Cat Behaviour Problems

Most people when they think about cat behavior problems think there is nothing they can do about it. After all cats are supposed to totally self centred and independent, impossible to train.

Not so, people are discovering that although cats like to do their own thing it is in fact possible with the correct training to solve a lot of common behavioural problems you may have with your cat. You may also be able to teach him some interesting new tricks!

Why should I bother to train my cat?

Like dogs cats require you to be leader and are in fact looking for leadership from you at all times. If you don't provide it guess who will? Yup your cat will, he will take control in a flash and just totally ignore you. Most cat owners just don't realise that cats can be trained, they've been conditioned to expect very little from their cats except companionship.

Training your cat can give you the following benefits.

Your connection with your cat will improve
Training your cat enables you to become the leader
Your cat will be more active and responsive to you
Dominant cats can be made less aggressive
Frightened and timid cats can be more confident
You can teach your cat some new and interesting tricks

So how do I train my cat?

There are many methods of training a cat but the best one is clicker training. In clicker training a pleasant association is set between the sound of the clicker and any desired behaviour. For example if you ask your cat to sit as soon as he sits down you click the clicker and quickly reward him with a tasty treat. After a while your cat will associate the sound of the clicker with the tasty reward. Then all you need to do is click the clicker and your cat will sit anticipating the reward! Sounds simple and it is but it's important you get the timing right else your results will not be very good.

Some tips for cat training

Stop leaving food out so he can eat any time he chooses. Putting your cat on regular feeding times and then removing any uneaten food makes any treats you use for training much more effective.

If your going to train with treats the best time would be just before a meal time when he’s good and hungry.

Keep training simple to start with get your cat get used to succeeding then build on that success with harder tricks.

Remember your cat is not a mind reader so you have to be very clear in what you want your cat to do they can not understand English!

Never lose your temper with your cat if your cat is not doing what you want maybe the trick is to difficult. Back off and go back to simpler tricks.
If you frighten your cat by being angry and having aggressive body language do you think your cat is going to learn anything?

How can I have a well behaved cat?

If you believe training your cat is something you would enjoy and you wish to develop a better relationship with your cat take a look at this complete cat training book. It will show you how to correctly and safely train your cat from a simple sit stay to playing dead.

All the best,

Laura Rose Kemp