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Tip
54 - Punishing or disciplining your cat - stopping bad behaviour
Sometimes
cats engage in behaviour that we the owners
don't appreciate. In order to make our cats behave in the way
we want them to, we may try to punish them for their bad behaviour.
Common reasons for wanting to punish
a
cat
include
marking
behaviours
(spraying), urination/defecation problems and scratching issues.
The
number one rule of cat punishment or discipline is;
You can only punish a cat if you catch it in the act.
Let's
say you want to punish your cat for scratching furniture. You
come home and find your new couch scratched up.
It's too late to punish your cat and punishment is COMPLETELY
ineffective because the cat doesn't know why it's being punished.
Putting a cats nose in its urine is a sure way to get the cat to
think that YOU are the bad one. Using any means of punishment
after the fact, will only confuse the
cat
and might
well damage
the
relationship
you
have
with it.
Rule
two of cat punishment or discipline is;
Never hit your cat (or dog for that matter)
Cats
do not respond well to hitting and doing so can damage the bond
between you and your cat. First off, hitting a cat can hurt a
cat and it
may
well bite you back in self defense if you
attempt to hit it. Very quickly, the cat may learn to fear
you. It is an old school approach that is outdated because better
methods are available.
Dealing with problems:
When
we talk about punishing, ultimately what we are trying to
do is reduce or eliminate an undesirable behaviour. We accomplish
this
by
getting the cat to associate a particular behaviour with something
unpleasant. Make sure the cat also thinks it's unpleasant.
The first thing
that
may
think
of is a squirt gun. If we
catch
the cat
scratching the sofa, a blast of water will make it run away.
If kept up regularly it won't take long until the cat
stops scratching the sofa. Keep in mind that this
technique is effective only when the cat doesn't see that you
are the squirter. If kitty sees you, it will continue the behaviour
when you aren't there.
In
order to avoid possible offending behaviours we must give
our cats outlets to act like a cats! For example
they need to scratch. Punishing them for scratching in a particular
area means providing them with good places where they ARE allowed
to scratch. Sometimes cats will act or play rough with their owners
and this is partly due to their predatory nature. Therefore cats
should
have appropriate toys to play with, toys they can chase and hunt.
You need to play with them as well.
Other methods of reducing unwanted
behaviours include placing certain smells that the cat doesn't
like in areas that you want it to avoid. Cat's aren't big fans
of orange peel smell and many commercially available types of
pet repellents. You can also try using double sided tape. Cats
don't like sticky sensations on their paws and will avoid this
type
of booby trap. Tin cans, plastic cups and other noise making
items are good for convincing your cat that a jump on that counter
is a bad idea.
Urination
and defecation issues require that you try to figure out WHY
the cat is doing this. Is the
litter box too dirty? Is the cat spayed/neutered? Is it a multi-cat
household? Can the cat see
other cats from a window? Can the cat have some type of urinary
infection? Is this a new behaviour? You
may well need the advice of your vet to help you answer your
particular dilemma.
© Pets.ca
2006
www.pets.ca
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