How to train a cat to stop doing almost anything

By Lori Lucero

Instructions

Things You’ll Need:

Spray bottle filled with water
<br />Scratching post

Step 1:
Fill an empty spray bottle with water. Keep it in a handy place so that you can grab it quickly when your cat is doing something you don't want her to do.
Step 2:
When your cat performs the undesirable behavior, lightly spray him in the face. You don't need to soak him. Cats hate water in the face, so a light spray should be enough.
Step 3:
Repeat as necessary until the cat stops doing whatever it is you don't want her to do. It shouldn't take more than a few times before she gets the message. In fact, once she associates the spray bottle with being sprayed with water, you can probably just show her the spray bottle to get her to stop the undesired behavior.

Tips & Warnings

Cats with claws need to scratch. The spray-bottle technique should help in keeping them away from furniture, but you need to provide another place for them to scratch. Invest in a scratching post and train them to use it and try putting your cat near the post when she starts to scratch something else. At first, give treats just for being near the scratching post and then give treats for using it. Rubbing the scratching post with catnip may help your cat want to use it more, if she responds to catnip (not all cats do).
It is important to pick your battles. Save the spray bottle for behaviors that really bother you. If you are spraying your cat for many behaviors, he won't like you much and will probably become really neurotic and unhappy. Avoid declawing your cat as it is painful for the cat and leaves her without protection if she gets outside.

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