I have read several times that you should never hit a cat or even use a spray bottle on them. I am looking for a method of disicpline to use when my cat behaves badly. Notably, I would like to get her to stop hissing at me for no reason and to curb her from nipping/biting my bed linens and carpet. I have tried "timeout" where I put her in her cage until she calms down, but that doesn't seem to remedy the problem. I tell her to "knock it off", but that usually doesn't work. I have even resorted to locking her in the bathroom over night so I can sleep (her litter and food are in there) Any suggestions?
-
Too many ads? Join our community of cat lovers now to reduce ads by 90%! Click here to join for free!
Discipline
- Thread starter princessmv33
- Start Date
I'm curious about this too... I've always been under the impression that if a firm "NO" didn't work then a spray bottle is a good enforcer to set limits. Children need limits and so do cats. Its only recently that I've heard the spray bottle is not popular. But then again spanking a child isn't popular either nowadays. I think it can be a touchy subject with people. I know timeouts don't work because I don't think their mind works in a way that understands why they are there. I've also heard that you can fill a soda bottle full of coins and toss it in their direction if they are doing something bad to disrupt the behavior, this way the loud noise isn't associated with you but breaks the behavior without negative association with the owner.
I'm also confused on the spray bottle issue... I mean water dosn't actually hurt a cat it's just anoying. I mean I would never dicipline a child or a cat by spanking/hitting them but hell if spray of water would keep a Child from acting up I would do it. Cuz it's not actually harming them it's getting their attention. I have to admit I did use a spray bottle when I first got my cats because of their facination with digging in my houseplants. It dind't hurt the cat and it watered the plan at the same time.
Like with kids, different things work with different cats. For Garfield, holding your hand up flat and a firm "No" works best. Sugartoes just wants to please, just telling her "No" works. Although you have to get her attention if she is clawing the furniture, because she is so intent! So I clap my hands first, and when she looks at me, I say "No" and she stops.
Mostly it is a matter of them understanding what you want, then deciding whether to obey you or not. (So different than dogs!) Some things, like eating out of the trash can, are so hard to break.
Why don't you list some of the behaviors you are trying to discourage, and we can give you pointers. I agree with you that cats need some "discipline", or limit setting. Otherwise you end up with an animal with monstrous behavior, and those seem to be the ones people want to dump or get rid of!
Mostly it is a matter of them understanding what you want, then deciding whether to obey you or not. (So different than dogs!) Some things, like eating out of the trash can, are so hard to break.
Why don't you list some of the behaviors you are trying to discourage, and we can give you pointers. I agree with you that cats need some "discipline", or limit setting. Otherwise you end up with an animal with monstrous behavior, and those seem to be the ones people want to dump or get rid of!
The trick with saying No is that it has too be in a deep, resonating voice. This way the cat knows you mean it! If you say it in a normal voice they won't understand the difference.
Harley does NOT understand the word no, but he understands that he is being naughty if I snap my fingers at him, he will run away and then meow at me from a good distance, as to be yelling back at me for disciplining him-then I just laugh at myself b/c he seems to be acting like a child!
I tried putting him on a 'time out' type thing, in his kennel, but that doesn't work at all either-he just gets more mad at me for putting him in there and he wont cuddle with me
I tried putting him on a 'time out' type thing, in his kennel, but that doesn't work at all either-he just gets more mad at me for putting him in there and he wont cuddle with me
- Joined
- Sep 23, 2005
- Messages
- 364
- Purraise
- 1
I tend to use a sharp tone of voice. I would never smack or hit, and while I do have a spray bottle handy, I've rarely used it. My cats are not all that destructive, and frankly, it's 3 against 1. LOL
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2005
- Messages
- 6,394
- Purraise
- 17
Positive reinforcement is the best way to train any animal - cat, dog, bird, horse, pig, sheep - whatever! They need to be motivated to do the right thing, not punished for doing the wrong thing. Distract your kitty when she is naughty and as soon as she starts doing what you want, treat/reward her. If she bites on the sheets, guide her biting away from them and onto a toy - as soon as she goes for it, reward her. Trust me, she'll learn a lot faster and a lot more reliably than if you punish her (however gently) for doing something that comes naturally to her and is part of being a kitten.
Clicker-training works beautifully on animals who respond best to positive reinforcement - and cats are certainly no exception! Here's some information:
Clicker training
Good luck!
Clicker-training works beautifully on animals who respond best to positive reinforcement - and cats are certainly no exception! Here's some information:
Clicker training
Good luck!
Amen to Sarah's method! However, when Clyde first came home with me, I didn't know about that, and I went with the deep, resonating NO and the fingersnap. Clyde is so good that I need only snap my fingers once and he stops whatever he's doing (usually wrestling Pearl, who is half his size). As soon as he stops, I change my voice and gently tell him what a good kitty he is, giving him a scritch if I can reach him, and it all works out fine.
By the time Pearl came along, I had gotten a little smarter. With her, I use distraction -- tossing a little foam ball that I know she can't resist running after, or even just calling her name in a melody that she's come to know: "Peeaaaarrrrr - ellllllll" in a downward third. I'm not sure she knows her name, but she absolutely knows that interval, and she comes running for a nosekiss every time. :-)
However, there are some things that are apparently so much fun that NOTHING will distract or deter my Pearlygirl -- like climbing the curtains and swinging on the curtain rods. I am defeated in this area, and have been forced to decide I LIKE the look of little kitty-claw-hole patterns in my drapes.
