These could be songs they seem to like to hear or songs you play for/sing to them.
When my all-black kitten EC was a week-old foundling, I used to sing “Me & My Shadow” to her while I bottle-fed her. Now she’s a 10-year old, sleek, beautiful grownup, but I still sometimes sing it to her when she’s curled up on my lap. I’m not sure how she feels about it, but she doesn’t run away or anything.
My other cat Tikva didn’t have a song, but this morning she curled up on my desk with her head draped over my wrist [she’s so danged cute I can hardly stand it!] so I decided she needed a song, too. I settled on “Day-O!” and proceeded to do my best Harry Belafonte (of blessed memory) imitation. She really seemed to like it. Especially the part about tallying her bananas.
Do you have favorite/theme song for any of your animals? (Doesn’t have to be house pets-- horses, etc., included).
Pluto the field spaniel has always had a fraught relationship with a soft giraffe toy he’s had since puppy days.
It’s motion-sensitive and softly plays a selection of Baroque and Classical tunes. His response to hearing the music is to whine and paw the toy (which just keeps the music flowing), then eventually howl in what seems like distress. His least favorite selection is from Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.
I don’t think we’ve ever had a dog, or cat for that matter, who was musically inclined.
Ah, I hate to go against the spirit of the thread on the first reply…but reading the title immediately made me think of Tupac’s Hit Em Up. My boy dog has leash aggression and he goes nutso angry when we see another dog while walking around the block. I always imagine he has this macho-angry-dis-track-devolving-into-yelling song in his head while he’s walking around pretending to be king.
I just played the song and he got out of bed and came in my office so I guess it moves him.
i have songs that i sing to both cats. mostly i just use the tune and come up with cat related lyrics. there are certain notes that they like more than others. they like the baritone range the best.
Our African Grey Parrot Rocco LOVES Harry Belafonte singing Banana Boat. He dances and sways to the song.
His second most favorite is The Fishin’ Hole (theme from Andy Griffith Show). He can whistle parts of it, I can whistle the entire song. When we are driving somewhere I whistle it and he listens attentively, starring at me.
My last bunny rabbit seemed to like, “On The Beautiful Blue Danube.” At the same points in the tune, his ears would pop up and he’d appear to be waiting for something. Maybe treats.
@kayaker, please, PLEASE tell me you guys can do the harmony whistling on the bridge and let me know when you’re on tour next time and coming thru town.
The dogs like my made up song, Peanut Butter Toast. I sing it to them while I’m making peanut butter toast for my breakfast. They each get a third of a slice. I’m not sure what the tune is. When I think about it, it’s something I recognize but have no clue what song it is.
Peanut butter toast
Peanut butter toast
Who wants to have some peanut butter toast?
Peanut butter toast
Peanut butter toast
We’re all having peanut butter toast.
Heh. I wish. Rocco has a huge vocabulary but he only talks/whistles/beeps/etc if nobody is around.
Teddy the corgi relaxes with cello music. No matter how hyper he is, if I play a cello song he is dozing off by the end.
If you think this might screw up your head for all time, please don’t listen to it. I couldn’t live with myself knowing I messed up the toast song:
Knees up, Mother Brown!
Chester the Guinea Pig is rather fond of Gong music, like they do for meditation.
Po the Guinea Pig is a fan of Cindy Lauper’s True Colors.
It’s the vibrations. They probably think you’re purring at them.
My bold.
Okay, I gotta ask. Which one of you is driving the car?
Upon reflection… is it even a car? Maybe another vehicle, like a bicycle built for two?
I had a little rat named Dom whose proper name was Rats Domino. I used to sing this song to him and when we buried him out in the flower bed, this was his funeral recessional. I bet he’s the only right in history that had one.
None of my cats has ever done anything but tolerate being sung to. This may, of course, be more a commentary on my singing than on the music selection.
On the other hand, me humming the bass lines in music makes every cat I know scared as hell. They think I’m growling at them, ready to attack.
Heh, he “owns” the passenger seat. His plexiglass cube travel cage is set up to go there. My rear seat (two door Wrangler) is permanently removed and the dogs get the back. This leaves just my driver seat for me.
I once had a very standoffish cat named Nancy Drew who ignored everyone at all times. EXCEPT if I sang “Welcome Christmas,” from The Grinch, substituting “Nancy Drew-ooh” for “Welcome Christmas.” I usually had to repeat it several times, but by the third or fourth round, she’d come running up to me, purring and loving.
We must consider the possibility that she did this because it was the only way to make me STOP SINGING.
On a related but not quite identical note, a few years after Nancy Drew crossed the rainbow bridge I had a cat who loved David Letterman. She’d sit on top of the TV (this was before they became paper thin) and affectionatey bat at his face whenever he was on screen in his late-night show.
yep, if i go to my lowest note, they give me a very worried look.
they like around an f on the bass scale.
they run when avi kaplan hits low notes.
