How to Train Your Cat Not to Kill Things

For most cat owners, expecting to find dead animals on their front step is all part of cat ownership. However, for many this can be extremely upsetting and they could find that their cat is bringing back dead animals more frequently than is acceptable. Now whilst you do unfortunately have to expect this behavior, it is sometimes possible to limit the amount of animals that your cat does actually bring home.

Understanding Your Cats Instinct

Before you can successfully stop your cat from acting a certain way, you need to first understand why they act in that way in the first place. Now with killing things, it is in a cat’s instinct to hunt, chase and kill smaller animals. They cannot control it and it is not a behavior that can be controlled. So in that sense, it is impossible for you to teach a cat not to hunt.

However, a cat will spend more time hunting if they have nothing better to do and so getting rid of their excess energy may help to control their hunting a little.

Getting Rid of Your Cats Excess Energy

In order to get rid of any extra energy that your cat may have, you will have to spend more time with them than you usually do. Playing games with them and allowing them to chase things in a controlled environment can really help to cut the chances of them bringing home a dead animal.

You can purchase a number of different toys from all pet stores that will allow you to exercise your cats hunting abilities. There are balls that you can roll away from you that your cat can chase. There are even small soft toy mice on the end of a string that allow you to pull the mouse along the floor and again your cat can chase them. Spending at least half an hour playing with your cat in this manner will really help them to get rid of any excess energy.

Overall you will unfortunately have to understand that hunting and killing is part of your cat’s personality. However, to limit the amount of dead animals found on your doorstep, you can try and get rid of your cat’s excess energy.

Spraying in the Home: How to successfully eliminate it

If you happen to own a male cat then you may have come across the problem of spraying in the home. It is a particularly unpleasant problem and it can be extremely frustrating at times. So just how do you stop your cat from spraying in the home?

Understanding Your Cats Spraying Problem

A male cat will spray around the home for two main reasons. Either he is marking his territory, or he has simply not gotten used to the litter tray yet. Now mainly the problem is likely to be territorial marking and many owners think that by getting their cat neutered, it will automatically stop this behavior. However it doesn’t and there is every chance that your cat will still spray once they are neutered.

The main reason a cat marks their territory indoors is because they feel insecure about their surroundings. Perhaps something has changed recently, such as a new pet in the home or a new baby? If you have moved recently that could also cause a problem. So once you have figured out why your cat could feel insecure, you can then work to make them feel at ease again.

Increasing Your Cats Confidence

The best way to increase your cat’s confidence is to give them plenty of attention. Spend more time playing games and cuddling the cat when they let you! By talking to him constantly and giving him regular treats, he will soon start to feel more comfortable where he is and that should, in theory, stop him from marking his territory. Now it may not work overnight, but given time he should really come around and the problem should eventually stop.

Of course the problem could also be that the cat does not like their litter tray. Many cats will only use a litter tray if it is completely clean. So make sure that you clean their litter tray daily in order to give your cat somewhere clean to relieve themselves.

Overall cat spray in the home can be a frustrating and disgusting problem to have to deal with. However, with a little time, love and affection your cat can be taught not to spray in the home. It is just usually a matter of boosting their confidence and you should notice that once you do that the problem will start to disappear.

For more tips and article please visit the Cat Training Expert blog.