that whether Billi understands that her medicine is helping her get better or not is moot: what she has understood is that she has to take the medicine before she can have food, and has chosen to do so rather than put up a fight over it. I know my own cat Lilly understands some English, though some of the words I use is a kind of baby talk. Whether she'd be able to use word buttons the way Billi does is a question I will never be able to answer, but that's no issue, watching Billi prove cats do understand the meanings behind basic human language is enough!
I really love how she always takes her time to actually process what you're telling her. She's an absolute angel and I'm so happy you managed to find a solution for the pills!
Ok. That's it. I'm buying these buttons. Likely wont be for a month, but I'm getting these for my old girl. The fact that Billi seems to be relating all of these together is absolutely insane! She is so incredibly smart.
God, you gotta love those breakthrough moments!! I’m so happy that you’ll always have this little piece of Billi on video - as someone with a female senior cat myself who reminds me VERY much of Billi, the rainbow bridge is never far from my thoughts. Today we set up a mesh screen “door” with magnets so our kitty Daffodil can go in and out as she pleases once the weather warms up. It was SO satisfying to see her trot straight through the door and inside the house!! She really is a very smart little woman 🥰🥰🥰 Pets are SO much more intelligent than we give them credit for, but it all MUST start with the solid foundation of a trusting relationship. It’s a reward worth waiting for to see your pet shine the way Billi does 💖💖💖
It must be so satisfying to be able to explain to her why she need the meds and negotiate with her, rather than deceive her and try to trick her into eating the meds.
You can see her doing her best to choke down that icky medicine. Poor Billi, we've all been there. Hope she feels better soon!
It really does smell bad 🤢 even to me! So I imagine it’s truly awful for her
As a human who's had to take meds for UTIs.... Can attest it smells very very bad. As a human we know that it will directly help us. Hopefully Billi knows that's what Mom's trying to do is help her ouch.
@@BilliSpeaks I once had to give a foster cat a really foul medicine paste and the only way to get it done was to put in on my finger and force it onto his tongue. It must have been horrible for him but he NEVER bit my finger.
I can pill my girl with capsules so much more easily than I can try to get that nasty liquid in her. UTI medicine is default liquid, so I have to ask politely for pills, which I then cut up and put into pill capsules which she likes SO much better. And boy, I can see why...the capsule hides the flavor and the smell. Blurgh, so gross in it's original form!
Such a good girl !!! You need to do " Medicine help ouchie go ByeBye"
It always amazes me when I watch her. But it also makes me miss the gray cats I had that passed away 3 years ago. They were pretty, just like Billi.❤
She just had to process. Clever girl.
I had a cat on insulin back in the day. Every morning we’d go to the fridge together and I’d give her insulin. One morning I came home really tired after a long night shift. She stood in front of the fridge just yowling at me. It took me 10 minutes to realize I had forgotten her insulin that morning. As soon as I gave her the insulin she walked away from the fridge. It didn’t take too long for her to train me that if she sat at the fridge yowling she needed her insulin. My smart girl. I don’t know if it was just the routine or if she realized it made her feel better. I miss her still.
i definitely think it’s a combo of both tbh. my aunt has a cat who seems to get excited when it’s time for his daily medications, he acts like he does when u pull out a toy or his treat bag and sits patiently for the injections lol
@@nckojita i don't believe animals understand long term patterns. it's more of the routine, since cats like it so much
@@platannapipidae9621 seems like a perfect example of classical conditioning. medication -> feel better is definitely not too complex for a cat to understand when it happens over and over.
@@christophkogler6220 it takes some time for medication to kick in. not even all humans can connect consuming something and feeling worse/better after an hour.
@@platannapipidae9621 Better believe it, bud.
Cats and dogs can, and will, understand long-term patterns when exposed to them.
If it was mere routine, then they wouldn't understand the concept of weekends being different than workdays. They understand that.
