People, before you start training you cat you need to know couple things about cats:
- Cats are not fond of training in general
- They don’t care whether they please you or not.
The things that you will need the most while training your cat are: patience, rewards, consistency, positive reinforcement, and first and foremost TIME. If you have these ingredients, your training sessions will be successful.
Both you and your cat will have to contribute something. Yours will be time and patience and your cat will have to learn the lesson. If you want to teach your cat use the litter box or play in the proper way and place, prepare for the task.
Everybody knows that cats are independent by nature. Some people seem to not see the difference between independence and a lack of ability to learn. Remember that your cat needs to be mentally stimulated and have physical exertions to stay healthy. Play with your cat to help him have enough exercise.
A good idea would be to consult your cat doctor or read some books about cat psychology and behavior. There are things that you need to know before you start the training.
If I would have to mention two keywords for cat training they would be: bribery and rewards. Cats don’t do things you want them to do simply because you’ve asked them to do so; they need to get something from it for themselves. It’s like they would be asking: “what’s in it for me”. Some of the rewards you can acquire our are: food, affection, rubs. By using rewards you are working with the cat’s natural instinct to help you achieve proper behavior.
Cats are different than dogs. Their ability to focus on the one activity is smaller than dogs. Your training session shouldn’t be any longer than 15 minutes per day. It’s the best to do the training before mealtime when your cat is hungry.
I will give you couple tips that you can use to be sure your training will be more successful. If you yell at or beat your cat, you will not achieve anything else but getting your cat scared of you. If your cat is afraid he will not learn anything. User rewards instead of punishment.
Use your voice. Your cat has a very well developed sense of hearing. Don’t repeat commands more than two times or else it will not be effective.
Your session should be short and enjoyable for you and your cat. Use your cats name when you are giving a command. When your cat does something well remember about the reward and praise.
The food you are using as a reward during training sessions should be better than what your cat usually eats. Let your cat choose for himself when he does the trick. Don’t force your cat to perform in front of your friends.
Cats remember well so don’t give up. Practice patience with your cat and it will pay off. Cats are wonderful creatures. Just love them and you will see the results.
