If you live in America and would like a short four-point list of the do’s and don’ts of owning a cat, I’d suggest the following. Of course, the list could be huge but I’ve tried to whittle it down to four. Also, this is a personal choice. Everyone will have their own. Please share your …
I am not going to add many more words other than those in the infographic as I believe it explains the difference well. A problem is that people can understandably relate to their cat companion as a little human and family member because that is what they are for many cat caregivers. Or they see …
Infographic on cat punishment versus divine intervention Read More »
This point has not been discussed as far as I am aware. The potential problem came to me this morning. We know that nearly all domestic cats are frightened of vacuum cleaners because of the noise they make. To a domestic cat they can look like a hostile, noisy predator. And pushing the vacuum cleaner …
Why a robotic vacuum cleaner might be better than a standard one for a cat owner Read More »
You should not rob your cat’s nose in his pee no matter what he has done to urinate inappropriately. They won’t have a clue what is going on except that it is a bad and frightening experience. The same applies to pooping inappropriately and the same applies to dogs in both cases. The rule is …
Domestic cats don’t understand “No”. However, they will understand that you are making a certain sound in a stern voice. You’re using a stern voice because you want your cat to stop doing something which displeases you. You may even shout or raise your voice. You want to drill the message home into your cat …
Anyone with reasonable knowledge of cat guardianship knows that punishing a domestic cat is pointless. It’s worse than pointless. It achieves an objective which is unintended: it frightens a cat to the point where they might avoid their human companion depending on the severity of the punishment. Cat training through punishment – negative reinforcement to …
This is a pretty old question and one that pops up frequently. I think it’s still relevant because when you search on the Internet and read about it in books it is apparent that it remains a popular way to alter the behaviour of cats. Jackson Galaxy (who’s visited many homes with cat problems) says …
The question comes from Quora. It is a disturbing but fiercely honest question as the person who asked it has admitted to the world their error (but they remained anonymous in terms of their name). And it is a grave error as what they did has clearly damaged the relationship. I hate to say it …
There are different views on this and some websites actively recommend it as a cat trainig method. Apparently in a proportion of US homes there are spray bottles in every room! These are, in effect, water pistols used to squirt water at domestic cats who are on surfaces which are forbidden by the owner. The …
For me this is stupid, unhelpful and mindlessly commercial. It is actually cruel. It is actually bloody awful to look at to be perfectly honest. He is a mean looking man, isn’t he? He does not look very nice and his behaviour is inline with his appearance. His behavior achieves nothing except for a million …
Man meows loudly at his sleeping cat to take revenge for being woken up Read More »
This is a snippet of advice from Jackson Galaxy. I’ve never tried it because I’ve never had cause to but I am sympathetic towards people who may on occasions become frustrated with their cat’s behaviour. Cat behaviour is never bad in an absolute sense but it can irritate people sometimes. Perhaps he or she is …
If your cat’s behaviour is driving you nuts try timeout Read More »
I have always been passionately against punishment as a means of training a cat. I thought I’d look up what Jackson Galaxy thinks about cat punishment. He discusses it in his book Total Cat Mojo. Supporters of punishing a domestic cat would argue that it is a way of altering cat behaviour for the benefit …
This is silly. Cat ‘owners’ should never squirt water on their cat to make them move away from an area which the person considers out of bounds. As the video shows it does not always work but it may work in another way: weaken the friendship between person and their cat companion. It is just …
By Ruth How often do we hear someone say: ‘If I have to be reborn on this earth I hope I come back as a cat’ (domestic cat). Well, to me that’s the daftest wish of all to make, because cats are the most vulnerable, misunderstood and mistreated animals of all. Too many people expect …
The difference between punishing a cat and negative reinforcement, both of which should be avoided, is that the former requires the cat to be able to measure his/her behaviour against norms as decided by humans which is something that is beyond them while the later is simply associating a certain behaviour with something painful or …
The difference between cat punishment and negative reinforcement Read More »
