Very important way to spend time
I don't have a dog right now but that doesn't mean I can't work on training regiments with my animals! So far I've taught Zodiac (yes, a cat) to sit for treats using "feline greenies," her favorite snacks and a clicker at the moment she offers the behavior.
Tonight Jondi and I used positive reenforcement to teach Zodi to give "high 5," where we hold a hand up, palm facing her, and she has to touch her pawpad against it. Her reward is rubs and scratches behind her head and shoulders, so this is just expanding on her "hey" behavior that she already does. When she wants attention she'll tap at people with her paw the way a person would tap someone on the shoulder, so transitioning to high 5 was a pretty easy one.
Eventually I'd like to get her to do more complicated tricks, but she doesn't react to a spoon with wet catfood on it (the standard cat training lure). I'll just work with her when she is acting interested and enthusiastic about it.
So those of you who have a hard time getting your cat to do things I can tell you from personal experience that •cats can be trained!•
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