Many people believe that it's impossible to teach a cat to come or to sit. These are dog tricks, surely! But it is entirely possible to teach these things to your cat, and they will help you both to enjoy your relationship more. Clicker training cats to sit and stay is not only possible, it's fun for you and your cat.
Teaching your cat how to sit on cue is a foundation behavior that will come into play in many situations. From having your cat stay put when needed to redirecting her away from inappropriate behavior, the sit command will give your cat something positive to do and help her to focus on you instead of a stressful or exciting situation.
Sitting is a natural behavior for your cat but doing so on cue is a different story. Most cats would rather come and rub on you. Some might come and investigate what you are up to and then leave again.
There will be many times when you will need your cat to sit. Not only is it a prelude to the sit/stay command and other behaviors, but it is also a means of reducing your cat's stress during new or stressful situations such as these:
Once your cat has a full understanding of the meaning of the clicker and the target spoon, as described in this article, you can use the target spoon to guide your cat into a sitting position, then click and reward her.
Be sure not hold the target spoon so high over your cat's head that she feels that she must rise up into the air in order to target on it. Keep it just a few inches over her head so that she shifts her weight onto her haunches as she follows the spoon.
Eventually, you will want your cat to come to you and also sit when she arrives. This keeps her near you for other purposes, such as more training exercises or whatever you need to do with her.
Up to this point, you have had to use the target spoon to gain your cat's attention for both the come and the sit commands. Now it's time to add another cue for when your cat can't see you-tapping a surface. Once she's nearby, you can use the target spoon to lure her even closer and into a sitting position.
Training sessions generally work best when they are kept to five to six repetitions. If your cat acts frustrated or becomes disinterested, give her a break and try again later.
Never use punishment to try and train your cat! Your cat may learn to be afraid of you, hide, become aggressive, or develop negative behaviors if she is stressed because of the punishment.
Throughout the training process, offer lots of enthusiastic praise and petting immediately after a training session. Many cats enjoy your touch as much as they enjoy the food rewards and, eventually, the praise may be all that is required to reinforce the behavior that you're looking for.
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Clicker Training for Cats: Sit