Hell, I'd even go so far as to say that cats might even be better able to understand long-term patterns than dogs, because it makes them more efficient hunters.
I love how cats also procrastinate. “Mad. Later.” 😂 me too Billi, me too.
😂
There are people who win gold medals who get less excited than Kendra training Billi to takes those meds. Good job!
😹😹😹
If someone had asked me before I saw this, I would've said a gold medal was easier!
@@slach7680 I agree! I've had cats for 27 years, and getting them to take medicine is the worst.
Priorities 😊
man, I know this is far off - but helping animals understand and maybe even make decisions on their healthcare is mind blowing. yay billi, you are helping yourself and future animals!
Not entirely far off. My dog is sometimes sore in her joints, and if I think she’s hurting, I ask if she’s ‘owie’, and if I get a positive, I offer her her pain medicine. She decides to take it or not. She usually takes it, sometimes refuses. I know she doesn’t like the taste, so I have to think she understands that it makes the pain better.
Crazy to think about. Our intelligence as a species has led to a level of autonomy where we can now start giving other animals higher levels of autonomy. Insane.
@@xaviersandoval1765 Could lead. It's not done yet. And let's not forget that with our intelligence, we're destroying life on this planet rapidly. Cats taking pills on their own won't make up for that.
@@xaviersandoval1765 not exactly, but preach king
This is actually a thing! Commonly referred to as 'cooperative care', it gives the animal the choice to opt in or not for whatever is to be done, whether it's something like a nail trim or getting a medication or eye drops, etc. This approach recently worked great for warm compressing and shampooing my own cat's chin when he developed severe chin acne- the churu treat was worth allowing the treatment, and he knew he was free to leave at any time if he wanted it to stop.
"Pouting circles" definitely belongs in the Billi-behavior glossary lol 😹 What a cutie. Hope she's feeling better
If only some humans could pout so peaceably!
many animals do that, I've seen it with other buttoned animals too
I always called my boy's meds his "feel betters". He learned that the "feel betters" really did make the ouches feel better. He also got 3 blueberries a day to keep his uti away.
wow it's super cool that blueberries worked
@@jasminerosewater3891 blueberries are even better than cranberry juice for utis. I checked with the vet to make sure he could have them, he was a fiend about those and green veggies like asparagus and brussels sprouts as well as mandarin oranges, and she said sure if they didn't hurt his tum. I eat them too because I can't have cranberry juice.
@@Kaemea Wow! amazing to know! Thanks for sharing, glad your beeb is feeling better.
@@jasminerosewater3891 Thank you. Sadly, he passed in 2021 from lymphoma. Xander was my soulcat, slept in my arms for 14 years every night. My constant companion, 24/7/365 he was by my side.
@@Kaemea I’m sorry for your loss. He sounds like an amazing cat.
This one made me teary eyed. Also, I’m pretty sure a couple of times she took it just because she loves you.
🥰🥰🥰
@@BilliSpeaks there are cranberry supplements in capsules that are great for preventing uti's. Sprinkle some on wet food or churro every day
Obligatory: I'm not a vet. I took Urosept and had cranberry tea for a few days for UTI when most clinics were cosed and it worked like a charm.
8:12 😂😂😂 nice tryyy all done she says
It was after watching your videos that I started to view my cat Henry in a different way, I always knew my dog was communicating with me but had never considered the level of communication from Henry, now we communicate much better, Im sure if he could he would thankyou because I do.
The "all done" was freaking adorable. I was thinking too diabolically, and wondering instead at what point she'd try to convince you to give her extra medicine in order to secure more food.
😹😹😹 when she starts requesting it we know we’ve done a good job I guess
@@BilliSpeaks You are already doing more than a good job, mama!
Yeah I burst out laughing at the "all done" part. It makes my heart fuzzy to realize how much animals actually understand. She's a sneaky kitty!
@@BilliSpeaks It happened!!!
