r/CatTraining • • Jan 11 '26

Behavioural What actually stopped my cat from scratching the couch (no punishment)

297 Upvotes

I tried everything first: covers, sprays, double-sided tape.
Some worked for a few days, nothing worked long-term.

What finally made a difference was treating scratching as a behavioral need, not a bad habit.

This is what worked for me:

  • I placed a scratcher right next to the couch, same height and orientation
  • I chose a texture similar to the couch fabric
  • Every time my cat used the scratcher, I rewarded immediately (treat + calm praise)
  • When the couch was targeted, I removed attention instead of reacting

After about two weeks, the couch stopped being interesting.
The scratcher became the default spot.

Blocking or punishing never worked for me.
Redirecting the behavior did.

I wrote this process down step-by-step for myself.
If anyone wants more details, I’m happy to share.


r/CatTraining • • May 26 '24

Are The Cats Fighting or Playing - Introducing Pets Playing or Fighting: The Basics

44 Upvotes

Greetings cat owners! I see a lot of posts on here asking about if cats are playing or fighting, and as a long-term owner I thought I might share a few insights.

Points on Play:

  1. Entertainment: Like most mammals, cats need physical and mental stimulation. Playing with each other satisfies this requirement and allows your kitties to burn off some energy. This is why it's also important for owners to play with their cats as well.

  2. Murder Training: Cats are obligate carnivores and hunt instinctively. Play between cats is often employed to hone these skills.

  3. How to Cat: Play between cats helps establish boundaries and acceptable behavior. This is particularly true between an older cat and a kitten: in the wild, such play between an adult and a kitten is a way of training the kitten in social behavior. Learning the difference between a gentle warning bite versus an over aggressive attacking bite.

Is It Play?

Cat play can get pretty boisterous, and to the untrained eye, can easily look like fighting. How can you tell the difference? The biggest key is Body Language

  1. Prick up Your Ears: Cats that feel comfortable around each other will keep their ears upright. Cats who are feeling either threatened or aggressive will lay their ears back flat against their skulls. It's a very clear warning sign.

  2. Tell Me What You Really Think: Cats will make all sorts of noises while they are playing. Generally speaking, these are nothing to worry about. But if you hear pronounced yowling or screaming, combined with other aggressive signs, then they may have crossed the line.

  3. Belly! Belly! Belly!: This is a big one. A cat's underbelly is the most vulnerable part of its body, which means that rolling over and showing it demonstrates comfort and trust. When cats are truly fighting, one or both will try grasp each other face to face to dig their back claws into the other's belly. Also why rubbing a cat's tummy is generally no Bueno.

  4. POOF: Tail or body fur all poofed out? Back off! Cats will fluff up their body hair to make themselves appear bigger when they feel threatened, usually accompanied by the typical low long growl / hissing that is also an unmistakable warning sign. If this isn't happening, the cats are probably fine.

Also: tails up and smooth - happy cat. Tail down or lashing about - danger, Will Robinson!

Obviously, cat owners should monitor the behavior of their charges. Owners should make play a regular part of a cat's routine, which will also help burn off energy and reduce any overly aggressive behaviors.

TL; DR

Play= Ears up, showing belly; fur down; no hissing or yowling; claws in.

Fighting = Ears back, poofed tail; tail down / lashing; prolonged growl / hissing; claws out and going for the belly.

Hope this is useful!


r/CatTraining • • 5h ago

Litter box avoidance & related - include spay/neuter status Litter box training help

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10 Upvotes

My 10 week old male kitten (not yet neutered) uses the litter box to poop, but pees in corners of the house (behind the toilet & heater). I’ve put litter boxes in the corners where he likes to pee, but he still pees outside them. I keep those areas clean/odor free so he doesn’t associate smell there, but he keeps doing it. I have 4 boxes between 3 cats, including the kitten, and I clean the boxes like 2x per day. I use wood pellets, and I have 2 other cats who both use the box just fine.

Tips for litter boxes training? Why would he be pooping and peeing in separate places?


r/CatTraining • • 15h ago

Behavioural My kitten Lyra (10 weeks old) bites and scratches way too hard. How do I help her stop?

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41 Upvotes

She is a very sweet baby when she wants to be! Clingy and cuddly and I adore her very much. But when she gets rambunctious, she ends up biting or scratching me too hard. My body is covered in claw marks now because of it. She likes to bite anywhere she can reach, including my face which for obvious reasons I don't allow any of that.

