Mary Allen
Cat training is a lot harder than dog training, but it’s not impossible. Cats learn desired behaviors best through rewards. But what to do if the house tiger misbehaves? Are punishments a sensible educational tool?
Cats, unlike many dog breeds (e.g. Labrador and other retrievers ), cats do not have a so-called “will to please” towards their humans. This means that they usually only do what they feel like doing and what is useful to them. Whether their behavior pleases their favorite people or not is of secondary interest to them. For this reason, punishment and scolding are not promising methods in cat training.
Cats Don’t Understand Why You Scold
When your cat sharpens its claws on the sofa or carpet or jumps onto the dining table or kitchen counter, it’s not to annoy you. It does this because she benefits from it, such as your attention or – for example, if she doesn’t have a scratching post or enough scratching facilities – to fulfill her natural needs and instincts and she has no better alternatives to your furniture. If you then scold her, yell at her, or splash water on her, you are punishing her for something she cannot identify as wrongdoing.
All that matters to your cat is that their favorite human suddenly becomes loud, unpredictable, and scary, even though (from their point of view) they haven’t done anything bad. At best, she’ll get used to only jumping into forbidden places and clawing into forbidden furniture when you’re not around. At worst, she’ll be scared of you and develops behavioral problems as a result.
Indirect Punishments in Cat Training?
Occasionally one reads on the subject of cat training that indirect punishments can be used for particularly stubborn house tigers. While direct punishments emanate from you visibly and noticeably, the indirect variant is intended to show the cats the unpleasant consequences of undesirable behavior without the animals communicating this with you. Instead of scolding your cat when she jumps on the table, hide and splash water on her chest (not her face!) or make a loud noise.
Theoretically, your cat thinks the loud noise or water splash came from sitting on the table. In practice, however, it is not easy to consistently implement this method of training cats, since you always have to trigger the same unpleasant stimulus as soon as your kitty does the forbidden. If you forget or you are not there in time, your cat will quickly realize that whether or not it gets wet has nothing to do with its behavior. Therefore, only use indirect punishment if you are sure that you can really control a certain unwanted behavior of your furry friend. For example, if you don’t want your kitty to walk out the front door.
Understanding as the Basis for Good Cat Training
If you can understand why your cat is behaving in a certain way that you don’t like, you’ve made a good step forward in training your cat. Possible reasons for “misconduct” are boredom, a lack of scratching opportunities, a home that is not cat-friendly, or illness. Does your cat have everything it needs: scratching post, clean litter box, places to sleep, hiding places, climbing facilities, suitable food, and freshwater?
If so, you should take her to the vet as a precaution should she nevertheless exhibit any unusual or disruptive behavior. It may be in pain or ill and have no other way to alert you. If she has everything she needs and is physically healthy, it may be due to stress or anxiety. After the vet visit, a cat psychologist may be able to help you further.
Ignore Cat for Unwanted Behavior
If your cat is in good health and its needs are met, “bad behavior” can also be learned behavior. Cats like to be a bit reserved towards their people like to have freedom of choice and their own will, but attention is also something nice for them. If they find that a certain behavior elicits a reaction from you, they try to get your attention if necessary. Then, for example, they play the alarm clock at night, jump onto work surfaces and desks, throw things on the floor, or meow in a tour.
In this case, it is counterproductive to scold her, since she has achieved her goal (attention). The best thing to do is “punish” them with disregard, for example by leaving the room without a word or putting them back on the floor from the kitchen unit without comment. Be consistent here as well, and your cheeky kitty will gradually learn that she doesn’t want to bother you and won’t. Caution! If your cat has only recently shown unusual behavior or seems otherwise changed, it is better to take it to the vet.