Maybe Billi was feeling better already
6:10 that interaction 🤯
She knows what's the deal and gives a consent by saying "Yes"
That was definitely amazing to me, even after all I've seen her do.
Billi is amazing! I’m happy we have her in our lifetime ❤
What a journey that was. I got a little teary in the middle when you finally decided to offer it to her with no hiding in a treat and she eventually understood medicine then food. And that Yes to medicine then food omg. What an accomplishment you and Billi have done!
I love it that you have managed to reason with your cat.
I've encountered humans who are far, far harder to reason with than Billi
To me, this proves that learning to communicate with our pets more effectively can be life changing. Even if she "doesn't understand" the way skeptics think she should be able to, she gets enough of what you are trying to tell her to do what needs to be done. This is amazing!
agree, it's very probable that she dosen't understand the way we do, but that's how training works. sound = action. super cool. and i do believe it increase trust
I’ve always been amazed at her understanding of “then” sequences. Glad that all the modeling has paid off for you both!
Well, I think she is understanding something about "now", "soon", "later", and "later-later"...but in this case, the visual signal of shaking the medicine, then the bowl of food seemed to help as well.
Still a very effective technique to go hand-in-hand with the oral cues.
It seems that they do the yoda thing when forming sentences. Very endearing
Pleasantly surprised Billi isn’t eating the cheesy coating and leaving the medicine behind.
That's what mine do...
That's what my dog used to do! I never had a picky eater until I had a border collie, my past dogs would swallow almost anything whole including meds.
That’s what mine does. But now with over 40 years experience as a slave to cats, I am a master at giving them pills! 😂😂
@@LadyDragonborn yah, most of mine are good at just taking them if i take time to work with them. I have one little torti who has severe allergies - Carmi has needed meds all her life. Show her the pill and she looks like a baby bird with her mouth wide open. But try to hide them in a pill pocket? Nope, they eat everything except the pill. It is almost as if they are offended that i would try something so stupid
I know a dog owner who has a diabolical method of getting her dog to take his heart worm meds … she drops the pill like it fell off the kitchen counter and suddenly says “oh no, Timber, don’t eat that!” It’s gone in a flash. This is a large 100 lb dog.
That's incredible. Getting her to do something she doesn't even like, on a consistent basis no less, is undeniable evidence of understanding
Classical conditioning. Not that ground breaking. Buttons are red herring
@@M1nn0w Yes, language is training, language is conditioning.
So what ? It doesn't change that it helps her express things, it helps Kendra to communicate with her. It does not make it any more fake.
It's hilarious seeing you pathetic deniers having to find more and more ridiculous "explanations" with each time Billi gets better at using her buttons.
You understand neither the concept of classical conditioning, nor the concept of a red herring.
I remember when I had to give medicine to my cat, I had to force open his mouth with two fingers for him to swalow the pill. And then give him 3× the regular amount of treats because I felt bad about it.
@@thewanderingmistnull2451I don't want to be that guy but "medicine then food" is straightforwardly conditioning, even if spoken and understood. Billi doesn't want the medicine, later she even tries lying to avoid it, but the thing changing her willingness over time isn't her comprehension, it's the positive associations with food, praise, lack of pain, etc. Humans can be conditioned too, it doesn't make Billi any less
It is amazing to see a cat being able to reason and make decisions based on communication. We have all been there when we try to help our animals but can't tell them why we do stuff and we wish we could just tell them.
How sad for our brilliant Billi to have these ongoing health problems, and how wonderful that the state of modern veterinary care made it possible for her life to have been saved by surgery two years ago (allowing the world the privilege of enjoying this senior cat's ever-more-sophisticated understanding and use of human language)!
You are so patient and diligent. Billi is so blessed to have you.
☺️☺️☺️
Amen to this! Seeing how you work with her, it's no doubt you are a pro!
