How to Train an Old Stubborn Cat to Do Tricks
Establish clear goals., Motivate your cat., Make treats a delicious reward., Use the cat’s curiosity., Keep training sessions short., End training on a good note., Train your cat to jump onto your leg., Train your cat to play fetch., Get a cat to...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Establish clear goals.
Know exactly what it is you want your cat to do.
Having clear goals can help you devise a more thorough and consistent plan to coax your cat into performing the desired behavior.Come up with many possible tricks.
Cats can be trained to do a variety of things
-- sit, lie down, jump, stand on two feet, fetch, etc.
Be kind and don't expect too much.
Don't set your cat up for failure either.
Make a list of possible, easy tricks your cat can master and approach them one by one. -
Step 2: Motivate your cat.
Cats, like people, don’t generally do things for the benefit of others.
You need the cat to want to perform the trick because he gets something out of it.
You can make or buy cat treats, or you can give your cat bits of cooked chicken (no longer hot) or bits of cooked tuna.
Dry cat chow is not a good treat., Now that you want your cat to do something in particular, do not give him treats unless he does the thing that you want him to do.
Make treats rare and something that your cat looks forward to.
Make your cat work for his treats!, When training a cat, use its natural curiosity to your advantage.
Cats are consistently interested in what we are doing and will take time out of their day to investigate.
You can get and keep the cat’s attention during training sessions using this curiosity., Cats don't concentrate for more than 5-10 minutes at a time.
So four sessions that are 5 minutes long are better than one 20 minute session a day. , Always stop a training session on a positive note.
When the cat has responded the way you want it to, give it a treat, praise it and call it a day.
This final, positive memory of the training session will stick with the cat, making it more receptive to future training., This is the simplest trick to teach a cat.
As you're standing, say "up" and pat your thigh a few times while holding a treat in your hand at thigh-level, just out of your cat's reach so that he has to stand on two feet and lean on your leg to reach it.
When the cat finally does this, say, "Good boy!" or "Good girl!" and give the cat the treat., Using a favorite toy, get the cat’s attention.
Once the cat is enthralled with the toy, throw it where the cat can see it.
Show the cat a treat in your hand, call the cat and say, “Bring it back.” If he comes back without the toy, don’t give it the treat.
If it comes back with the toy, give it the treat, pet it and praise it.
Repeating this process may teach your cat to fetch over time.Remember to use a toy that the cat can easily pick up and carry in its mouth. , Cats that are comfortable with their environment will naturally roll on their backs and expose their bellies.
Use this behavior to your advantage.
When a cat rolls on its back, give it a treat and praise it.
If you do this consistently enough, the cat will roll on its back, on its own, when it wants a treat., This trick is very simple to teach a cat, so long as you have something it wants.
Cats, like dogs, should be able to sit before receiving a treat.
To get your cat to do this, hold a treat in your hand, out of the cat’s reach.
Give your cat the command to “sit” and show it the treat.
Move the treat in an arc over the cat's head.
As the cat looks up to follow the treat, her rear will hit the ground in a sitting position.
Repeat this process until the animal sits down, then give it the treat.
If you repeat this process every time you give your cat a treat, it should learn to sit upon receiving the command the first time., Again, if you have something the cat wants, this should be easy.
Hold a treat out where the cat can see it, but can’t reach it, and give it the command to “speak”.
The cat, over time, will become agitated and will probably express its agitation by meowing or making a sound.
As soon as your cat does make a sound, give it the treat and praise it.
Over time, your cat will associate the verbal command with its meowing and realize that this is what you want it to do., Remember, cats are not dogs.
Dogs do tricks to please owners because they are social pack animals.
The mind of a cat works differently than that of a dog.
In the wild, cats are asocial
-- they do not live in packs and prefer to be on their own.
This necessarily makes them more difficult to train., Cats can be trained, but you need to understand them first.
A cat will do tricks when it is trained properly, but a cat will only do tricks for its own benefit, not your benefit.
A cat wants to please itself.
Motivate it accordingly., When dealing with cats, using physical force or a threatening tone of voice will never be effective in achieving a desired result.
Cats respond to owners who reward positive behaviors, not owners who punish bad behaviors.
If you want your cat to work with you, you have to stay positive., Cats do a number of impressive things on their own.
They climb, jump, crawl, paw at things, and run very quickly and with great agility naturally.
Teaching your cat tricks that play off of these natural behaviors will help the animal pick up on training more readily., There are some things a cat just can’t or won’t do.
Know your cat’s limits and stay within them.
You can teach a cat to fetch, but it won’t be bringing in the newspaper anytime soon.
Also, if your cat seems unwilling or uninterested in learning a trick after you have dedicated some time to it, give up.
The cat is your pet, not your own personal circus clown.
Appreciate the animal for the love and companionship it gives you, not just the tricks it will do for you.You may also want to try clicker training.
First get the cat to associate a click with a reward, then 'mark' the desired behavior with a click so the cat knows what she's being rewarded for. -
Step 3: Make treats a delicious reward.
-
Step 4: Use the cat’s curiosity.
-
Step 5: Keep training sessions short.
-
Step 6: End training on a good note.
-
Step 7: Train your cat to jump onto your leg.
