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Old January 5th, 2009, 09:13 AM
afxwinter afxwinter is offline
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Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 3
My Cat Will Not Learn!

I don't know what's wrong with my cat, but I do know he's not unintelligent.

He is just extremely persistent and obstinate with certain behaviors that I've been trying to train him to stop doing. He used to crawl into my entertainment unit which my tv sits on top of and rummage around where the wires are which could be dangerous and damage things, so I blocked it off so he can't get back there and now he will jump up on top of it in front of the tv over and over again. He also bites ankles and hands when he's not in a docile mood even though we've never used our limbs as toys, he has enough actual toys that we always felt he doesn't need human flesh toys He also chews on wires occasionally which worries me greatly. I have used the bitter taste spray on any wires I see teeth marks in.

I spray him with a water bottle as punishment or I'll put him in solitary (give him a timeout in the bathroom where his litter is) for a few minutes. I also speak harshly to him while I'm spraying or putting him in the bathroom with a stern voice saying NO or STOP GOING UP THERE or BAD CAT! I refuse to strike my cat because I want to keep a strong bond between the two of us. I do however pick him up by the scruff of his neck any time I need to take him away from something bad he's done.

I can't think of what I'm doing wrong, it just seems like negative reinforcement will not work on this cat. I'm pretty sure he's doing it to get my attention, but I don't want to give him attention as a response to something negative he's doing. I'll give him attention when he does something positive like bring me one of his toys that he likes me to throw for him to play fetch or when he wants to lay in my arms and be pet. He is extremely sweet when he's not full of beans. I love him dearly and appreciate his energy, but I need to somehow control where he expends it, be it his scratching post or playing with his toys.
Am I doing everything right and is there more I can do to stop any undesirable behavior he's doing? He's recently learned how to open cupboards and can get in where my cleaning supplies are which I want to put a stop to. He's our one and only indoor cat with all shots and bloodwork completed and passed with flying colors. He's a year old now and I'm not sure if this is behavior he'll grow out of when he's not a kitten anymore. Any help would be appreciated!

Last edited by afxwinter; January 5th, 2009 at 09:25 AM.
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