What an absolute cutie pie, I hope medicine make ouch go bye
That rhymes, I love it❤❤❤❤😻😻😻😹😹😹😽😽😽😸😺😸😺
I love how everyone just accepted the fact this cat can... TALK and a human language at that
You take such wonderful care of her. What I would have given to have the communication tools to let all my pets over the years know that all the medicine, nail trims, allergy skin sprays, ear cleaning, etc is to HELP them, not torture them. What a comfort it must be to both of you!
Cats are so smart. This is basically how I trained my cat to take her medicine too - she loves to chew on plants, so I trained her that she gets to chew on a plant each morning as a reward for taking her medicine. She never fights me and will remind me with meows and staring if I forget to give her the meds. ;)
Haha! This is a great example of knowing your reinforcement strategy 😹
That's funny and amazing.
For one of my cats, the reward is getting to play with my hair 😂 or to briefly chew on plastic bags. he's a weird guy and I love him for it!
Some houseplants can be toxic, so be careful.
If it's a random weed outside, it's probably ok.
Have you ever thought of growing some "cat grass' in a pot for her?
Cats needs greens for digestion and sometimes to help them hork up hairballs.
The "cat grass' you can buy is nothing but oats, so if you can get some basic raw oat grains, then those will do fine. :)
Not her trying to evade taking medicine by lying when the ball is still right in your face😂
Yeah, I didn't think she was so much lying as she was trying to renege on the deal she had previously agreed to! She was probably feeling better and thought she didn't need it anymore.
Kendra, when it's a medication that's only needed for X number of days, maybe it would help to tell her up front how many days she has to take it and hold up that many fingers. And then you could count down (or count up) each day like that. This could help her with counting and understanding "days", and she would probably appreciate being able to see a light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. If it turns out she needs it longer (or has to switch to something else), you'd just explain that, and I bet she'd forgive the apparent "lie". :)
She’s so good 😭❤️ I died when she said “all done” and when you told her that medicine wasn’t all done, she looked offended 😂 best girl Billi!!
I love Billi so much. I feel for her, 'cause you can tell she's trying, even if she might not understand why she has to.
It remarkable that she has confidence in your relationship and will overcome the aversion to the distasteful, as she trusts the food will follow.
Any cat caretaker knows what a huge relief that is. Just amazing that she was able to reason through it and begrudgingly accept it. That’s about as much as I do for my own terrible medication. 😂
Cats are so intelligent. Billi understood every step of this process and chose to make the trade. Eat medicine, then get food. Very straight-forward.
So patient!! Poor girl. It’s probably pretty tough to conceptualize medicine as a cat.
For medicine. I'm only half sure, that my cat understands the following:
When I say, " this...fix..".
(I've shown him me glueing a snapped stick)
or
"This....kill....ill".
(Ive modelled "kill" with a stabbing action/him killing a mouse. "Ill" I've modelled by pretend throwing up)
@@jonbaker1697 “help ouch” did seem to garner a response, and cats have a better grasp of time and disconnected events that we previously thought, so I don’t think it’s impossible. But experiments have shown that many animals have a bit of trouble in general with doing something unpleasant now in order to end/avoid a negative stimuli later. It’s a similar reason why punishments don’t work well, and kids aren’t great at it either.
She has asked for medicine before ie catnip when she has tummy ouch. And it is supposed to help.
My 13 year old cat was recently diagnosed with a chronic condition. At first the pill pockets worked great, but then she got tired of it. I've started saying "Medicine then treat", so far it's working! The fact the treat is a calorie supplement is a win/win. Thank you for the idea!
Billi is so brave!! I was so shocked when she made the decision to eat the stinky yucky medicine all by herself. I love the idea if she understood that medicine would make the ouch go away, and that mom was trying to make it less unappetizing!
Pouting circles! What a fitting description
Omg! She’s like a little kid trying to negotiate her way out of taking her medication. You’re so patient with her! I hope Billi gets better soon!
annoyed but not angry cats are unreasonably cute. angry tail whips and huffs are like the human teenager hair flip and huff
THIS IS SO DAMN COOL OMG Billy's probably the first pet ever to voluntarily take medicine while informed like this!!