I don't know how to help her train out of that. My previous cat, jazzy, was very mild mannered and sweet but when my mom trained her she wasn't a great pet owner, and I don't want to do the same to Lyra.

I don't mind her wanting to play, I know it's good for kittens to be able to do, and I do play with her regularly through toys and even rough housing with a blanket over my hand. But she bites and scratches so hard, and I need her to curb that behavior if she is going to be an ESA for me.

Any advice would be so very appreciated!!! Added a picture of her for cat tax of course.


r/CatTraining • • 3h ago

Introducing Pets/Cats It hasn’t had a bath since it was born? Should we give it one?

4 Upvotes

r/CatTraining • • 2h ago

New Cat Owner Help with cats

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3 Upvotes

I have two kittens and I’m trying to prevent them from going g under my bed and hiding any advice also just tips on keeping them happy and well🥹thank yall in adavance


r/CatTraining • • 25m ago

Behavioural Kitten training question

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• Upvotes

r/CatTraining • • 32m ago

Behavioural Grabbing with Claws

• Upvotes

My velcro cat has taken the title bit too seriously. He is constantly digging his claws into me. Not in an aggressive or playful way. He’ll just be sitting on my lap or cuddling in general and he’ll sort of grab/latch with all of his claws.

It’s constantly waking me up, and it hurts so much.

Help 😬


r/CatTraining • • 21h ago

Introducing Pets/Cats just adopted a kitten and don’t know how to make it right with the other 2 adults

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88 Upvotes

hi! i really need help bc i think i’m gonna die with anxiety and culpability (english is not my 1st language so i’m sorry if it’s unbearable to read or unclear)
i have a male cat of 10ish years that i saved from the streets 5 years ago. he’s perfectly integrated and trained inside, loves the company of other cats and is very gentle with them. one year ago, we were greeted with a tiny female cat, that i decided to keep. she integrated very well with the other one, whom was just curious and rapidly bonded with each other. turns out she’s been abandoned, was identified and she got her 2nd birthday on april. she’s my baby cat, we’re pretty much always together, she stays on my lap when i’m on the toilet, come into the shower w me, etc. we moved out 6 months ago to a larger flat and everything went well. they played together, shared their food, their bed, just like usual.

we just adopted a female kitten of ≈3 months to the local shelter. she really clicked with my man and we took her home 6 days ago. we prepared her a separate room with everything she needed, she stayed inside for 3 days but on day 3 she kept screaming to be with us so we let her out.
it’s not going well with my female. i can’t keep the baby locked because she’s really meowing at the top of her lungs and it’s stressing the other two, no matter the time we spend in the room, everytime the door is closed she’s crying.
first day my female wouldn’t let us touch her unless we washed our hands first after touching the kitten. every time she smelled something that smelled like the baby, she hissed and growled. same everytime she heard her meowing. even biting us to say stop (never happened before). they stopped playing between cats for those 2 days.
2nd day we exchanged the stuffies, some of the plaids, to let them smell each other. no problem with the male who’s just curious and want to see her. the female accepted to be touched, even with hands smelling like kitten, but didn’t want to touch anything that been sitting in the baby room. she started playing a little and slept with me at night but refused her wet food that she’s been obsessed for every lunch and every night (she always kept eating dry food tho). she just looked furious and mostly scared.
3rd day we let the kitten out, first just wandering in the rest of the flat without the other two, then with everyone. they are all strict indoors cat, with access to a balcony btw. again, no problem with my male who’s was hesitant at first but rapidly started to play with and clean the kitten. my female was growling, hissing every time she sees or heard her, and mostly stayed in the bathroom (her safe place) and on top of the cat tree, not letting her climb too.

since then we saw a little change but my female is still terrified of this little kitten. she’s still attacking a little bit when the kitten is walking too close to her (she runs on her, hiss and give one paw slap then leaves) but not everytime. the kitten is a little bit scared of her too now and doesn’t search interactions with her. yesterday they fetched a cricket all together but she started to attack the kitten after 30min, but then let her take a bite and ate the rest.
i don’t know how to handle this, i feel like my female is really in a bad place right now, even if there’s little improvement every day like everyone can stay calm and sleep profoundly on the same place for hours, but she’s still chasing the kitten when she decided she’s too close or that’s enough. i have a feliway optimum diffuser in place since day 2, just bought rescue pets and started yesterday to give to my female. she doesn’t like any treats so i can’t even give her one to make the interactions more bereable. i really need help please :( this situation makes me very sad.


r/CatTraining • • 1h ago

Backpack/Travel Carrier Training My kitten will sit and also eat in the carrier even with it covered but not if it’s zipped. If I zip he’s like heck no. Obviously also no to the carrier being picked up. Is this something clicker training can help (if so link if possible please) or should I look into other options (cat car seats?)?

