How to Teach Your Cat to Give a Handshake

30Mar08

I am going to try this with my kitty, Rebel, as soon as he wakes up from his nap.

Steps

Arrange training session before cat’s regular mealtime. He should be a bit hungry. No need to starve the cat!
Have your cat’s favorite treat on hand.
Show kitty the treat. Let him/her smell it.
Offer your hand that does not have the treat in it by holding it palm up, slightly cupped, in front of kitty’s face just above his eye level. In search of the treat, your cat will instinctively put his/her paw in your hand.
Immediately reward with treat and say “Good boy/girl!”
Repeat three or four more times. Begin again either later that day or the next day.
Praise your cat!

Start training before cat’s meal.
Reward with a very, very small amount of food until cat performs trick on command.
Cats have short attention spans, so don’t try for more than 3 to 5 minutes a session.
Have patience! It may take two days or more for your cat to learn this trick.
Cats are independent creatures so you might find that some will require persistence to train. The younger you start the training the more responsive they will be to you and the more likely you will succeed.
Most cats follow a laser light, so it is good to have one on hand to hold their attention while training them.

Warnings

Avoid forcing the cat to learn a trick. If he’s not interested, try again another day.
Training may be somewhat stressful for your cat. Take your cat’s temperament into consideration before attempting.
Declawed cats have very sensitive paws, especially if they were declawed recently. If your cat is the sort of cat that freaks out if you get anywhere near its paws, you may wish to reconsider teaching it this particular trick.
Do NOT force your cat’s paw to stay in your hand! You WILL be bitten!
NEVER PUNISH a cat for not responding to such training. A cat’s behavior is based on his/her need for survival, not for performing tricks. Avoid hitting, spraying, or hurting your pet in any way if there is no response.

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