Teaching your cats to be polite...

[seaturtleswims]

I have two dogs and two cats. If one dog tries to hog the treats/food, I can tell him to "sit" and "wait" so the less forward dog can get his share.

My female cat is the youngest of the bunch, and she is like a tiny land shark who steals food not only from the other cat, but will lay by the dogs' food bowls with her paw in their bowl and swat at them when they try to eat.

I understand how I would manage a dog being rude with food, but since Sally doesn't know "wait" as a command, what should I do to teach her some manners? 

She doesn't growl or hiss around food, she just steals it and swats at the others when they get near it I wouldn't call it aggression so much as rudeness haha

Thoughts?

 

[di and bob]

I have a stray female that does the same thing, she swats at everyone else and growls. I don't think this is something that can be really changed or altered, it is a part of their personality. The only thing to do is to give her a separate plate, she eats and leaves, everyone is happy and not scratched!

In fact, I keep little 6 inch styrofoam plates just for this purpose, no mess! I also do this to keep my big feral toms apart, as long as there is 5 foot between them they are fine. 

 

[paiger8]

I'd say just feed her separately. I learned a long time ago, you can't train a cat... they train you! 

 

[kittens mom]

Mine go sit at their eating spots while I warm the cans and prepare the food. We are lucky to have hand raised them both in the house and yet the younger cat still tried to dominate. We simply fed Kitten in a different room and as time went on the younger cat settled down. Now when the younger cat tries to invade a food bowl a simple eh! or hiss reinforces and she goes back to her eating spot.

Cats can be trained. They are extremely intelligent so don't count on stupid dog tricks. Behavior wise despite the myth they are quite eager to please their humans.

All sound animal training is based on capturing the natural behavior and teaching the pet to respond to a cue. People will spend thousands and hours every week to train their dogs but resort to spray bottles ( yes I have one) and throwing things as the only way to train their felines.

Strays taken in will always be harder. Most have had to fight for every scrap of food to live.

 

[seaturtleswims]

@kittensmom  I totally understand cats are intelligent creatures, but I also understand that their learning curve is wired differently from dogs. All mammals are similar in that no matter if we are dogs or elephants or people, praise and reward are motivators for good behavior. But the way dogs and cats learn are not the same, which is why I was wondering about everyone's thoughts on the food shark. It doesn't make dogs or cats stupid, it just makes them AM or FM haha. You are 100% correct, there is bountiful information on force free dog training, which is why I've read up on and feel confident when working with my dogs. But unfortunately there isn't a whole lot of info on force free cat training besides clicker training for tricks. We NEED more behaviorists writing on force free behavior modification for cats haha so that's why I post on here to see what other forward thinking cat people think

I'll try feeding Sally in a different room and see if that helps. Growing up we had a bully horse in with the other horses, so we set of two haying spots at opposite ends of the field so horses could move and eat in peace without all being stuck in one spot with the food hog haha so moving the place where she eats makes total sense!

Thanks guys!

 

[di and bob]

I found out when 'training' a cat, that praise and kindness goes a LOT further. Punishment for a cat just makes them afraid of us and they will avoid us to avoid punishment. Dogs are pack animals, not independent like cats, so they accept punishment to stay accepted, even accepting death if the alpha wills it. My Casper escapes the house once in a while, I used to chase him yelling and telling him what I'm going to do when I catch him. Then I found that cooing to him, telling him what a pretty boy he is, and to let me pet him works every time! He stops and comes back!

 

[kittens mom]

 
@kittensmom  I totally understand cats are intelligent creatures, but I also understand that their learning curve is wired differently from dogs. All mammals are similar in that no matter if we are dogs or elephants or people, praise and reward are motivators for good behavior. But the way dogs and cats learn are not the same, which is why I was wondering about everyone's thoughts on the food shark. It doesn't make dogs or cats stupid, it just makes them AM or FM haha. You are 100% correct, there is bountiful information on force free dog training, which is why I've read up on and feel confident when working with my dogs. But unfortunately there isn't a whole lot of info on force free cat training besides clicker training for tricks. We NEED more behaviorists writing on force free behavior modification for cats haha so that's why I post on here to see what other forward thinking cat people think

I'll try feeding Sally in a different room and see if that helps. Growing up we had a bully horse in with the other horses, so we set of two haying spots at opposite ends of the field so horses could move and eat in peace without all being stuck in one spot with the food hog haha so moving the place where she eats makes total sense!

Thanks guys!

I used clicker training on all of my horses. It opens the brain to learning. In essence all training is a type of trick. I've been using it with Kitten to help her learn to see with the vision she has left. She'd learn on her own but I enjoy the interaction.

One of the first things we have to debunk is that cats can't be trained.

Failure to spay and neuter fill shelters up. So do pets with behavior issues.

My cats come by name. And both know how to sit. When I produce treats they go to their individual perches. Both behave reasonably in a harness although Kitten tends to goosestep.

One of the things I used to tell clients when I still trained horses was an animal will only act as stupid as you allow it to. Our own unconscious body language is often the root of training issues.

Training any animal is a fluid exercise where you have to adapt to what works not what you think works. What worked the last time or what some guru wants to charge 1000s for in seminars.

 

[seaturtleswims]

 
I found out when 'training' a cat, that praise and kindness goes a LOT further. Punishment for a cat just makes them afraid of us and they will avoid us to avoid punishment. Dogs are pack animals, not independent like cats, so they accept punishment to stay accepted, even accepting death if the alpha wills it. My Casper escapes the house once in a while, I used to chase him yelling and telling him what I'm going to do when I catch him. Then I found that cooing to him, telling him what a pretty boy he is, and to let me pet him works every time! He stops and comes back!

That makes so much sense! I never thought about their learning styles being different because their social structures are different. That's a good thought to keep in mind