Train your cat

You may be thinking, why train a cat at all? Being independent by nature, cats really have their own acts together. For most of a 24-hour period, they lie around looking beautiful, oftentimes training us to pet and praise them and deliver their favorite food on time.

Training your cat can be fun, interesting and rewarding for both of you. It can enhance your relationship, discourage problem behavior and create a stronger bond between you and your kitty. Using positive reinforcement and a clicker can accomplish many things.

What is clicker training?

The use of clickers actually began in the field of wild animal training. Clicker training is based on the way dolphins are trained, although dolphin trainers use a whistle instead of a clicker. While most traditional methods of training rely on negative reinforcement (pulling on the leash or the reins, or using force), clicker training uses positive reinforcement in the form of food, praise or petting.

You'll need a clicker

A clicker is a small plastic box you can easily hold in your hand. There is a metal center, and when you press it with your thumb it makes a "click." This sound is very specific and easily recognized. Animals can't always interpret the sound of our voice or our movements, so a clicker offers them a sound that they can always identify. Clickers can be purchased online or at most pet stores.

Probably the most effective reward is going to be your cat's very favorite treat. Make sure that it's small and can be easily consumed because you'll have to hand it out in very small pieces. Many cats are finicky eaters, and if they are freefed they just may not be hungry enough to be interested. So when beginning to train it is best to not freefeed but instead provide meals at regular times and then remove the leftover food.

Because this is a new skill to be learned by both you and your cat, it will take a bit of concentration on both your parts. Other pets, people or noises may distract you, so take your training subject into a quiet room where the two of you can be alone. When beginning, it's good to train in the same spot every time.

Click and treat

Let your cat smell the treats so she knows what's coming, then feed her a treat and press on the clicker so that the "click" and the food arrive at the same time. You can place the treat in front of the cat, hand it to her or toss it a little way so she has to move to get it.

Repeat this a few times and then quit. With cats the training period should be short- about five minutes. Ideally, you want to end the session before the cat loses interest, but if the cat walks away before you're finished, that's okay. End the session and try again in a few hours. Soon your cat will begin to understand what all this "clicking" is about, and you can begin training behaviors.

The effectiveness of the training project and how quickly your goals are achieved will depend on many things: trainer skill, the willingness of the cat, how much time you can devote and whether the behavior is simple or difficult to learn.

Mollie Hogan is the founder of Cat Business which offers behavioral consulting services for felines and their humans. For additional information, visit www.catbusiness1.com.