[fjm]

To keep track of Poppy's four meals a day and numerous medicines I have set reminders on my laptop in case I get involved and lose track of time. In an attempt to prevent her linking the squelching sound to food time I set them 10 minutes early... But she still jumps up the moment it goes off, except for the breakfast one - as I feed her when we wake up that one usually comes after breakfast. I wonder if there is a way of randomly varying the alarm sound!

 

[cowpony]

You could probably use Windows Task Scheduler to launch a media file at a set time, e.g. How do I make Task Scheduler play a mp3 file at a given time please?

 

[curlflooffan]

Hahaha oh Poppy!

My mums yorkie picks up on these things too. He was quick to pick up on words like 'bath' and 'treats'. Therefore my mum started to spell those words outloud instead.

So now the dog knows how to spell...

He also comes running if he hears someone break the shell of a hard boiled egg.

I dont have any advice because my familys solution so far had just been to accept our fate and live under the tyranny of a terrier who demands an egg tax if we eat boiled eggs.

 

[AliFenrisMom]

There are medication apps that you can install on your phone and set to vibrate (or any ringtone). Since your phone either vibrates or rings all the time (possibly, mine does with notifications) it should appear random to the pup.

 

[Dechi]

Can you make it a visual alarm instead of an audible one ? Or just use a pill box with days of the weeks and am/pm slots ?

 

[twyla]

fjm, hate to tell ya they just know I set reminders as well even the cat starts in

 

[fjm]

I use dosing pill boxes, but they don't remind me of the time when I am nattering to family, or absorbed in reading. And I don't have a smartphone - can't get a signal in the house. I suspect, as Twyla says, it is a lost cause - if I make the alarm silent they will learn to read. And thinking about it their tummy alarms are pretty accurate in any case!

 

[twyla]

Sorry about that fjm, the dogs know when I am leaving the house by my habits, putting on my work boots and grabbing my phone they know they get a reward a dab of peanut butter in a Kong, so the excitement goes with the territory

 

[Skylar]

I would set the alarm as you have been doing - but you should randomize how quickly you respond to it. Disconnect the "alarm=immediate reaction". Sometimes you take 5 minutes, the next time 30 minutes and the third time 8 minutes.

Sometimes the alarm goes off and you continue to read or do whatever you were doing, or you get up to the bathroom, check the front door, next time you get up and sing and dance - random behavior.

Never feed immediately after the alarm.

Hopefully they will come to see the alarm as random and not as an indicator of treats.

 

[fjm]

Tried that, Skylar. It sort of works - after 5 minutes the attention relaxes a little - but I can't leave it too long as Pop's meals and drugs are on a pretty tight schedule. Fitting four meals into our waking hours, and then at least one drug that is best given on an empty stomach and others that need to be at 12 hour intervals doesn't leave a lot of room for manoeuvre! But they enjoy the anticipation, I know, so the excitement that it is nearly mealtime is probably worth putting up with.

 

[twyla]

fjm, sounds like my house the fun ones are the prednisone I give every third day and the last of three sets of meds I have to give the cat three times a day, extra fun because I work and some times have to wake my self up for the last set of meds always set an alarm for that one

 

[naybaloog]

You can also just play the alarm where nothing happens.

 

[Skylar]

Tried that, Skylar. It sort of works - after 5 minutes the attention relaxes a little - but I can't leave it too long as Pop's meals and drugs are on a pretty tight schedule. Fitting four meals into our waking hours, and then at least one drug that is best given on an empty stomach and others that need to be at 12 hour intervals doesn't leave a lot of room for manoeuvre! But they enjoy the anticipation, I know, so the excitement that it is nearly mealtime is probably worth putting up with.

your the human and you know how important the schedule is. You can set the time each day to be different so you will get the alerts but you can vary them. And as naybaloog suggests, play them at random times when nothing happens. It’s a lot of work in the beginning to disassociate the alarm but once you do it should be easier to handle. I don’t envy you. I played this game when I first got Babykins and had 3 elder cats with different diets and medications.

You can also just play the alarm where nothing happens.

 

[Michigan Gal]

I have a flip phone. It has an alarm. Only one, but that could be one of the alarms you use.

 

[fjm]

I think perhaps I shall simply change the alarms to go off when food etc is due. Then if the dogs jump up and down I should be getting up anyway, so it is not a problem! It is the 10 minute wait from alarm to action that is winding us all up - eliminate that and everyone should be happy.