How Many Is A Crowd?

A large number of cat owners have more than one cat. There are varying reasons for this, and the reasons will often dictate the dynamic. Sometimes in a household, even though the pets are nominally a family animal, you will find that a cat (or a dog for that matter) is often referred to as being attached to a specific member of the family. For this reason, sometimes a family will get more pets so that everyone has their “own”. This doesn’t always work out.

Another reason for getting more pets is that people find that a cat will be more content if it has a playmate. This theory works, up to a point, but anyone who has introduced a new cat into a household where one already exists will know that there are some drawbacks to the theory. Namely that if you introduce a new cat onto an older cat’s “turf”, the older one will not willingly give up any of its space.

Usually, though, a cat will eventually welcome a new pet into the house and will begin to form a bond with it. This helps training because – along with the increased contentment of having a “prowling partner” – each cat will be a lot more keen to follow instructions if they see that their fellow cat is doing the same and not having any problems as a result. Indeed, in many ways you are “leading by example” because a cat who recognizes the right way to act – through witnessing it in another – will be quicker to pick it up.

Learn Your Cat’s Likes And Dislikes

A common remark from owners who are trying to train their cat is that it is like banging their head against a brick wall. “I try to do what I’m supposed to, but in all honesty it’s like the cat is training me to do what it wants”, they will say. And although there is some truth in the suggestion that you have to give a little to get a little, it is important to remember that the only thing which really matters in terms of training a cat is that you get to the end result with a cat who is happy.

Know that your cat has certain “lines” which it does not like to cross. Some cats, for as long as they live, really do not like to be picked up. This is not something you can train or chivvy them into liking. If you do lift them, their response will be to squirm and try to escape. For some owners this is disappointing, but it is vitally important not to try to force a cat into liking something it just doesn’t like. All you will get is a discontented kitty.

If you train your cat by applying a sense of what it likes and does not like, by giving it treats you know it enjoys and avoiding taking things down roads which simply make your pet annoyed, then you will get a lot further, a lot faster. A happy cat is always going to be a lot more open to going along with what you want than one who feels that it is simply being prevented from doing what it wants. The psychology is largely universal, but many people think they can win over a cat through force of will. This just won’t happen.

Is This A Good Time?

When you want your cat to behave in a sane, reasonable manner it is only right to teach it good behavior, and to give it the kind if conditions that allow it to feel loved and feel love in return – this way, it is a lot less likely to react to things in a hostile manner. However, you do have to pick your moment with a cat, because trying to get the best response depends inherently on having the best conditions in which to train.

For one thing, it is a very bad idea to try to train a cat which has until very recently been sleeping. Picking a cat up from its basket or its favorite spot in order to train it is unlikely to get you good results. You’ll be trying to get the cat to understand commands and respond to them in the right way, and it will merely be looking back to the warm spot it has just vacated through no choice of its own and hoping very much that it can go back soon, please.

Training a cat when it has just eaten is also something that should be avoided as far as possible. You are just less likely to get a good response from a cat who sees no real reason to co-operate. If there is just the edge of hunger a cat will be more attentive, very much in the hope that it will get some food, but if it has just eaten then all it will want to do is curl up and have a nap.

You Cannot Train A Cat…

In the never-ending debate over cats and dogs, a theory frequently advanced by the dog fraternity is that cats are impossible to train, and for this reason dogs are better per se. The attitude is that, because you can find guide dogs and sniffer dogs, while there are no cats employed in these sectors, that dogs are inherently more intelligent and more amenable to training. However, it is nothing more than invention to say that cats are too stupid to be trained, or so independent that they will not respond to training.

It is certainly possible to train a cat to a certain extent. Though the make-up of their character may be such that they will not ever become guide or sniffer animals, they are far from stupid and they can be trained. All that it requires is a modicum of patience and a firm hand. Oh, and some treats may be useful as well. Cats, like dogs – and even humans – will respond better to any kind of training if their performance within that training is suitably rewarded.

In fact, it is precisely because cats are not stupid that it is possible to train them. In the same way as human beings and indeed dogs, if you create the connection in a cat’s mind and instincts between good behavior and good reward, they will naturally behave better. Also like humans and dogs, cats have different levels of taking to training. This means that you need to persist, even if it seems that it’s never going to take.

When Cats Go Crazy

Every cat owner has the same problem. When our cats behave as normal, they are a joy to live with. They are cute, they are often very loving, and they do some highly amusing things when they are relaxed and think that no-one is looking. Then, all of a sudden, they take leave of their senses and start running around the house or apartment at high speeds and perhaps making noises that sound like something out of a horror movie. We, as owners, sit in stunned silence and wonder what the heck is going on.

As small predator/prey it is built into every cat that they will respond to anything they sense – whether it is real or perceived – and sometimes they sense things that you cannot see and sometimes they are looking at something you should check out, like a big bug.

There are those people who think that cats are more tuned in to the paranormal world, and that they act as they do because they’ve seen a ghost. More likely, it is because of climatic conditions. High winds, drafts and loud noises get some bizarre reactions from cats.

It can also be as simple as the temperature has come down to a point where you cats are able to exercise their cat like super-powers to run amok about the house.

If it begins to bother you that your cat responds to things in this way, then it is important to take them out of their pattern of behavior. If your cat responds to high winds by scampering around and yowling, then the best thing to do is try to move them to somewhere more central in the house, and speak to them in a soothing way until such time as they calm down. For the rest of the time, the best bet is to limit the amount of space they have to run. Quickly, they will understand that they are in no danger.

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