Thanks to these tips, your cat training will be successful
Does your cat need to stop wallpapering your apartment or grooming the flowers? With a little training, it's no problem. We’ll show you how to successfully teach your cat manners and cool tricks.
Building cat training correctly
Before you can start with cool tricks, there are a few important basics:
The principle of classical conditioning
Have you ever noticed that your cat knows exactly what it sounds like when you open her food can or pour dry food into her bowl? Surely she comes running and purring like crazy. No wonder! She has learned that these specific sounds are a sign for food. She has been conditioned to respond to them. You can apply the same principle for cat training.
Marker word or clicker
Of course, you can't open a can of cat food every time just because your cat is supposed to give you her paw. That's why it can be helpful to establish another marker, such as a word or sound, that confirms your cat. You can read how to properly establish a marker in our → article on clicker training.
Find the right motivation
It's not surprising that your cat doesn't lift a paw when you politely ask her to. Unlike dogs, they often have no "will to please," meaning they don't have a natural desire to please humans. They tend to do their own thing but can be motivated with the right reward.
Popular rewards for cats include:
- Play
- Petting
- Food
Take a look at our → snacks. You might find something delicious for your furry friend. For example, our → cream snacks with chicken, tuna, or krill are very popular.
The tastiest reward for your kitty
Take a break after 10 to 15 treats
Did you know that most cats have an attention span of about 20 seconds? Therefore, keep the cat training short and snappy. Depending on their willingness to learn and motivation, you should take a short break after about 10 to 15 pieces of food. After a while, you'll know your kitty better and understand how long she likes to train.
Tips for building tricks
Once the basics are established, you can start teaching tricks. We have described four popular commands or tricks for you in more detail:
How to teach your cat to come when you call her
Do you want your cat to come when you call her? This can be especially beneficial when she is still outside in the garden in the evening and you want to bring her inside before bedtime.
Here's how it works:
1. Grab a piece of food and give it to your cat. Repeat this 2-3 times.
2. On the fourth repetition, say your cat's name and the command, e.g., "Come." Immediately give her the piece of food. Repeat this a few times.
3. Move your hand a few centimeters away, say your cat's name and the command. As soon as she moves towards you, activate the clicker, say your marker word, or simply praise her with "Well done." Then give her a piece of food right away.
4. If that goes well, repeat this step and gradually increase the distance.
5. Once your cat reliably comes on command, you can slowly start giving her food pieces less frequently. Instead, you can reward her with a pet or a few kind words.
Teaching your cat "Sit"
A good trick for beginners is the command "Sit." Here's how to teach your cat to sit in front of you:
1. Place your cat on an elevated surface or sit cross-legged in front of her so that she is about at chest height with you.
2. Hold a piece of food between your thumb and index finger in front of her face. Your cat can touch it but shouldn't snatch it from your fingers.
3. Slowly raise your hand with the food upwards and back past your cat's nose and forehead. She will follow the food with her nose in the air. Her balance will shift backward until she sits down on her own.
4. Click or say your marker word as soon as your cat sits down. Then give her the piece of food right away.
5. Repeat this a few times. On the third or fourth repetition, you can say the command "Sit" just before she sits down. When she sits, click and reward her immediately.
6. Once your cat has well internalized the command, you can try it in different locations.
Little tip: For this exercise, small pieces of food like our → Softies are particularly suitable.
Teaching the cat to "Give a paw"
After "Sit," "Give a paw" is another popular trick for cat training. Little spoiler: If you want to teach her the trick "High Five," this command is a prerequisite.
1. Sit cross-legged in front of your cat. If she can already do "Sit," you can have her sit in front of you.
2. Place one hand flat on the ground between you and your cat. Reward any interest in the hand with a click or your marker word and a piece of food. The goal is for your cat to reliably sniff your hand during several training rounds.
3. In the next step, only reward a "pawing" from your cat. She will quickly realize that she no longer gets a reward for sniffing and will try new things, such as touching your hand with her paw. Click and reward the touch right away and repeat this a few rounds.
4. Once your cat understands this well, delay the reward a bit by giving her the piece of food only after 2 to 3 seconds of touching. Then you can also start lifting your hand a little.
5. If that goes well, you can start with a command like "Paw."
How to teach a cat to High Five?
If your kitty can do "Sit" and "Give a paw" well, it's time for a casual "High Five":
1. Lift your hand gradually more and more like in the paw training and slowly turn it into the High-Five position.
2. Work your way forward step by step. Don't forget to click and reward.
3. If your furry friend is confused and doesn't know what to do, take a step back or improve the command "Give a paw."
4. If the paw slap is going well, you can start incorporating a command like "High Five."
How do I get my cat to stop doing something?
Cool tricks aside - your furry friend should also stop grooming the plants or dancing on the dining table? With the right cat training, you can certainly also teach your four-legged friend to refrain from certain behaviors. These tips will help you:
Your cat understands "No" or "Leave it"
In dog training, it's quite normal to teach commands like "No" or "Out." Good news: Your cat can learn this too. You can use any word as a so-called refrain command, such as "No" or "Leave it." It's important to always emphasize the chosen word similarly. Timing and offering alternatives are also very important.
Here's how to establish a refrain command:
1. You see your cat about to start pulling at the plant.
2. Even before she does it, clearly say: "No" (or a word of your choice).
3. Now take your cat and place her, for example, at her scratching post. Here she is allowed to scratch.
4. If she starts scratching there, praise her immediately.
Corrections in cat training
All well and good. But what if your cat's "No" slips her mind? You should never use force. Instead, you can train with loud noises. For example, clap your hands or shake a small jar with nails in it. Your cat will associate the wrong behavior with that noise and refrain from it. But don't forget to show her what she should do instead!
Blowing on the cat? Better not.
Did you know that blowing on your furry friend imitates hissing in cat language? It's usually better if your cat doesn't see directly that the correction comes from you. However, if you blow in her face, that's pretty obvious. If you clap your hands instead, your cat won't necessarily know that the loud noise came from you.
