CAT
BEHAVIOUR
Knowing what normal cat behavior is will help in training cats and
treating problem cat behavior. Learn more about instinctive behavior
and behavior problems from the extensive catogories provided..
Cats are very special animals,
though much of the time their behavior can seem surprising and strange.
Understanding why cats act the way they do and how they learn their
behavior is not always easy. Cats learn their behavior based on
experience, what we might call empirical acquisition. In this regard,
if a cat feels that a certain experience is pleasant, she'll likely
strive to repeat that experience over and over. The opposite can
be said of unpleasant experiences. Once we understand the reasons
why cats behave the way they do, we can make some changes to their
behavior to get them to behave in a way we would prefer.
With this in mind we must
be certain that, when training a cat, we encourage acceptable cat
behavior and discourage unwanted or unacceptable behavior. Many
cat owners try to train their cats using reprimands. This method,
however, is not recommended as it is pretty much unsuccessful. The
only way to reprimand a cat is to catch her in the act of the bad
behavior. While certainly you may be able to do this, this only
teaches your cat that getting caught is not good. Therefore your
cat will most likely still exhibit the bad behavior, just not in
your presence.
In order to make the cat
training process as successful as possible, start by establishing
a good relationship with your cat. You can achieve this by giving
your cat the attention and positive reinforcement that she needs.
This includes playing with her or perhaps giving her massages every
once in a while.. Additionally, progress during your cat's training
process will be faster if you include as many chances for rewarding
her as you possibly can. Observe your cat's behavior and praise
her every time she acts correctly, such as when she plays with her
scratching post or uses her litter box. Likewise, make a list of
the things that your cat likes to do that you find inappropriate.
You can then work on making these activities unpleasant for her.
Your cat will notice the difference and will certainly begin to
adapt her behavior as she begins to prefer those activities that
are most pleasant to her, the same ones that will be acceptable
for you.
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