How to Train a Cat to Come: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide
If you’ve wondered how to train a cat to come, you’re in good company. Unlike dogs, cats are typically more independent and less willing to be trained. However, cats are very smart animals that can learn to respond reliably to commands with the right techniques, a lot of patience, and some yummy treats.
This guide will show you how to train a cat to come using positive reinforcement techniques that are proven to work with kittens and adult cats alike.
What Are the Benefits of Teaching a Cat to Come When Called?
Teaching your cat to respond reliably to a recall (“come”) command is not just an entertaining trick; it’s also a critical safety skill. For example, if your cat escapes outdoors or gets scared during a loud thunderstorm and hides, then being able to call your cat back will be extremely helpful.
In addition to safety, training your cat to come will help you build a stronger bond with your cat, create trust between the two of you, decrease your cat’s anxiety, and keep your cat mentally stimulated, all of which contribute to a happier and healthier cat.
What You Need to Prepare Before Starting
Before starting your training, collect the following items to prepare you to succeed:
high-value treats
Select a treat that is small, soft, smelly and that your cat enjoys as a high-value treat. Examples of good options for high-value treats are freeze-dried chicken, tuna flakes, & commercial training treats. The more irresistible to your cat, the better!
a quiet place with no distractions
Start training in a calm room so your cat will not be distracted from all sides by other noises (TV, other animals) during the first several sessions.
3. A consistent word or sound to use as your cue
You should have a consistent and brief cue word that is used for this command. Using your cat’s name followed by the word ‘come’ is an example of a good cue word. If you would like to use sounds such as a clicker or other sound (e.g. whistle) exclusively for this command.
Pro Tip: If you train your kitty while they’re a little bit hungry, they will be more motivated to work for the food treats after your training session; if they are too full from their meal, they will be less motivated to work for their food rewards.
How to teach your kitty to come when called, Step 1: Start off calling from a close distance and then gradually increase the distance. Start off a few feet away from your kitty, call them by name, followed by a “Come,” in a happy, upbeat tone. As soon as your kitty takes a step towards you, reward them immediately with a food treat and lots of praise. Do this 5-10 times per short training session.
How to teach your kitty to come when called, Step 2: Create a distinct recall sound for your verbal call; most cat owners use a clicker or a specific whistle; others may choose the sound of their treat bag rustling as their recall sound. After doing this several times, your kitty will make the mental association of the distinct sound you use with something good happening when they respond to the recall sound.
How to teach your kitty to come when called, Step 3: After your kitty consistently comes to you when called from a short distance, start calling them from another room; always use a happy/cheerful tone and the same verbal cue; reward your kitty a lot when they reach you. This step will help your kitty learn to find you when you call them, which is a very important skill to have in real-life situations.
- Keeping the Session Length Short and Positive.
Cats have a short attention span. Plan to keep your training sessions to 3 to 5 minutes and will have two to three training sessions in a day. Always end your training sessions with the animal succeeding. If they begin to seem distracted or uninterested, then gently end your session and try again at a later time when your cat will be more focused.
- Treating Cats Less Frequently (Overall Less Treating & More Praise).
Once you have established a consistent response from your cat, you can then transition to providing rewards intermittently (e.g., every second or third successful recall as opposed to every successful recall). This will help to further reinforce your cat’s behaviour. Continue to give your cat verbal praise and physical affection, as many cats find these to be equally rewarding under many circumstances.
Some common mistakes that may negatively impact your training process are:
Calling your cat to you for something that is not pleasant such as giving them medicine, cutting their toenails, or confining them to a crate will teach your cat that when you call for it, something bad happens; therefore, make sure to always end a recall with your cat receiving something positive.
If your cat does not immediately respond to your recall command, do not continue repeating the command; rather, say the command one time, wait a few seconds, and if your cat does not respond, try moving closer to your cat or providing a higher value reward.
Do not punish your cat for not responding to your recall command. Cat’s do not respond well to punishment, leading to them losing trust in you and making future training more difficult. Only reinforce your cat with positive rewards.
A lot of factors can affect how quickly a cat will learn to come when called, but most cats should start responding regularly in about 1-3 weeks of steady training. Kittens generally learn more quickly than adult and rescue cats that may have less social experience, so your kitty’s age and socialisation history will factor into how long it takes for them to learn to come when called.
The biggest thing you can do to improve the speed at which your kitty will learn to come when called is to be consistent with your training. Your kitty is a creature of habit, and training every day will help them to learn faster.
If your kitty responds very well to food, you may get results after only a few training sessions. If your kitty takes a little longer, you can speed things up by being more patient, and will find that different kinds of food will have different effects on how quickly they learn to come when called.