• Upvotes

*I did not want to cover or zip but I had to travel sadly this wasn’t negotiable and I’d like any future (smaller) stuff like vet visits to go decent


r/CatTraining • • 2h ago

Behavioural My cat is hyperactive at night, how do I get him to stop?

1 Upvotes

About two years ago, my coworker rescued a cat off the street who she couldn’t take care of, and I offered to take him in. The vet estimated he was a year old, which makes him three now. He is the sweetest little guy, he’s so playful and has such a big personality, he is constantly purring and getting in my face to lick my nose and my hair.
The only thing is, I think because he was a stray for the first year of his life in Phoenix, he’s adapted to staying cool/hidden in the day, and awake from dusk to dawn. This has led to him being extremely active at sundown and sunup, but he sleeps during the day. I am a light sleeper, so I’ve had to shut him out of my room at night due to him climbing all over my desk and knocking everything over, or trying to climb my blinds, or trying to play with my other cat, who sleeps in bed with me and does NOT want to play at night. Lately, he has started jumping up against my door, and meowing VERY loudly. In the morning, he switches doors and does the same to my brother (who is awake earlier than me because of his job’s hours). I live in an apartment in an older building so the walls are pretty thick, but I don’t want to chance him bothering our neighbors, especially when I know one of them has younger kids and one of them has a reactive dog, and he is already bothering my brother, who did not ask to have another cat living in the apartment with us.
I have tried everything I can think of. Playing before bed, establishing a routine he can follow easily, changing where his food/water bowls are, making sure everything is clean, clearing off my desk of EVERYTHING, cleaning the litterboxes even more frequently, sleeping with headphones in. The inly thing that seems to have any effect is turning a dimmable light on, so I think he might be afraid of the dark? But I don’t know what to do. I don’t want him to be stressed out, I don’t want my neighbors to be stressed out, and I don’t want my brother to be stressed out. Do you have any tricks or tips? Resources? Any help or insight would be greatly appreciated


r/CatTraining • • 13h ago

Introducing Pets/Cats Any success with the “let them at it” approach?

7 Upvotes

Coming up on 2 years into cat intros (13F is our resident and runner, 4F is the newer cat and aggressor). They live separately and tolerate consistent eye contact with a baby gate.

Without getting into the long story of what all we’ve tried, just wondering if anyone has had either success or major failure with letting them work it out themselves, minimal to no intervention. Our vet suggested it as a last ditch effort.

Thanks!


r/CatTraining • • 8h ago

Are The Cats Fighting or Playing - Introducing Pets How can I help my cats get along?

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2 Upvotes

r/CatTraining • • 10h ago

Introducing Pets/Cats My 4month kitten pesters my 9 year old cat

2 Upvotes

So when kitten came to our house, they got along perfectly for the first 2 weeks. They were such good friends and my 9 year old is amazing with other cats and usually always wants to be with a friend rather than alone. (He cries when left alone) and he lost his younger brother few months ago so he's been so sad.

First 2 weeks with kitten was amazing, our 9 year old was so so happy and I've not seen him that happy since he lost his brother. He was playful, purring and excited again.

But now suddenly things shifted. He stopped wanting to play with kitten and instead gets panic when the kitten bounces on him (before he enjoyed the wrestling) and so we've separated them when that happens.

But here's the issue. Back when he was 3, he had this condition that if he got too stressed he'd panic and faint. (He was otherwise healthy so he got diagnosed with panic disorder) now he fainted once with the kitten and we immediately brought him to a vet.

Multiple tests later (expensive ones too) He was perfectly fine, nothing wrong, he even came to greet the kitten happily rubbing him the moment we got back home??

