Clicker training is sometimes called “positive training” or “positive reinforcement training”.  No matter what name you call it, it is the method professional animal trainers use to teach cats to perform certain behaviors for television, movies and sometimes live performance.  When you train your cat with clicker training, you want to pair the sound of the clicker with a special treat your cat really wants.

Is Your Cat Open To Suggestions?

Unlike dogs or horses, not all cats will tolerate clicker training or just about any other training method.  When you want to train your cat, you really need to get to know your cat.  What is the cat’s likes and dislikes?  Is there a special toy or treat that just knocks him out?  That is the treat you would reserve just for sessions when you train your cat.

Is your cat neutered?  Usually, neutering makes the cat see a point to training, while an unneutered cat will be too preoccupied with finding a mate to pay any attention to you.  If your cat is really elderly (over fifteen) this is not a good time to begin to train your cat.  Training might prove to be too stressful.  Generally, kittens and young cats under five are more open to training in order to relieve their boredom.

The Clicker

The clicker is a tiny plastic and metal device that acts as a noisemaker and nothing else.  You should ideally click and then treat the cat within two seconds of the click.  They need to get that association between the clicking noise and the appearance of a treat (or toy, or affection).

When you train your cat, go for only a few sessions of a few minutes long interspersed throughout the day.  Don’t wake your cat from a sound sleep in order to start a training session.  They hate this.  Work with your cat’s schedule, not against it.  Make training your cat flexible and on the cat’s time, not yours.

A good first “trick” is to get the cat to walk over to a mat and stand on it.  Lay down the mat and watch the cat.  Put a treat on the mat.  Whenever the cat approaches the mat, click and treat.  Let the cat figure it out.  Yes, this will take a while.  Remember to use toys and affection and not just food, as many cats do not have that big of an appetite.  Give a great amount of praise (a “jackpot”) when the cat stands on the mat.

Yes, you can train your cat – but you have to have realistic expectations.  If a cat doesn’t want to jump through a hoop, a cat will not jump through a hoop.  You have to give the cat a really good reason for jumping through a hoop.  When I think about how to train my cat to do what I would like her to do, I think about how I’d like to be trained.  I’d rather be given rewards when I do right than be smacked for doing wrong.

Not So Great Expectations

When I train my cat, I know I’m not training a dog and I’m not training up a child in the way he should go.  I’m working with a cat.  I have to expect the cat to learn at her won pace.  I also have to accept that she will perform at her own pace.  When I train my cat, I must always be patient, persistent and keep a sense of humor.

For example, if I’m going to train the cat to come when called (which can be done), I have to use the same command.  It’s no good using one word one day and another word the next.  I also need to be consistent with the reward when I train my cat.  My cat does not have a big appetite and is getting on in years.  What she does love is attention, so her reward is attention, affection and praise.

Picture It In Your Mind

Whether or not you believe cats can read minds, clearly picturing the desired behavior in your mind can often help get through to the cat.  Remember, you do talk a different language that your cat and you are in a rush while cats have all the time in the world.  Some animal behaviorists say cats can read their owner’s body language for clues.  If thinking about what you want the cat to do helps give you the correct body language, then by all means, do it.

Reward Good Behavior

When I train my cat to come when called, I reward good behavior with a lot of affection and spending a few minutes generally adoring her.  When she doesn’t come when called, I ignore her entirely, until she comes within reach.  This is pretty much the pattern in training my cat to do much of anything.

Some cats work very well with clicker training, although I have yet to train my cat using that method.  This is where you make a noise (usually a little click) and then immediately give the cat a treat.  Like Pavlov’s dog, they soon associate the sound of the click with a treat.  Other rewards could be affection or playing with a special toy that is only given in times when I train my cat.