Thursday, July 30, 2009

The Key To Training

Training cats (and other animals) is made much easier by finding a treat that the individual likes.

Anyone who has seen dolphins completing acrobatic stunts for their trainers has probably noticed that after a trick, the performer gets a fish.

Food rewards are highly attractive to cats, too, provided you find one that your cat likes. Cats are known for their fussiness so some experimentation is often required to find just the right reward.

Fortunately grocery and pet stores have many kinds to choose from. Experiment. Any that your cat doesn't like might be dropped off at the local humane society--staffers there will make good use of them.

Some cats turn their noses up at store-bought rewards, and for those guys you should experiment with human food items. We once had a wonderful black manx cat that our son named Midnight. She was a sweetheart but didn't like commercially available treats. After some experimentation, we discovered that she craved small pieces of plain white bread.

In my experience, every cat likes some type of treat; it's just a matter of finding out what turns it on. Once you have accomplished this, training her or him to claw an approved surface and nothing else becomes relatively easy.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Trapped spider

It's hard to warm up to a spider. They are vicious and sneaky. Their method of gathering food is gruesome.

However, they are just trying to make a go of it in a difficult world and using the tools they were given by nature.

The deaths they deal do come fairly quickly and probably after the initial struggle and the horror of the penetrating fangs, the paralyzing solution that is injected dulls the victim's senses.

Yesterday I was in the basement and noticed a grayish spider--the type that often makes a milky-colored triangular web at the corners of basement windows--in one side of the utility sink. It was trying to scale the wall but failing every time. The surface was just too slippery.

I hung a towel over the side and let it droop to the floor of the sink thinking the spider would find it and escape. A few hours later I checked and to my amazement the spider was still in the sink. At that point, I coaxed it onto the back of a blue-line pad and set it on top of the sink.

Next trip to the basement I checked and this time found the spider in the other side of sink. Again I removed it *carefully* and put it on the floor. It sat for a moment and then began ambling off toward the wall rather slowly. At that moment, it dawned on me this little beast probably was near the end of its life.

A few weeks earlier my wife had cleaned the window above the utility sink and there had been some triangular webs there. Probably this spider was displaced and no longer had the energy to start over. Most likely it was a female, and she was probably just too old.

Maybe she entered the sink in the first place in an attempt to find some water.

It was a sad realization and a sad moment, even though this diminutive killing machine had no doubt dispatched scores even hundreds of creatures in her time without feeling a single pang of regret.

But I suppose my reaction demonstrates the sort of empathy that makes us human.


Friday, July 17, 2009

Scratching post training method

Cats scratching a post you have provided is a great thing to see. It means their need to claw something is being met, and they are not causing damage to the fine things in your home, whether an apartment or a house.

This harmonious state isn't achieved without some effort, at least usually.

Cats have minds of their own and generally speaking, like humans, they'd be happy to do whatever pleases them, regardless of how it might displease you.

On the other hand, cats like harmony, too, and will seek it *if they have an idea how to achieve it*. Enter training.

This is one of the many advantages of Natural Scratch: It comes with a easy-to-read-and-use training booklet that teaches humans how to teach their cats to claw Natural Scratch and nothing else.

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Better scratching posts

Scratching posts generally are much better than they were when I sawed and pounded the first Natural Scratch post together in the late 70s. This is great news because it has helped save cat claws.

Sisal is a good material for clawing although clearly I think cedar and cork are better.

However, I'm happy so long as cat lovers make a decision not to declaw and then find a post that works for their cat or cats.

As I've written and said innumerable times, my firm belief is that all cats can be trained to scratch approved targets and nothing else.

All it takes is know-how and that is contained in the training method that accompanies all Natural Scratch posts.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Living In Harmony With Cat Claws

The primary reason Natural Scratch posts exist is to preserve cat claws. People have trouble with claws because of their potential to destroy fine things in apartments and homes. Declawing, however, is a radical and unnecessary solution.

Training is the key and two things make is possible: 1. A training method that teaches you how to train your cat or cats to claw an approved post; and 2. a post that your cat or cats like.

Natural Scratch fills the bill in both cases. Please visit naturalscratch.com to learn more.