When it comes to behavior in cats and dogs, dogs will do what they are told. For instance lets say you tell a dog to come, he will do so. If you tell a cat to come, he will think about it and get back to you. This is because cats are more independent by nature. However, this does not mean that cats cannot be trained. Quite the contrary, actually. However, the methods that are used to train your cat are going to be quite a bit different than the methods you would use for a dog since a cat’s mentality and behavior are wired differently. Cats are very intelligent creatures. Research has shown feline intelligence to include the ability to acquire new behavior that applies previously learned knowledge to new situations, communicating needs and desires within a social group and responding to training cues.
How To Train Your Cat to Do Tricks
Perhaps the most important thing to understand when it comes to training a cat is that negative reinforcement is a poor training method in any species, but especially when it comes to cats. Punishing a cat for doing something bad is more likely to make them afraid than obedient. The most effective method in training a cat is using positive reinforcement and rewarding them with things like treats. If a cat receives a reward for his or her behavior, he is more likely to repeat that behavior in the hopes of getting another treat.
The key to training a cat is to look for certain behaviors that your cat already performs and encourage those actions. Cats unlike dogs will not follow through with every trick you try to teach them, as they get bored or find no use in doing it if it doesn’t benefit them in some way. The key is to find something that your cat already enjoys doing and encourage that behavior. For instance, if your cat loves to play with toys and carry them around in his mouth, he might be a great candidate for learning how to fetch like a dog. If your cat loves to climb, he can be trained to walk along a narrow ledge. While training cats may not always work out the way you would like, it is not impossible. It just takes some time to understand your cat’s behavior and favorite hobbies and use that to your advantage to get the result(s) you desire.
How To Train Your Cat To Be More Obedient
Realistically, cats might be a little bit harder to train when it comes to performing tricks, however if you are like most people asking the question “can cats be trained” chances are, you are most likely inquiring because you would like to modify some of kitty’s behaviors such as scratching your furniture instead of his scratching post, or peeing on the floor instead of in the litter box.
Before you can start training your cat to do or stop doing something, first it is important to understand how a cat learns. Cats are not like us. They do not understand what we are saying when we tell them not to do something. They are creatures of instinct and they learn by experience. If the experience is good, they will repeat that behavior, if the experience is unpleasant they will try to avoid it in the future. When it comes to changing a cat’s behavior you are going to want to make sure that whatever it is you would like them to do is highly rewarding for them. Whatever you don’t want your cat to do needs to be extremely unpleasant.
Lets look at one example of negative reinforcement in cat behavior to understand this better. One common complaint many cat owners have is that their cat likes to wake them up at 5AM because he or she wants attention or to be fed. Rather than ignore kitty, most cat owners will give in and get up to feed or play with the cat. However by doing this, they have actually trained their cat to wake them up. Your cat has learned that this is okay and it has gotten him exactly what he wanted. This is a behavior that would need to be modified, but in order for it to change, you are going to have to learn not to give in to kitty’s high demands. You’re both going to have to start out with a clean slate. Below are tips on how to do that.
Rewards Vs. Reprimands
When training a cat to be more obedient reprimands do not work. If you catch your cat in the act of doing something bad chances are he will only misbehave later when you are not around. Rather than reprimanding or punishing your cat for his negative behavior try focusing on making your relationship with him fun, rewarding and playful. Keep things interesting and try to build trust with kitty. Sometimes this change alone can make all the difference in the world when it comes to your cat’s training problems. Many cats are known to become overly destructive when bored or feeling neglected. Just setting a few minutes aside each day to give your cat the attention he deserves and tiring him out with a bit of play once or twice a day can really change his behavior. Always praise and reward your cat for good behavior. Treats are a great way to reward your cat when he is being on his best behavior.
Making sure that your cat has lots of room to run around and play is also crucial to his behavior. When cats feel claustrophobic or unwanted they act out. Cats need space to roam freely, to claim, to mark as their territory. If your house is small, crowded, and boring your cat is going to show you that he thinks so in the way he acts. You may want to consider investing in some nice cat furniture, a scratching post, and/or some new toys that keep kitty alert and entertained. There are plenty of interactive toys for kitty sold at your local pet store that can keep him busy for hours.
In addition to enriching your cat’s environment and just showing him a bit more affection on a daily basis, one last and important step in training him to behave is to make certain things appealing and others unappealing. Lets say your cat keeps scratching your brand new couch. A proper way to deal with this would be to get him a nice scratching post and encourage him to use it by making it fun and appealing. Try sprinkling a bit of catnip around it, taking kitty’s paw and gently rubbing it against the post in a scratching motion, teaching kitty that it’s okay to scratch here. Now, make your couch unappealing to your cat. Some cats hate having sticky paws, there are certain tapes that you can buy at pet stores that are invisible and stick to the places your cat frequently scratches. Simply place it on your couch and watch kitty get annoyed as he places his paws up to scratch and finds the stickiness unappealing.
There are many other methods you can try. Certain sprays that can be bought that teach kitty to stay off of that particular piece of furniture or area, filling an empty spray bottle up with water, and squirting it at kitty when he does something bad, clickers that are sold at the pet store that can be clicked when kitty does something good. This is used in rewarding kitty. If he does something positive, you click and then reward him with a treat. Eventually kitty will associate good behaviors with the clicking sound he hears and expect a treat, encouraging him to continue repeating the behavior. There are all kinds of additional tricks and tips that one can take to make your cat behave. There are lots of books about cat behavior and how to train your cat. Also speaking to your veterinarian or a cat behaviorist are other options as they are experts who know a lot about felines and can definitely help with advice and additional methods of training and behavior modification. Best of luck.
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