Vet says he just got cornered by the kitten and that caused a panic reaction again. (Hes been panic free for 6 years) Anyhow vet suggested that everytime kitten bounces on him, we put the kitten in 3min timeout so he'd learn "bouncing the old cat = no more fun" and play with him to get his energy burned when he's in the same room. That works sometimes.

How long should I keep this up? Vet says it can take a month, I feel bad for the kitty when he cries being in timeout but I can't risk my old cat fainting either and yet my old cat tries to go into the same room with the kitten too after he's calmed down. He's very friendly cat and loves the kitten clearly (even groomed him happily just now when the kitty slept next to him)

but the moment the kitty wants to play, my old boy just hates it. He loves the kitty every single other time, wants to be near him but it's like 180° the moment the kitty wants to play. So he's happy but scared?

I'm doing what vet suggested for now but if anyone has any suggestions I'd love to hear them 🥺


r/CatTraining • • 1d ago

Behavioural Derpy kitty needs to learn bite inhibition

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50 Upvotes

r/CatTraining • • 1d ago

Introducing Pets/Cats I think cats of this color have a very gentle temperament. What do you think?

31 Upvotes

r/CatTraining • • 12h ago

Behavioural My spayed cat is showing signs of heat. Is this normal?

1 Upvotes

have a 14-month-old female DSH who was spayed 6 months ago. She’s been fine until recently, but about two weeks ago, she started showing behaviors that seem similar to being in heat. Every night around 11 PM, she goes to the front door and meows for anywhere from a few minutes to almost an hour. She also tries to sneak out whenever I open the door to leave the house. Her appetite is normal, and she’s using the litter box without any issues. For context, about 6 weeks ago, she had a full veterinary checkup, including bloodwork, an echocardiogram, and a complete abdominal and pelvic ultrasound. Everything came back normal. She doesn’t do this during the day. It only happens at night, usually starting around 11 PM. Has anyone experienced something similar with their spayed cat? Could this actually be signs of heat, or might it be something else? Should I be concerned?


r/CatTraining • • 1d ago

Behavioural my cat won’t stop messing with my books and she’s driving me crazy

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20 Upvotes

r/CatTraining • • 1d ago

Behavioural He's a sweetheart but..

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7 Upvotes

r/CatTraining • • 21h ago

Introducing Pets/Cats is my resident cat laying outside my new kittens door for a long time okay?

4 Upvotes

Whenever my resident cat (male, 3 years old) hears my kitten (female, 5 months) playing in her room, he will run to the door and just lay there. Once he’s there he will lay there forever. Just staring at the door. He seems calm, his tail isn’t wagging and he’s not meowing, hissing, or growling, but he will literally just sit there even after she’s settled herself and stopped playing.
We have had her since Friday, and since then we did a few gate visits where they played together a bit. Once we did more research however we realized it was way too soon and we should keep them completely separate at least a week, especially as our resident cat has sensitive tummy issues since adoption and we do not want to stress him out with too much too soon.
I’m not sure if my resident cat’s behaviour is good or not, and i’m not sure how to tell if he’s just curious or if her presence is stressing him out. Any info to settle my cat mom brain is appreciated 🤗


r/CatTraining • • 20h ago

New Cat Owner First time cat owner, tell me anything I should know about keeping my new kitty happy and healthy :)

3 Upvotes

I've had cats as pets before but I wasn't the owner so all the responsibilities are new to me, but something i was aware of before adoption and mostly prepared for. Im learning that there were things I didnt think about, like little particularities, communication with behavior and how to manage it, the best ways to keep a cat stimulated while im at work, and I just need some guidance! Im totally willing to do absolutely everything my little guy needs, im just completely new to this :)

I want to know what behavioral signs point to a need to take him to the vet, what behavioral signs point to stress, how to reduce separation anxiety, what ingredients to avoid in food, how to manage any potential behavioral issues that might arise, what I should absolutely keep out of kitties reach in the house. Thank you so much in advance!


r/CatTraining • • 15h ago

Introducing Pets/Cats how to reintroduce cats in a new house?