So thankful my elderly cat only needs a half of a tiny Thyroid pill twice daily. She stopped fighting after a few days and takes it like a champ.
Well done both of you!
My cat takes the topical thyroid meds in her ear. She still gives me the sideeye, but I've learned that she isn't running away from me, she's running to her favorite spot so we can do it in a place she's more comfortable.
Ask your vet if you can get the thyroid cream that you rub in your cat’s ear. I used to get it from a compounding pharmacy where they mixed it up according to my cat’s veterinarian's instructions. It’s so much easier than trying to get a cat to swallow a pill.
The cream is expensive, but for me it's worth it. Otherwise, it would be a daily battle. If your kitty doesn't fight the pills, you're fortunate.
WOW! What an amazing cat!!!! ❤ She is better than a grown man.
😹😹😹
Hey, not fair! I only make one, max two "pouting circles" before I take my medicine! 😒
@@Hiznogood good boi!
Some of us would choose a cat over a man any day!
@@Hiznogood 🤣
I’m just here watching older Billi videos missing this smart, sassy gal. ❤
OMG what an endearing doll. When you called her on her little white lie of "all done" that ridiculously innocent look she gave you is sending me. "What, mommy, you don't believe me?"
Sometimes you just gotta take the icky medicine Billi. Good girl!
this is really groundbreaking stuff. anyone doubting the ability for cats to learn and understand words - and the utility of an owner going through the years it takes to do so - needs to see this video. truly amazing, everyone who has tried to get a cat to take a pill will be blown away by this.
Hooray!!! I’m in awe Kendra. Truly. Just love the 180 you did and Billi’s eventual understanding and acceptance. She’s so amazingly smart and trusts you implicitly. TY for including the process. Can’t speak for others but I thoroughly enjoyed how long it was. A big hug and well done to you both!😊
I did, as well.
Same. I enjoy the longer videos, especially the ones involving the training process
Well said. Thank you. 👏👏🤗🤗
This is a masterclass in training and behavior reinforcement. Bravo to both of you!!
I am a zoologist. I would love to study Billi, and see how she communicates, because this is potentially blows up everything we knew about biology and evolution, and I'm not sure you realize how groundbreaking this is.
I particularly want to focus on her potential understanding of abstract human language constructs, such as conjunctions ("this AND that" vs "this OR that"), and syntax, how the sequential order of words in a sentence changes the meaning. Like when you say "medicine then food" is different than "food then medicine", and "medicine ouch bye".
The reason I want to document this so badly is because everything I just described above, is completely unheard of in the animal kingdom.
Not even our closest relatives understand syntax. When trained to use a word board exactly like Billi's here, chimpanzees and gorillas cannot grasp the difference between "me come eat" and "come eat me".
The point is, our human brains have evolved to be able to use complex language in this way. (And yes, that does mean Koko could not actually talk to people. She was an unfortunate victim of a very unscrupulous and exploitative researcher, but that's another story).
Would you be willing to speak with me on this?
Did she ever get back to you?
Do you think it could be due to the proximity of cats to humans since ancient times, or something of the sort?
Pretty sure they do this in collaboration with a university program so you would probably have to reach out to them
I know this is very late, but you should talk to the FluentPet people, they are the button manufacturers and so they know most of the button-using pets!
They usually don't want to research the person first.
Glad you've found a way to negotiate successfully with Billi on the medicine issue. I'm still trying to figure out how to do the same with my cat and her liquid allergy meds. Half the time I can squirt it far enough back in her mouth and then distract her with play, and the other half of the time she convinces herself that I'm trying to poison her and just barfs it back up. Meds can be such a struggle with cats.
I have noticed one of my cats hates liquid meds. But he takes pills without any issue, except one specific type of antibiotics, which I had a very difficult time with. The way I give the pills to him is to hide his pill in a glob of wet treat. The kind that looks like gogurt. The brand I use is the petco brand type. The consistency of the wet treat is not runny so it holds the pill well. My cats slurps it up. I hope this helps.
