Training

[CatsAreTheBest]

Hello. I got my cat about 3 months back. She is now 6 months old and is doing purrfectly () fine. I am trying to teach her to sit right now. I first started by pushing her butt down until it touched the ground. Then I clicked the clicker and gave her a treat. I also tried lifting the treat over her head to make her naturally sit. Both of these methods didn’t work too well. It seems like she doesn’t know she got a treat from sitting down. Also she tries to scratch and get the treat out of my hands if I’m not giving it to her. Does anybody have any tips? Thanks.

 

[EmmiTemmi]

Persistence.

I've had my 6mo boys for 1-2 months and every day we've been working on different commands. And persistence and consistency are the keys. I use the method of holding the treat over their head to cause them to naturally sit. I say 'SIT' clearly and loudly. As soon as their butt hits the ground I click my pen (since I don't have a real clicker) and give a treat right away.

Before starting sit, I just got them used to the click and treat system. I would click then give a treat several times. This got them to realize that click meant a treat was coming. Then I began working on the commands. In addition to the verbal command 'sit' I also have a hand sign that goes along with it.

I also noticed that my boys don't recognize verbal commands as well as they do motions, so I made up specific motions for all of my commands. (They aren't complicated. Like, I just hold up 1 finger for sit, I hold out a flat palm for 'high-five', I point two fingers at the ground for 'down off the furniture').

I'm sure that with persistence the training will pay off and you kitten will learn. It just takes longer with some kittens than with others. Be consistent in clicking and treating in unison, be firm in your voice, and don't train for very long periods at a time. 3-7 minutes is about all my boys can handle some days.

When she tries to scratch the treat out of your hand, take it away and pause the training session for a bit. No treat for bad behavior.

Good luck!

 

[CatsAreTheBest]

Thanks