Give Your Cat a High-five
While commands like sit, stay, and fetch are often associated with Fido, your feline friends can also be fast learners when it comes to tricks for treats. Here, Chancel Siebuhr, an animal-training specialist with the San Diego Humane Society, highlights four simple steps to teach your cat to high-five—with the help of a clicker and a handful of food.
Step 1: Put your hand out, open fisted. When your cat puts her nose or paw to your hand, click and provide a treat.(We treated with a tuna-flavor Feline Lickety Stik from PetSafe®)
Step 2: Next, close your hand with a treat inside. When your cat noses or paws it, click and treat.
Step 3: Then, open your hand and hold it up, in high-five position. When your cat paws it, click and treat.
Step 4: Give the command, “High-five.” Click and treat when your cat complies.
“Although cats work a little slower than dogs, if you have a playful, food-motivated cat, you can likely teach this trick in 20 to 30 minutes,” Siebuhr says. “To make training less stressful, break it up into three to five 10-minute training sessions with breaks in between.”
Published: January 1, 2020
