TRAINING FOR CATS

The cat, as a good feline, is a curious, intelligent and often unpredictable animal. From a very young age, his self-training is based on incorporating into his daily life those actions that his instinct suggests are going to be beneficial. Will it then be possible to train a cat? How will my cat learn? Will only his mother and other cats be his school? Although it is more complicated than with dogs, cats can learn concepts and associate the commands we give them. If we want to enjoy its attraction and magnetism, training will be the starting point to create a strong and healthy bond with us.

We must not forget that we can never bend the will of our cat in such a way that it does something that goes against its instinct or that is unnatural for it. To train our new friend, we will need to know how he thinks and what his behavior patterns are: the cat is a proud animal that is more concerned with pleasing itself than with pleasing you.

In training, it is highly recommended to follow four basic principles that will help us achieve an adequate relationship: (1) respect their sensitivity (do not stare into their eyes, do not generate sudden noises, or sudden movements), (2) be constant and coherent (the same instructions repeated with a firm tone), (3) apply positive reinforcement by introducing rewards (start with rewards to progressively change to praise and caresses), (4) start training as soon as possible from when it is a kitten.

We can also help ourselves with some simple techniques to facilitate the learning process:

• Use a food or treat to facilitate positive reinforcement and reward.
• Help yourself with a clicker to associate the sound with a positive behavior and that your cat assimilates it to a reward.
• Use his name before a command so that he feels referenced, and also speak it when you caress or hug him to reinforce his identity.
• Eliminate any external distractions (music, television, etc.) when you are training it.
• Always use the same way of training, keeping the same phrases, words, sounds. It will be much easier for him to identify and retain learning.
• Do not pester him with sessions of more than 10-15 minutes in his teaching and be patient, you will prevent him from getting tired or even angry.

With all this we can empathically mold an appropriate behavior in our cat, without thereby trying to achieve the success that is usually achieved with a dog. We will easily discover that our cat will have assimilated some of the following valuable learnings:

• Come when you call him by name.
• Use the sand to relieve themselves.
• Do not eat the plants.
• Do not rummage in the kitchen or in dangerous areas of it.
• Use a scraper instead of scratching furniture.
• Play with their toys.
• Sleep in your bed, a fixed, concrete and comfortable space.
• Letting yourself be caught without resistance or biting you.

In short, we have the opportunity to guide our cat towards appropriate behavior so that his coexistence with us is as pleasant as possible and he becomes an educated and happy pet that can live in our home. In addition to all this, it is important not to forget its protection against the most common parasites such as worms, fleas and ticks. Parasites that can affect our pet internally and externally, so they need complete protection for them, such as the Double Monthly Protection that protects them inside and out.