Training A Kitten - The Very First Steps
It's the big day.
You've finally made the step and you bought that adorable little kitten with the big eyes and the uber soft fur.
But as you bring him into your house, you're also probably wondering what to expect and how can you train your cat.
And what do you even train him on? Cats, luckily, are pretty independent and follow instinct.
And lucky for us, their instincts are to be clean.
So what then do you need to worry about when you bring home a new kitten? The number 1 thing, I'd say is to slowly and lovingly acquaint your kitten to his surroundings.
He's just been taken away from his mother, siblings, or friends, so as you can imagine, it can be a little stressful.
So I'd like to share with you 7 things you can do to make sure your kitten is safe and sound, happy, and trained to poop in the right area, scratch the right things, and eat the correct stuff.
Step 1.
Kitty Proof The Place - Remove or make sure they're not within Kitty's reach all plants, household products, and dangerous cables.
Things such as detergent, oil, cleaning solutions should be kept away.
Step 2.
Prepare A Safe Zone - Prepare a basket filled with comfy blankets for your kitten to sleep in and make his own.
Keep it in a quiet area and make sure it's in a warm place.
Step 3.
Show Him Where The Food Is - Place Kitty's food and water bowls in a nice and quiet area, away from traffic and his litter box.
Cats don't eat where they you-know-what, so make sure they're far away from each other.
Ensure your cat always has a full bowl of water too.
Step 4.
Litter Box Training - Place the litter box in a secluded area and lead your kitten to it.
Put him in the box and make sure that the box is small enough so that your kitten won't have any trouble getting into it.
You can upgrade to a bigger box as your cat get's older.
The first few times your cat uses the box, praise the lil' guy and tell him what an awesome job he did.
Give him a treat if you feel like it.
If you find he's still not going in the litter box, monitor him right after eating.
When he looks like he's about to go, quickly pick him up (gently - we want to make this a fun experience) and put him in the box to do this business.
Others have found success by picking up the kitten's paw and dragging it through the litter to trigger their instincts.
Step 5.
Couch And Bed Etiquette - Some people don't mind sleeping with their cats or having their cats up on the couch.
I'm one of those.
I love snuggling with my cat on a cold winter's day.
But if you prefer to not have them playing on your furniture, start right away.
It gets really confusing if you let them up on your bed when they're a kitten and not when they're a cat.
This is confusing and hurtful! So firmly remind them with a big NO that they're not allowed on the couch and praise them when they sleep in their assigned bed space.
Training a kitten to not jump on the bed can be difficult, so be persistent.
Step 6.
Introducing The Scratching Post - Unless you don't care about your furniture, you should invest in a scratching post as soon as your kitten is brought home.
Cats are scratchers.
They will always scratch and there's nothing you can do a bout it, so learn to live with it.
The only thing you can do is choose where they can scratch.
So buy a scratching post and put it either near their food or bed as they often like to scratch upon waking up.
Make sure it's tall enough for your cat to extend fully.
You can encourage them by rubbing cat nip on the post and dangling toys above it.
If your kitten does scratch your furniture, say NO and act angry.
Cats will pick up on the tone of your voice.
You can use a squirt bottle but sparingly and never hit them.
And if you don't actually catch your kitten in the act of scratching your furniture, do not punish them.
They will get confused and not know what they did wrong.
Step 7.
Other Pets - If you have other pets introduce them slowly.
You may want to sequester each of your pets in different rooms or parts of your house for a while and monitor their interactions for the first month or two.
Until you see that they can behave properly with each other, you may leave them alone with one another.
Your first pet will feel a little territorial, and this is natural, so don't exclude them from your love and affection.
Remind them that they are still loved.
Well, i hope this helps you on training a kitten.
These are the most important steps and if you get them down, your kitten will become a very happy cat.
You've finally made the step and you bought that adorable little kitten with the big eyes and the uber soft fur.
But as you bring him into your house, you're also probably wondering what to expect and how can you train your cat.
And what do you even train him on? Cats, luckily, are pretty independent and follow instinct.
And lucky for us, their instincts are to be clean.
So what then do you need to worry about when you bring home a new kitten? The number 1 thing, I'd say is to slowly and lovingly acquaint your kitten to his surroundings.
He's just been taken away from his mother, siblings, or friends, so as you can imagine, it can be a little stressful.
So I'd like to share with you 7 things you can do to make sure your kitten is safe and sound, happy, and trained to poop in the right area, scratch the right things, and eat the correct stuff.
Step 1.
Kitty Proof The Place - Remove or make sure they're not within Kitty's reach all plants, household products, and dangerous cables.
Things such as detergent, oil, cleaning solutions should be kept away.
Step 2.
Prepare A Safe Zone - Prepare a basket filled with comfy blankets for your kitten to sleep in and make his own.
Keep it in a quiet area and make sure it's in a warm place.
Step 3.
Show Him Where The Food Is - Place Kitty's food and water bowls in a nice and quiet area, away from traffic and his litter box.
Cats don't eat where they you-know-what, so make sure they're far away from each other.
Ensure your cat always has a full bowl of water too.
Step 4.
Litter Box Training - Place the litter box in a secluded area and lead your kitten to it.
Put him in the box and make sure that the box is small enough so that your kitten won't have any trouble getting into it.
You can upgrade to a bigger box as your cat get's older.
The first few times your cat uses the box, praise the lil' guy and tell him what an awesome job he did.
Give him a treat if you feel like it.
If you find he's still not going in the litter box, monitor him right after eating.
When he looks like he's about to go, quickly pick him up (gently - we want to make this a fun experience) and put him in the box to do this business.
Others have found success by picking up the kitten's paw and dragging it through the litter to trigger their instincts.
Step 5.
Couch And Bed Etiquette - Some people don't mind sleeping with their cats or having their cats up on the couch.
I'm one of those.
I love snuggling with my cat on a cold winter's day.
But if you prefer to not have them playing on your furniture, start right away.
It gets really confusing if you let them up on your bed when they're a kitten and not when they're a cat.
This is confusing and hurtful! So firmly remind them with a big NO that they're not allowed on the couch and praise them when they sleep in their assigned bed space.
Training a kitten to not jump on the bed can be difficult, so be persistent.
Step 6.
Introducing The Scratching Post - Unless you don't care about your furniture, you should invest in a scratching post as soon as your kitten is brought home.
Cats are scratchers.
They will always scratch and there's nothing you can do a bout it, so learn to live with it.
The only thing you can do is choose where they can scratch.
So buy a scratching post and put it either near their food or bed as they often like to scratch upon waking up.
Make sure it's tall enough for your cat to extend fully.
You can encourage them by rubbing cat nip on the post and dangling toys above it.
If your kitten does scratch your furniture, say NO and act angry.
Cats will pick up on the tone of your voice.
You can use a squirt bottle but sparingly and never hit them.
And if you don't actually catch your kitten in the act of scratching your furniture, do not punish them.
They will get confused and not know what they did wrong.
Step 7.
Other Pets - If you have other pets introduce them slowly.
You may want to sequester each of your pets in different rooms or parts of your house for a while and monitor their interactions for the first month or two.
Until you see that they can behave properly with each other, you may leave them alone with one another.
Your first pet will feel a little territorial, and this is natural, so don't exclude them from your love and affection.
Remind them that they are still loved.
Well, i hope this helps you on training a kitten.
These are the most important steps and if you get them down, your kitten will become a very happy cat.
Source...