Boy do I relate to your cat! I have involuntarily barfed up liquid meds as a kid, I think I am closer on the side of super taster and could not handle those liquid meds. I started taking pills as soon as possible!
Billi did a great job! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
I had a renal failure cat that had similar struggles with medicine. You may already be familiar with BCP Veterinary Pharmacy. They were a true life saver for me and my cat. They compound prescriptions into multiple types of flavorful doses. Liquid, pill or treat size chews. My cat was in calcitriol which was not tasty at all. They made a liquid chicken flavor compound for her and she used to run when I sang the calcitriol song telling her it was time for her dose. They will auto ship as well. Just a great professional compounding pharmacy exclusively for animals and the issues we face trying to medicate them. Much love to you and Billi. ♥️
The "Yes" to 'medicine then food'! She looked totally comfortable with doing it again! How freaking cool.
You should make a special video just for little kids explaining the reason why taking their medicines are so important. You can then show Billi taking hers as an inspiration. The kids would ❤ it. I know I would. 🐱
I love seeing how Billi's mind works.
When she said, "yes, " was amazing! Respectful relationships rock!
Billi is the goodest girl ever! Hope she is feeling better.
Lying is a true sign of intelligence. They say if your kid starts lying early, they gonna be smart as hell
Mostly bad parenting. Letting people lie to there kids early
@@darkfox2401 lying is a natural human behaviour, especially for kids bc they haven’t developed empathy or understanding of social rules yet, and so they just do what will get them what they want. I’m talking like 2-3 year olds rn.
My cat, may she rest in peace, had a thyroid issue before she died of cancer. The medication was a liquid in a little bottle and often when she heard me opening it she would come to me to get her medicine. Imagine my surprise the first few times. She was such a good girl.
That's amazing! I can't imagine how stressful it must've been as Billi's caretaker to have her refuse to take something while you KNOW it will help her live a longer, happier life. It must've truly driven near mad to end up just pleading with her. I know we don't have any solid proof that the explanation with the buttons is why, but it must've been a bit of a salve on your mind to at least be able to signal to her that you're not just trying to feed her something gross- it's something else entirely! It's not super likely, but I hope that she got the gist of "medicine help tummy ouch bye" You're a wonderful mom to her and honestly as someone looking to get a cat in the next few years I really look up to your decision to be completely honest with Billi
They are! It’s been cool to see the notifications 🥰
@@BilliSpeaks so are you saying Billi texts you when you are out the house?
@@Pocket-Watch I think they can be more useful when you're around the house in another room or at the balcony and you have a phone in the pocket. Like in the situation from that film with Billi talking to Kendra while she was on the balcony and was mad because she didn't respond immediately and didn't take her with her (that one video with "I was watering the plants"). Billi doesn't use buttons when nobody's home.
@@dwsel thank you for the clarification, cheers
Billy knows what she’s thinking. It’s the humans that needs translation!
Billi learning v to eat her medicine is a great achievement! You did so well and she was spectacular! Her lying to you shows how powerful she knows words to be!!!!
I had to give my kitty medicine once and trying to be sneaky with it didn’t work. I pleaded with her to please eat it and she did! It’s amazing how transparency and explaining it to her worked! Cats are so amazing when you communicate and treat them like part of the family
What I find really interesting is how Billi watches Mum's button pressing, turning around to see it when thr button is behind her. Suggests the learning is at least partly around respective positions of relevant buttons, not just the sound of them, which I hadn't quite realised?
Informed consent, we LOVE to see it! Kendra you're amazing!
Can finally bear to rewatch these. Darling Billi!! “Medicine then food.” “Yes.” A momentous conversation on so many levels.
I hope the hearts of Kendra and family are healing a bit.
