Nowadays, different cat training techniques can be used with our feline pets. Many people believe that only dogs can be trained. But believe it or not, cat training is possible. There are many cat training techniques that can help make your cat a purr-fect house pet.  But before knowing and applying these cat training techniques, it important that we understand why cats behave the way they do.

Understanding cat’s behavior is important for our cat training techniques to be effective. Pet owners must be aware and able to read body language from cats. Through this, you will be able to understand why your pet sometimes misbehaves. Factors may include stress, curiosity, and surprise.

Through experience, cats are very good learners. To make them a perfect companion, you must learn to encourage good behavior and, at the same time, discourage bad behavior. In encouraging positive behavior, cats may learn to do activities you want them through the reward system. Using cat treats and food can be used to encourage your pet to behave well. This is called classic conditioning wherein cats learn to do and repeat certain activities when they received pleasant consequences after.  Using food rewards can help you instil positive behavior in your cats. It is one of the most effective cat training techniques widely used today. There will be times that silence can be used. In cases of excessive meowing, ignoring and keeping silent can be used initially. As they stop the excessive meowing, food rewards can be used next to reinforce to them that excessive meowing is bad.

One problem that pet owners encounter is scratching. This is commonly resolved by providing your cat a scratching post where your cat can scratch as much as it wants to. When they use the scratching post, use food rewards and positive reinforcement so that they will understand that it’s the only place where they can do some scratching. In addition, this will discourage them from scratching your furniture and curtains.

Another major source of frustration is kitty litter. Inappropriate elimination may result into a big mess aside from having a malodorous smell.  There are many litter boxes available in the market. You can have two or more litter boxes in your home to prevent them from doing it somewhere else less appropriate. If you have two or more cats, you should have at least one cat litter box for each of them — they are not fond of sharing of sharing their litter box with others.

Aside from using food rewards, another cat training technique today that is gaining popularity worldwide is clicker training. Clicker training is combined with positive reinforcement to become effective. We must also bear in mind that for our cat training techniques to be effective, we must be consistent and patient especially in teaching them to do some tricks. The key is to teach them on trick a time. You’ll be surprise that your pet will be able to obey commands, such as shake hands and wave.