Can cats be trained? I asked some Friends on Facebook and here’s what they said:
| Carol: “I’ve trained my cat not to kill me in my sleep by promising not to train him to do anything but exactly what he wants. He doesn’t claw my furniture and he doesn’t use the house for a litter box. He’s a great mouser and he’s ungrateful for all that I give him. I’m calling it a win.” | ||
| Jewels: “I agree with Carol! The only thing I’ve ever been able to train my cat to do is mess with the window blinds behind the couch when he wants outside. Oh, wait . . . I just realized he’s got me trained to let him out. “I did have a cat once who used to go camping with me. He loved exploring the woods and the only time I’d see him over the weekend was when he’d go to his tent to use the litter box. I kid you not . . . he insisted on personal privacy.” | ||
| Donna: “I had a cat for 20 years (I am badly allergic to cats, by the way). I trained her to . . . ah . . . um . . . let me think . . . oh, that’s it! I trained her not to get on my bed at night. I invited the dogs on the bed instead and she refused to ‘share’ with them. Yes . . . that’s it!” | ||
| Marian: “Train a cat? Surely you jest.” | ||
But not everyone agreed. Friends who train dogs said—yes, cats can be trained!
| Janet: “I’ll brag! I train cats all the time—both my own and my clients’. Just got back from a home consult. Marker/reward training, shrimp or chicken or what the cat likes as reward. Have taught them touch, sit, down, and go to mat as well as stay off the counters.” Val: “Do you use a clicker?” Janet: “Not usually. I make a tongue click.” |
| Monique: “Frankie is trained to walk in a harness. When you pick up his harness, he comes running! He also knows how to come when called, go in his kennel, sit for front nails and lie down for back nails, and a few cute tricks like touch a target stick, down on a mat, high-five (seven in his case—polydactyl), and roll over. “He likes canned cat food, chicken, turkey, salmon, and cheese like Parmesan shavings. He also will work for access to a toy. I let him chase toenail clippings as part of his reinforcement for nail trim. He understands both the clicker and a verbal marker. “To train the harness. we classically conditioned it—predicting toy time or a meal—using a desensitization protocol (e.g., breaking down the process of actually wearing the harness into many rungs on an exposure ladder before putting it all the way on) over about one week. Once he was happy to put in it on, we went outside. He enjoys his walks so much he will run and sit at the door when you pull it out. He gets walked probably five times a week. “Frankie acts very doglike, but I think that is learned because we treat him a bit like one. When I say that, I mean he is meal-fed, we play with him and exercise him, train, etc.” | ||
| Jess: “I clicker-train Ally. The first thing I taught her was targeting, and we did some platform work as well. I’ve been lazy working with her, but my goal is to get a trick title with her. “A cat I had in high school would jump through a small hoop between tables on cue. I taught him with luring—first just going through the hoop, then jumping through, eventually building to the jumping from one table to the next through the hoop. “Reward-wise, my cat in high school would work for kibble. I made a click stick for Ally with a clicker taped to a tongue depressor. I use the tongue depressor to deliver bits of canned food or EZ cheese.” | ||
| Kirsten: “I clicker-train my cats and foster cats. I use chicken baby food as a reinforcer. They get this only for training or taking pills. I have found clicker-training is also helpful in socializing feral kittens. “Target-training is a great place to start with any animal. For training them to wear a harness, teach them to ‘target’ the harness. Shape this behavior until you get them to put their head through and then every step of fitting them to wear one. Wearing a harness feels very unnatural to cats, so reinforce them for just wearing it and keep it short at first with little distraction. “Harness-training is a process and depends on the socialization of the particular cat in question. Some are more fearful of novel objects and experiences. Be sensitive to their stress signals and keep it positive. If they are too stressed, then go back a step. “In this regard it is similar to training dogs, but cats are often more sensitive than dogs and not as eager to train. Cats were not bred for work or compliance, so more patience is needed. If they are not used to being outdoors, trying to put a harness on them and bring them outside can be a very scary and negative experience for them—so best to start slow and positive.” | ||
| Lynn: “My Chantilly cat could do many of the same tricks my Bailey Sheltie could do. She joined in many training sessions because she was very motivated . . . and figured that if he was getting treats. then she wanted them too. “I used luring and capturing techniques with her, and taught her to come to a whistle, sit, sit pretty, spin to left and right, offer paws for nail trims, run through a tunnel, sit on a platform, and jump through a hoop. She loved it all!” | ||
Yes, it seems clear: if you can train a dog, you can train a cat!
It may not be as simple or as easy, but it can be done.
All successful cat trainers have one thing in common: they understand that cats are not necessarily hardwired to be as compliant as dogs are. Force or punishment will not work! Figure out what your cat finds rewarding—try some of the food rewards or physical rewards mentioned in the comments—and use that.
You must be patient—extremely patient. Your cat may walk away. Don’t take it personally.
What would you like to train your cat to do—or not do?