-
Step 8: Train your cat to play fetch.
-
Step 9: Get a cat to roll on its back.
-
Step 10: Get a cat to sit.
-
Step 11: Get a cat to “speak."
-
Step 12: Accept your cat.
-
Step 13: Understand your cat.
-
Step 14: Stay positive.
-
Step 15: Use natural cat behaviors.
-
Step 16: Know the cat’s limits.
Detailed Guide
Know exactly what it is you want your cat to do.
Having clear goals can help you devise a more thorough and consistent plan to coax your cat into performing the desired behavior.Come up with many possible tricks.
Cats can be trained to do a variety of things
-- sit, lie down, jump, stand on two feet, fetch, etc.
Be kind and don't expect too much.
Don't set your cat up for failure either.
Make a list of possible, easy tricks your cat can master and approach them one by one.
Cats, like people, don’t generally do things for the benefit of others.
You need the cat to want to perform the trick because he gets something out of it.
You can make or buy cat treats, or you can give your cat bits of cooked chicken (no longer hot) or bits of cooked tuna.
Dry cat chow is not a good treat., Now that you want your cat to do something in particular, do not give him treats unless he does the thing that you want him to do.
Make treats rare and something that your cat looks forward to.
Make your cat work for his treats!, When training a cat, use its natural curiosity to your advantage.
Cats are consistently interested in what we are doing and will take time out of their day to investigate.
You can get and keep the cat’s attention during training sessions using this curiosity., Cats don't concentrate for more than 5-10 minutes at a time.
So four sessions that are 5 minutes long are better than one 20 minute session a day. , Always stop a training session on a positive note.
When the cat has responded the way you want it to, give it a treat, praise it and call it a day.
This final, positive memory of the training session will stick with the cat, making it more receptive to future training., This is the simplest trick to teach a cat.
As you're standing, say "up" and pat your thigh a few times while holding a treat in your hand at thigh-level, just out of your cat's reach so that he has to stand on two feet and lean on your leg to reach it.
When the cat finally does this, say, "Good boy!" or "Good girl!" and give the cat the treat., Using a favorite toy, get the cat’s attention.
Once the cat is enthralled with the toy, throw it where the cat can see it.
Show the cat a treat in your hand, call the cat and say, “Bring it back.” If he comes back without the toy, don’t give it the treat.
If it comes back with the toy, give it the treat, pet it and praise it.
Repeating this process may teach your cat to fetch over time.Remember to use a toy that the cat can easily pick up and carry in its mouth. , Cats that are comfortable with their environment will naturally roll on their backs and expose their bellies.
Use this behavior to your advantage.
When a cat rolls on its back, give it a treat and praise it.
If you do this consistently enough, the cat will roll on its back, on its own, when it wants a treat., This trick is very simple to teach a cat, so long as you have something it wants.
Cats, like dogs, should be able to sit before receiving a treat.
To get your cat to do this, hold a treat in your hand, out of the cat’s reach.
Give your cat the command to “sit” and show it the treat.
Move the treat in an arc over the cat's head.
As the cat looks up to follow the treat, her rear will hit the ground in a sitting position.
Repeat this process until the animal sits down, then give it the treat.
If you repeat this process every time you give your cat a treat, it should learn to sit upon receiving the command the first time., Again, if you have something the cat wants, this should be easy.
Hold a treat out where the cat can see it, but can’t reach it, and give it the command to “speak”.
The cat, over time, will become agitated and will probably express its agitation by meowing or making a sound.
As soon as your cat does make a sound, give it the treat and praise it.
Over time, your cat will associate the verbal command with its meowing and realize that this is what you want it to do., Remember, cats are not dogs.
Dogs do tricks to please owners because they are social pack animals.
The mind of a cat works differently than that of a dog.
In the wild, cats are asocial
-- they do not live in packs and prefer to be on their own.
This necessarily makes them more difficult to train., Cats can be trained, but you need to understand them first.
A cat will do tricks when it is trained properly, but a cat will only do tricks for its own benefit, not your benefit.
A cat wants to please itself.
Motivate it accordingly., When dealing with cats, using physical force or a threatening tone of voice will never be effective in achieving a desired result.
Cats respond to owners who reward positive behaviors, not owners who punish bad behaviors.
If you want your cat to work with you, you have to stay positive., Cats do a number of impressive things on their own.
They climb, jump, crawl, paw at things, and run very quickly and with great agility naturally.
Teaching your cat tricks that play off of these natural behaviors will help the animal pick up on training more readily., There are some things a cat just can’t or won’t do.
Know your cat’s limits and stay within them.
You can teach a cat to fetch, but it won’t be bringing in the newspaper anytime soon.
Also, if your cat seems unwilling or uninterested in learning a trick after you have dedicated some time to it, give up.
The cat is your pet, not your own personal circus clown.
Appreciate the animal for the love and companionship it gives you, not just the tricks it will do for you.You may also want to try clicker training.
First get the cat to associate a click with a reward, then 'mark' the desired behavior with a click so the cat knows what she's being rewarded for.
About the Author
Margaret Richardson
Enthusiastic about teaching crafts techniques through clear, step-by-step guides.
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