Writing Feature Articles - Step 1 - Lesson 1 | Page 71

Writing Feature Articles - Lesson
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Intermediate

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“Cats Are Trainable...” continued
Having your cat touch your hand with its nose on command is one of the easiest behaviors to train,
Chan says. If you hold out your hand, most cats will naturally sniff it. Reward with a treat until the cat is
doing it every time you present your hand. Then, start repeating a word like “touch” every time.
This trick can then be used to get the cat to move where you want it by placing your hand in the desired
spot. “You can use it to ask them to get off the couch, or teach them to jump through a hoop by putting
the hand on the other side of the hoop,” Chan says.
Another useful behavior is entering the cat carrier on their own. Sandy Lagreca, a volunteer at the
Michigan Humane Society, says that this is great for both cats and people: “They go in without having to
be picked up and shoved into the crate, which can be traumatic for the owner.”
Patience, repetition and a treat
All this requires is patience, repetition and a highly desired treat. Throw the treat into the crate (and
if your cat is already suspicious of the carrier, step away). Let the cat go in, eat the treat, and leave,
repeating until it’s completely comfortable going into the carrier. Then, start to close the door and leave
the cat inside for increasingly longer intervals. Again, repeat till the cat is comfortable before you try to
pick up the carrier.
Chan says that people often don’t think cats are trainable because they lack a dog’s desire to please,
“but we have things that cats want. That’s all that matters.” Figure out what your cat will work for — it
may be a little tuna, a bit of canned food on the end of a chopstick, or maybe a toss of a toy mouse.
Connelly says to keep training sessions short — she recommends no more than ?ve minutes — and
varied. “Teach something else when they get one thing right,” she says. “Cats get bored easily.”
In addition to the speci?c useful behaviors, Bentley says, training can help prevent problems by
changing the terms of your relationship with your pet. “The animal learns, when I do this, you’re happy
and I get a piece of food, I guess I should focus on making you happy,” she says. “Teaching our cats to
successfully do what we like and get rewarded makes them more inclined to do what we like.”
And it’s also rewarding to see that your cat is capable of so much more than lying on the couch. Says
Lagreca, “It’s fun to watch the progression and see the lights go on — when they make that connection
it’s a magical moment.”

(December 8, 2009). Cats are Trainable and That’s Not a Punchline. Today Show. MSNBC. http://today.
msnbc.msn.com/id/33800570/ns/health-pet_health/ Permission pending.

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