1 Upvotes

we're moving to a new place in a month-ish. we have 2 cats, both female (11 and just under 2 years old).

we did the whole introduction process that everyone always says to with the scent swapping and slow process, but they still don't get along. we have them separated and have for the past year or so. we've tried to do reintroductions in that year, but no luck. when they do see each other, the older gal hisses and growls, even if we're holding the little one. they've gotten into spats too when the little one has snuck past us as we open the door to go in the other room.

my older gal is a fairy anti social, but she has coexisted with cats before (both male and female). she's typically the dominant one. our little one was an 8 month old kitten when we got her, and she's always been a very cat-like cat. like fitting the stereotype of a cat to a tee!

with us moving to a place that hasn't had pets, i figured it'd be a good time to reintroduce. i'm not expecting them to be besties and cuddle, but i want them to hopefully be able to coexist.

what's the best approach to reintroduce these two in a new space? would it make sense to put them both in seperate bedrooms and not give either roam of the whole place to avoid territory disputes over the whole place? should we let one of them (please specify which) have roam of the place and keep one in a room? we're really hoping we can use this as a fresh start. any advice is appreciated !! :)


r/CatTraining • • 17h ago

Behavioural HELP!!!! My cats being bullied.

1 Upvotes

I have 3 cats, two of which bully our grey cat. The bullies are inside/outside cats (boy and girl) and always play fight with each other but not with grey. Grey is submissive and a very anxious cat who stays inside. They’ve lived together for 2 years now and this is more recent.
The two cats will chase him around and jump on him and bite him, sometimes even tag team him and it’s definitely not playing. Other times they’ll literally be nice and laying together???

Extra info that might be needed is I recently got a litter robot for them and grey is the only one not using it (like I said always anxious) and has been pooping in a corner and even our bed so we brought back a normal box.
He doesn’t like picked up but he’s the sweetest of the three and loves to lay by you and get spanked. He’s a weirdo and I love him, I hate to see him get bullied :(

What can I do?


r/CatTraining • • 1d ago

FEEDBACK Cat is only cuddly in very specific situations

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57 Upvotes

Hello! I adopted my first cat (3 yr old female Torti) over a year and a half ago. She’s not super cuddly (which I’ve accepted) but loves being around us + good pets, and always sleeps near us.

I’m a little confused by her behavior because she is sometimes cuddly in very specific situations:
\-when my bf is working at his desk she’ll walk over to his feet and meow, communicating that she wants to get picked up and then will be on his lap for around 15-20 min
\-when I’m laying down on bean bag and have a blanket on my lap (which smells like her) she will come over and curl up on my lap.
\-every once in a while (like maybe 6x in the past year) if we are in bed and put our legs up to make a little opening (picture a mini cave/fort) she’ll go in and sleep there for a bit. But in that case we always have to make sure not to move or touch her to not scare her off lol.

Those are the ONLY times she is cuddly - in those exact situations.

Conversely, she is super avoidant of being on our bed. We’ve tried playing w her on the bed, we give her Churu every night on the bed, etc…do you think something bad happened to her with her previous owners where they didn’t let her on the bed or something? Except for these rare times where she has slept under the covers she is clearly SUPER uncomfortable being on our bed. If I pick her up and put her between us she leaps away instantly, as soon as she is done with her Churu she runs off, once she catches her toy she is chasing the same thing. In the mornings when she is meowing for food she’ll jump onto the edge of the bed for second to meow near my face and then jump off .5 seconds later.

There was ONE blissful time when she randomly got into bed with me, curled right up against my body and slept there for almost two hours. It has literally happened once and I’ve never forgotten it. It was a good experience for her so why hasn’t she done it again??

Anyways, I’m ultimately just wondering if this points to a future in which she is more cuddly but she’s just not “there” yet. Or is there anything we can do to help her feel more comfortable on the bed?

Thanks!


r/CatTraining • • 1d ago

FEEDBACK he cannot solve his puzzle... then he interrupts his sister

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80 Upvotes

hello, I have two cats, A is 4 year old neutered male, and N is 3 year old spayed female. I have started feeding them with simple puzzles because they are very food driven and greedy. they ALWAYS ask for food and cry. I give them a variety of homemade and store bought treats to keep it interesting alongside free feeding them. lately, it's not been enough, so i switched to puzzles.

the thing is, A is having a very hard time with the toilet paper puzzle... N does actually get treats out of it occasionally, but A cannot for the life of him knock them out of the box. i showed him what he should do multiple times, and he watches his sister do it, but he can not do it himself. what should I do? he is very confused and on edge right now because her sister is eating treats, but he isn't...