WOW! As a cat worshipper, I know for a fact that these babies are INCREDIBLY smart. They have their own language that they speak to each other, so they understand that we are also capable of communication. The only real problem is that not only is our spoken language a barrier, but our body language is, too. So that barrier is harder to crack nonverbally. You’ve done an AMAZING thing!
The way my cat would run away when they see me the medicine package.. Billi's the real G
Oh my...
At about 6:22 after Billi agrees 'yes' and you pet her and say 'good girl', I swear her expression changes to a smile!
I assume that although it looks like that to me, it's really a random mouth movement or maybe I'm just anthropomorphising but either way, it's really cool and utterly charming
I can only agree lol, after I too had kept replaying that "smiling" moment a dozen times or more myself, before then noticing your post in the comments!
We do tend to get overly anthropomorphic with our furry friends for sure, and for some of us 🙋 more times than is healthy - but if a cat can use and understand human speech patterns the way Billi does, it's hardly a giant leap to suppose they can mirror our facial expressions too!
(in fact the phrase that came to mind, was that it must be child's play to them... lol!😳😆)
Of course it looks like that. Cats have good range of movement around the eyes, and not so great as ours in their mouth. The "slow eye blinks" are considered a sign of a comfort for a cat (Russell's "love you" word basically equals "slow blinking gesture"). Our eye muscles very actively squint when we smile, thus we use them as a landmark to recognize genuine smile. Basically we're not that much different in this area from the cats.
@@dwselThanks for your comment
I love how her tail shows she isnt keen on the medicine even later in the video, but she is definitely more cooperative.
Billi, sorry your UTI is getting more frequent. We love you thanks for sharing your day with us ❤
i hope this becomes the future of animal care--that animals routinely learn to communicate with buttons and can have understanding and collaboration like this.
I actually have no doubt you did teach her that she can only have food after medicine and she made a free choice. With the buttons you taught her about "then", so: things can be in calculable succession.
What is the most interesting part is the whole "not tricking you" thing. That's mind blowing.
It's brilliant is what it is. How many times have cats been stressed out at the vets because they don't know what's going on. Now we learn that all this time we could have explained it if we'd just taken the time to give them language skills.
The note in the description about good vs bad foods really hits a chord with me. It's easy even with human food to start making bad vs good foods and that's what started my eating issues. It's so important to remember that nutrition and health are individual. Im still working on things, but once I became aware of that mentality, I was able to make a lot of progress. Much love to anyone out there dealing with the same❤
This is amazing to anyone who has had to give a cat medicine before. Calling her a good girl is an understatement.
I am unfortunately trying to train my cat to take his hyperthyroidism meds twice a day, but he's so smart he keeps out-smarting me. I tried the pill then reward system, and he will tuck the pill somewhere in his mouth, then spit it out AFTER the reward! Been a challenge for both of us, but I'll keep trying cuz I love him! Great job with Billie! I wish our cats didn't have to go through this.
you are very patient with her, teaching her the board.
I had a cat, that when i picked her up and held her in a certain way, would just lay there and open her mouth. She was a good kitty and i miss her.
I jumped in excitement when she voiced her approval of the arrangement by pressing yes!!
Your training is working Kendra, keep it up.
and hope billy gets well soon.
RIP Billi. We are going to miss you so much. We are all pressing the MAD button because you went away. I hope you are pressing the happy button across the rainbow bridge.
The power of positive reinforcement and the bond you've created, just beautiful 😻
It's really scary how smart your cat is and it's really sad to think how many other animals are also that smart but don't have the tools to show that. Thank you so much for showing this emerging intellect!
There have been sooooooo many times I wish I could talk to my cat so she could understand me: nail trims, flea treatments, medicine, when she had to wear The Cone, when a new cat joined the house, etc. And you and Billi have that which is just wonderful ❤😊
I have two cats of my own, but I'm away at college and watching Billi has helped me not have such a high level of withdrawal from them. I love her so much!
