How to Train a Young Kitten
Kittens are adorable when you first bring them home, but quickly turn into cats; and sometimes, trouble. Kittens can still develop bad habits, such as acting hostile towards guests or scratching your furniture. While you can correct these habits in an older cat with careful re-training, it is easier to start reinforcing positive behavior and discouraging negative behavior as soon as you bring your kitten home. By starting early, you can train your kitten to be well behaved.
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Instructions
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Start early. Kittens learn best right about the time they start to open their eyes. They are curious about the world, but not experienced enough to be overly afraid. The window for early learning experiences closes early; at around 7 weeks old, kittens begin to become more cautious of their environments and unfamiliar things and people.
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Discourage inappropriate scratching by giving the kitten a scratching post. Encourage her to use it by dangling a toy next to it; when she gets close enough to the post for her claws to stick to it, she instinctively will scratch it. Reinforce this behavior when you see it, and discourage the kitten from scratching the furniture.
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Reward good behavior and ignore or correct negative behavior to show your kitten which is most productive way of acting. Buy soft treats to feed her when she interrupts an unwanted behavior. A squirt bottle of water is an effective tool for deterring unwanted behaviors, such as jumping up on kitchen counters.
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Act calm if you want your kitten to be calm; animals sense emotion and will react to it. So if a stimulus occurs, act matter-of-fact, and your kitten probably will, too.
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Tips & Warnings
Never strike your kitten or use physical force to correct or punish her.
References
- Photo Credit John Foxx/Stockbyte/Getty Images
