If you are the proud owner of a new kitten, you may be thinking about all of the fun that you will have with your pet. Along with playtime, you will need to teach your kitten acceptable behavior. Kittens, like other animals, are easiest to train while young, so you should immediately begin training when you bring your new pet home. The following list includes the main areas to cover in your kitten training.
What items can be played with
Cats enjoy batting at objects, but you probably don’t want him or her batting at your prized breakables. The best strategy is to keep these items in a locked, glass case. Otherwise, you will have to teach the animal that certain shelves and furniture items are off limits. Encourage your cat to bat at cat toys, feathers, and other acceptable targets.
Litter Box Training
This is a key task. You do not want your new pet to use your flooring as a bathroom. Make sure your pet has easy access to a litter box at all times. Luckily, many felines train themselves to use the litter box since they are naturally clean animals.
Where to Scratch
Scratching is natural kitty behavior. While a kitten’s tiny claws may not do much damage, rest assured that an untrained adult cat will. Offer scratching posts and other devices that your kitten can use and immediately give the scratching toy to the cat if you see scratching occurring in inappropriate places.
Areas that Are Off Limits
Cats like to climb which often leads them into trouble. You will probably want to keep kitty off of your kitchen table, counters and window coverings. Decide before bringing the cat home which places the feline will not be allowed so you can begin immediately to train the cat where he or she is allowed to be.
Socialization
Your new kitten may not have been exposed much to people, kids or other animals. You will need to teach him or her good kitty manners to reduce the chance of someone or another pet being hurt.
By addressing the areas mentioned above, you should have a good start on kitten training and eventually having a well-behaved adult cat.
Tags: kitten training, kitten