Billi and mom are SO amazing! ❤
You literally learn the cat to speak... this is amazing. Even could call it a small "mile stone" in humankind history. But a process of doing the learning curve had to be exausting for both of you.
Really cool stuff. Congrats!
Tried this with my cat and she ate the pill covering leaving the pill! LOL
Mine too! She’s lost most of her teeth, but is still capable of eating the pocket and leaving the pill behind.
They don't have a concept of "ouch" probably
Billie knows the medicine is there I believe watching kenrrra wrap it, but is choosing to take it. Mindblowing
@@dwsel Blli has an "ouch" button and uses it appropriately. But the difficult concept is medicine (for many days in a row with antibiotics) makes the ouch go away. 🙂
Yeah, that's a sign of a pet with some experienced!
A lot of medium to large dogs are easier to dose if you get them so excited about a treat they will gulp down...smaller pets with smaller mouths are often going to want to chew anything you give them, so it is quite important to ask if the pills are a time-release structure that can't be chewed, or broken up.
If you CAN break it up, it can be ~easy mix it in with something, but it has to be a stronger flavor...
I am so amazed at how you and Billi communicate. I think your adding in the Medicine button was a great idea so that now she really is part of the conversation. It is so neat to see her express herself. It is simple terms but it is a wonderful communication. It's cute when she is mad at you.
I can almost hear the tears of joy and relief in your voice--and totally am there with you. Great work, both of you.
Billi is such a good girl! Her adoring fans are so proud of her!
I've been following Billi for a few years, and I'm still in awe of her language skills. I don't know if anyone has tried this with a dog. The plain fact is that whether Billi understands that her medicine is helping her get better or not is moot: what she has understood is that she has to take the medicine before she can have food, and has chosen to do so rather than put up a fight over it.
I know my own cat Lilly understands some English, though some of the words I use is a kind of baby talk. Whether she'd be able to use word buttons the way Billi does is a question I will never be able to answer, but that's no issue, watching Billi prove cats do understand the meanings behind basic human language is enough!
I really love how she always takes her time to actually process what you're telling her. She's an absolute angel and I'm so happy you managed to find a solution for the pills!
The new buttons sound great! And is there now a new "Billi" button?
There is! I finally caved. I’m saving her old button though, I love the sticker.
Good girl Billie! Now there's no more ouchy. ❤
I just got word that our Royal Madjesty has crossed the Rainbow Bridge. The old videos are a comfort to me.
The things we always wish we could explain to our pets... Truly mindblowing 🙌
Ok. That's it. I'm buying these buttons. Likely wont be for a month, but I'm getting these for my old girl. The fact that Billi seems to be relating all of these together is absolutely insane! She is so incredibly smart.
She’s amazing, both of you are amazing!❤
I feel for Billy. I also have to take yucky tasting medicine. I'm so glad ya'll found a way that works for her!
When she presses the Mad button, you can see her tail move from side to side which is indeed a mad kitty.
The food mousies are lifesavers! They've helped both my overeater and my scarf-n-barfer!
God, you gotta love those breakthrough moments!! I’m so happy that you’ll always have this little piece of Billi on video - as someone with a female senior cat myself who reminds me VERY much of Billi, the rainbow bridge is never far from my thoughts. Today we set up a mesh screen “door” with magnets so our kitty Daffodil can go in and out as she pleases once the weather warms up. It was SO satisfying to see her trot straight through the door and inside the house!! She really is a very smart little woman 🥰🥰🥰
Pets are SO much more intelligent than we give them credit for, but it all MUST start with the solid foundation of a trusting relationship. It’s a reward worth waiting for to see your pet shine the way Billi does 💖💖💖
I mean, I'm food motivated too so I can totally get being bribed like Billi.
It must be so satisfying to be able to explain to her why she need the meds and negotiate with her, rather than deceive her and try to trick her into eating the meds.
I always had the suspicion that my cats deep down inside understood that the medicine was to help. Thank you for confirming!