If you are lucky enough to have a cat that is willing to work with you and learn tricks, then teaching your cat tricks can be a lot of fun and a great bonding experience. But, if you don't know what you're doing, it can be frustrating for both of you.
There are some basic things that you need to know and do in order to get started and then to successfully train your cat.
The first thing to know is that cats do not respond well to negative reinforcement or punishment. They will not learn when they are being yelled at or punished. So, treat training is the best way to teach your cat tricks.
The second thing to remember is that cats learn through association. If they do something, like scratch the couch and then you yell at them, they will associate scratching with getting yelled at. If they see their food come out every time they sit on command, then they will quickly learn that sitting gets them food. You can also use visual cues, like holding a treat above their head so they have to look up, which makes them sit down.
