Katteaining

Katteaining is a practice of training domesticated cats using behavior-based methods to teach desirable actions and reduce unwanted ones. Training typically relies on positive reinforcement, timing, and understanding feline motivation. Proponents emphasize collaboration with the animal rather than coercion. Common targets include coming when called, using designated feeding areas, litter box habits, scratching behavior, and simple tricks.

There is no formal certification or universally accepted body for katteaining. The term is used mainly in online communities, blogs, and among private trainers who focus on cats. The approach developed in part from dog training practices such as clicker training, adapted to feline behavior, with attention to cats' independence and specific motivational cues.

Techniques include clicker training, shaping behavior by rewarding successive approximations, targeting (touching a designated object with the nose or paw), luring with treats, and short, frequent sessions. Trainers emphasize observation of signals like tolerance, arousal, and stress, and avoid punishment, force, or punishment-based corrections.

Applications range from household behavior management to enrichment programs and therapy or active show training. Katteaining often uses short sessions, high-value rewards, and flexible goals to fit a cat's mood and attention span.

Limitations and welfare: Cats vary widely in motivation and comfort with training; success rates depend on individual personality, environment, and consistency. Training should be paced to avoid stress; signs to pause include yowling, freezing, flattened ears, or retreat. Critics note that training cannot meaningfully transform all cats and emphasize humane, voluntary participation.

See also: cat training, animal training, positive reinforcement, enrichment.