A practical example of higher-order conditioning involves a cat that has already been conditioned to associate the sound of an electric can opener (the conditioned stimulus) with receiving food. If the cabinet storing the food develops a squeak (a new neutral stimulus), the cat hears the squeak followed immediately by the can opener. Eventually, the squeak alone will cause the cat to get excited. Attempting a third order of conditioning, such as ringing a bell before the cabinet squeaks, is unlikely to work because conditioning beyond the second order is difficult to achieve.