I ask this, because I'm going to be getting a kitten sometime soon, and if I plan to use it in an act then training should begin ASAP. Both for kitty and me.

Do y'all know of any good books on magic with animals? Do you have any experience with cats? Any random advice would also be appreciated.

I've never heard of anyone using cats in their act but I suppose it's possible. Cats are very finicky animals. I guess it depends on what you want to do with them.

Dave

Dave, if you patter during your performance then a good comedy line would be how you are on your way to the big time but for now you can't afford the tigers so you're using the next best thing.. their cousin, the cat!

If you wanna perform illusions, turn the kitten into a little girl emulating the tiger to lady! Hey, that's not such a bad idea.. maybe I'll do that! Hmm..


My bad... The post was directed to MOTO42 as it was his question..

Interesting ideas though, regardless of who they were directed too. I did see an act a few years ago with a guy who had trained cats to do the same type of act that used to be performed with dogs years ago. Walking across a bridge, jumping hurdles, rolling barrels and stuff like that. Haven't seen anyone else do anything with cats since. My guess, being a cat owner as well, that it would be a full time job training cats. It's hard to keep their attention long enough but where there's a will, there's a way.

Dave

Thanks for the ideas guys, but the cat thing has apparently fallen through. I think my dad has designs on purchasing a lizard of some kind.
Ah well, I'll just move on to plan B. Sweetpea, the mouse my little brother doesn't pay any attention too. I've pretty much taken over her care as it is, so working with her for an act shouldn't be that big a leap.

Now mice are a different animal altogether. No pun intended. There are chick and dove pans, mirror boxes, drawer boxes and a multitude of other apparatus that could be used for them. You could even work out some interesting ideas without boxes. You may be onto something with this idea.

Dave

Smaller animals have a lot of possibilities.
So I've started working with Sweetpea to tame her down again. Any ideas on books that I can pick up for information?
What place do you recomend for purchasing props (pans and the like) for use with her?
I found this with the forum search.

P.S.
I spoke to soon on the cat though, it seems that a young stray has adopted us.

I use a cat in my show. Kids love cats. But first mention it to your patron because some people are allergic to cats. I got my cat's declawed because kids love to hold cats. Always make the cat appear last because if he stays out too long, he will jump off the stand and run away to hide. They also get scared easily.

If you're going to use cats, pay close attention to the breed you get as each one has their own personality. Siamese can be more high strung, Manx's are more aggresive. etc... we have 5 and they each definitely have their own personality.

I also have to disagree with having your cat declawed. It's the only protection they have and should your cat get scared and run off she/he will have no way of defending themselves. Also it's not that difficult to train a cat not to use it's claws and if you are going to spend that much time training them for the act, spend a little more time and train them not to use them.

Mya
:cuteangel:

I did a Dove to Rabbit with my kitten for a while. The problem I ran into is that the cat could smell the birds and started to try and reach over the wall. Also, this produced a lot of movement. I think there are better ways to use a cat on its own. However, you may just have better luck using a different animal.

Hi Moto,

I have used kittens in my shows three times but only when they were very tiny. Cats are definately very difficult to train and I think it would have to depend on a very special cat. More to do with personality than with breed, although Abyssinians are the athletes of the cat world but it would depend on what you were doing in your act. My Abyssinian lived until the age of 19 and the last 10 years of his life with only 3 legs and still continued to jump and balance himself on a windown sill using 2 legs.:O)

I know I'm going to embaress myself posting this story but should share this experience. Last year, I was given 2 motherless kittens by the Humane Society to foster. They were only 2 hours old when I recieved them which meant I had to feed them every 2 hours their first 3 weeks of life. These kittens knew me very well and I've thought I'll probably never have this chance again and may train one to use in a show. I placed a mirror box in the room which the kittens slept and the little female would sometimes curl up in the box. Eventually,after 8 wks I would practise with her in the mirror box. She was extremely calm. We practised for weeks.

The time came for a rather large competition and I was well prepared (so I thought) I had my sister bring down the kitten from her home so as it wouldn't be sitting in a cage for a long period. My sister lived a mere 6 blocks from the hotel where the competition was held. I also had arranged for another magi to place the kitten in the mirror box when I was on stage after 6 mins. Again, thinking this was the least stressful for the cat and with her comfort in mind. We had practised this hundreds of times and she always went willingly in the mirror box.

A few mins into my act I turn around and was aghast as the table which the mirror box was placed on was shaking like mad. The kitten was furious and let everyone know it!


I found out later it had taken three magi's to place the kitten in the mirror box and they had scars to prove it. (They continue to let me know about this) So...in a nutshell..although I was prepared ...I don't think I will attempt using a cat in my act again.

Soon after that experience I bought myself a dog.

Some one mentioned that they never heard of using cats in an act, but if memory serves me correctly, Copperfield produced one out of a box during his Alcatraz special, years back.

And what about those two rather famous, albeit now defunct guys in Vegas. They used pussy cats to the ultimate! LOL