The very excellent online information resource – The International Cat Association (TICA) makes an interesting observation to dispel a traditional myth; according to TICA cats are very intelligent and trainable animals. This certainly goes against conventional wisdom that cats are difficult creatures to train.
In fact, not only are cats very agile and easy to train there are cat agility competitions held in the U.S and around the world under the aegis of the TICA. Your pet cat can compete in time trials and vie for prizes.
The whole idea of interacting with their pet cats in a whole new manner is very attractive for cat owners. It’s like opening up a whole new world of ideas for them. Pet owners in large numbers have taken to training their feline beauties in clearing mazes and obstacles and vaulting over barriers. Cat agility training is a great way to strengthen the bonds between cat owners and their pets.
These cat agility competitions can have as many as fourteen obstacles and on its day a motivated cat can clear these in as few as ten seconds. Don’t be surprised if your Bengal cat just wanders off in the middle of the course or your Turkish Angora decides to sit bang in the middle of the course and strike a pose. Motivation is the key; always remember that although your cat will surprise you with its ability to respond to commands, it will never be like a dog. If it doesn’t want to complete the course, there is precious little you will manage with all your cues. But then, isn’t this one of the attributes of felines that attracted you to a cat in the first place – their sense of independence and apparent disdain for commands.
Training your cat for agility can be done at home, you can train it to move over the bed or jump from one chair to another. Play with your cat everyday. Remember that patience is the key. Cats can lead solitary lives but they can co-operate to survive and hence have a greater sense of hierarchy and respecting orders than normally given credit for. As trainer you will have to learn about the oral and non-verbal communication signals that cats use for communication. Praise and encouragement are very important factors in making a cat do your bidding. Maybe you can trick it into believing that it’s doing the stuff of its own volition. Clicker training is a popular technique wherein a click sound communicates satisfaction when the animal successfully executes an action.
