Question
My cute little fur ball, named Butterscotch, is quite food motivated, and I would like to train him to do cool things like roll over and shake a paw. He has a very sensitive stomach (as you may already know) and I can only feed him about 5-6 treats a day, sometimes more if I'm lucky.
I have heard of clicker training, but have absolutely no clue how to do it. I also don't know if that would even work for him. Does anyone know of a good way to train him?
Also, does anyone know of some really epic tricks I could teach him? Even things such as: hoing to a certain location when asked: coming when called by name, hrabbing something for you, playing dead, I would really like to teach him to do these things and if someone knows of another great trick, let me know! I would love to teach him all the tricks I can!
Answer
Clicker training a cat takes great patience, but it can be a great bonding experience for you and your kitty.
CLICKER TRAINING: For clicker training you need treats and a small clicker you can find at any pet store. The idea is - as soon as your cat does the wanted behavior, you click and give the kitty a treat. The click has to come immediately after the wanted behavior, and the treat has to immediately follow the click. After time, you will be able to give the cat a treat every other behavior, but still click immediately after each behavior. You will slowly be able to reduce the treats and only click.
CAT TRICKS: When you read the articles/books keshlam mentioned, they will tell you that cat "tricks" have to come from behaviors they already instinctively do. Often, the first things you teach your cat is to recognize the click means a treat is coming and to look at you after he eats it. After this is mastered, the next thing is usually having your cat jump on a carpeted surface and touch his nose to a wand or a pen, which is used only for training. This is a natural behavior for a cat. When the nose touches, you click and give the treat. This is the beginning stages of getting your cat to go to a location you point to.
SHORT SESSIONS: It's ok that your cat can only have a few treats a day. The training sessions must be kept short or your cat will lose interest.
Here are a couple basic articles that will get you started:
3 Tricks to Teach your Cat with a Clicker
Answered By - KittyConsultant