By the time Pearl came along, I had gotten a little smarter. With her, I use distraction -- tossing a little foam ball that I know she can't resist running after, or even just calling her name in a melody that she's come to know: "Peeaaaarrrrr - ellllllll" in a downward third. I'm not sure she knows her name, but she absolutely knows that interval, and she comes running for a nosekiss every time. :-)
However, there are some things that are apparently so much fun that NOTHING will distract or deter my Pearlygirl -- like climbing the curtains and swinging on the curtain rods. I am defeated in this area, and have been forced to decide I LIKE the look of little kitty-claw-hole patterns in my drapes.
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2005
- Messages
- 6,394
- Purraise
- 17
Snapping your fingers is akin to using a clicker to train - so you were using an excellent method without even realising it! And, as you have seen, it works beautifully - he associates the snapping noise now with his behaviour and instantly stops - and then you reward him. Perfect!!
IMO there is no way no way to disipline a cat. I just let my cats do whatever they want. If they go somewhere I dont want them to go I just remove them. Yelling, hitting, squirting are useless IMO and do nothing but make your cat distrust you. If you want an animal that responds to discipline then get a dog.
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2005
- Messages
- 6,394
- Purraise
- 17
Very true. However, and you may have to see this to believe it
I had to find a way to stop Sashka from chewing on the TV cords because I didn't want her to get electrocuted. Nothing worked, and no matter what I did with them she got to them anyway.
That's how I discovered clicker-training. Amazing - it has reshaped all of her dangerous behaviours and she loved the training! It got to a point where she used to bat the clicker over to me until I used it with her....lol.
So I started teaching her other things - she now spins, kisses, shakes, sits and lies down - all with training. And it was so stimulating for her - she is very bright and she just loved learning all those new things! Such a nice way for us to bond. I've clicker-trained all my animals since then, and trust me, when you have a house full and you have to trust that they're not going to get into mischief and hurt themselves (ie - drinking out of the toilet, chewing cables etc) discipline is something that is essential!!
I agree you can train a cat but training is not really discipline. It uses postive reenforcement not fear.Originally Posted by KitEKats4Eva!
Very true. However, and you may have to see this to believe itbut it is easy to discipline cats! But I am using the word discipline to mean `teach' and not `punish'.
I had to find a way to stop Sashka from chewing on the TV cords because I didn't want her to get electrocuted. Nothing worked, and no matter what I did with them she got to them anyway.
That's how I discovered clicker-training. Amazing - it has reshaped all of her dangerous behaviours and she loved the training! It got to a point where she used to bat the clicker over to me until I used it with her....lol.
So I started teaching her other things - she now spins, kisses, shakes, sits and lies down - all with training. And it was so stimulating for her - she is very bright and she just loved learning all those new things! Such a nice way for us to bond. I've clicker-trained all my animals since then, and trust me, when you have a house full and you have to trust that they're not going to get into mischief and hurt themselves (ie - drinking out of the toilet, chewing cables etc) discipline is something that is essential!!
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2005
- Messages
- 6,394
- Purraise
- 17
That's exactly right. There's few things I hate more than seeing people at the park with their dogs or whatever, calling and calling, and then the dog comes to them and they get scolded and hit!! What sort of a motivation is that for a dog to come when it's called?? People tend to think that animals will think like we do, and they just don't!! It's a lot more simple but we can make it so much harder than it needs to be!!
I agree with you that I've never `disciplined' my cats - ie punished or scolded them. It's pointless, it makes them distrust and fear you, and it doesn't achieve anything. There have been times when I've wanted to scream the place down (lol) but I just take myself quietly away and have a nervous breakdown on my own...
- Joined
- Feb 19, 2001
- Messages
- 34,872
- Purraise
- 78
The behavior you describe is not bad behavior. It is fairly normal behavior if... your cat lived any time at all outside on the streets
if your cat was abused as a kitten (not by you)
if at two weeks old no human picked this kitten up and taught it that human touch is "good."
if something you wear, or something you cannot see is upsetting this cat and she is responding to the scent because it frightens her
nipping bed linen and blankets is a way a kitten or a cat plays. redirect the activity to an interactive toy like Da Bird or Cat Dancer, or a peacock feather.
Half and half ... agreed with the first, but not the second. It is possible to teach a cat to not do something you don't want it to, but the method doesn't involve discipline, but motivation, reward, and most of all persistence and many, many repetitions. For example, I have taught my cats not to jump on the table while I'm sitting there eating.
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2005
- Messages
- 6,394
- Purraise
- 17
Yeah well if you can do that then you're the Cat Whisperer because no amount of ANY kind of training has stopped Sashka from doing that! It's almost like she's said to me, `I'll do whatever you want... to a point...but the table is MINE!!!'Originally Posted by coaster
Half and half ... agreed with the first, but not the second. It is possible to teach a cat to not do something you don't want it to, but the method doesn't involve discipline, but motivation, reward, and most of all persistence and many, many repetitions. For example, I have taught my cats not to jump on the table while I'm sitting there eating.
Maybe I've just got cooperative cats. No, it was just a process of me being more persistent than the cats. Every time they jumped on the table, they got shoved off. After a couple months of this, they learned there was no point in jumping up there while I was eating, and they stopped doing it. But the secret is consistency: you have to do the same thing EVERY single time. If even ONCE I had not done that, they would probably still be trying to jump up there. Another example of the same thing is when I'm seated in my recliner eating snacks while watching TV. Rocket has learned there's no point in jumping up into my lap while I'm doing that because he'll just get shoved off. So he doesn't bug me while I'm snacking any more. He waits until I'm finished and THEN he jumps into my lap.
Wow, what an old thread but...I want to add to it anyway. I think to have the best relationship with them you need to strike a delicate balance between discipline and the lack thereof. Technically, discipline means training to act in accordance with rules, not punishment. And I have noticed, at least with my kitty, that if you're never firm with them they will understand that and take advantage of it.
