Unlike dogs, training a cat is quite some work. This is because cats are more independent and don’t really seek human approval or company to keep themselves busy. However, this doesn’t mean that kittens can’t or shouldn’t be trained. In fact, training a kitten is such an important task that will teach them different ways to be active, how to interact with humans, how to sit, how to respond and how to go to the bathroom, among other things. Thus, when it comes to kitten training, here are the top five tips that you should adopt so as to make the whole training process easier and effective.
Start Early
To ensure that the kitten grows into becoming a well behaved, fun loving and disciplined cat, you have start training her as soon as possible. Early training is also considered important for its at this age that kittens take in as much lessons as they can.
Motivate them
Feeding the kitten small treats such as snacks, praising her or snuggling her after successfully learning a new trick or adhering to her lessons will make her want to make you prouder. Such treats will moreover prompt her to work harder hence take her lesser time to learn new things. These rewards should however be offered moderately — in small amounts.
Never Punish the Kitten:
No matter how hard it is to train your kitten or how much time you have to spend doing it, never resolve into the use of punishments. Punishing the kitten, such as hitting them, is bound to frighten her to the point that she may decide to hide from you and the rest of your family or simply, run away. Also, when a cat it punished, she’s more likely to become stressed and well, stressed cats are more susceptible to diseases.
Personalize the Lessons:
It really doesn’t matter how many kittens you have trained before. Since no kitten is the same as the other, when training them, personalize the lessons so as to complement their needs. Though it might be hard to know the exact wants and needs of a kitten, by being observant, you can easily learn all about them.
Be Patient:
Other than cats being quite independent, they also get bored easily. This is likely to inconvenience the training more so if you have set a timetable. You may notice that your kitten may decide that she wants to eat or sleep after only letting you train her for five minutes. Whenever this happens, it’s best that you let the kitten have its way – for a while. The best way of dealing with this problem is to spread the lessons throughout the day. Aside from this, you’ll be expected to keep on going back to these lessons/tricks up until they have fully mastered them. Thus, to get the best out of your kitten, you’ll be expected to wear your patience hat.
Plus, it goes without saying that whenever possible, you should try kitten training when there are other people or pets around. That way, she can become more social and comfortable around other people and animals.
Do you have any tips on kitten training? For more on cats, click the links below!
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