Training cats and other animals

Dolphins jump out of the water and pass through hoops; then they dance across the surface on their tails. Then, usually, a trainer offers praise and a fish treat. This is how training generally works.

Intermittent reinforcement is stronger than constant but regardless of how often a reward is offered it has to be something the animal--in the case of scratching, cats--will perform for.

Try different store-bought treats with you cat or, if your gal or guy is fussy, try different table scraps. For example, small pieces of bread or vegetables. The range of foods customers have told me their cats love is astonishing. All cats crave some sort of treat, it's just a matter of isolating which...

This done, training a cat to do what you want it to and to avoid doing what you don't want it to becomes pretty easy.