Caring For Ragdoll Cats: Good Kitty, Bad Kitty
Ragdoll cats are the most amazing intelligent animal you will ever have but they hate to be diciplined
Frequently, we hear about the different tricks and bits of discipline that masters teach their dogs, and we hear just as frequently that cats are their own masters. But, is it possible to teach cats discipline, train them to be more proper pets? Granted, they are independent creatures, but they aren't completely lost. They are quite capable of understanding that some actions or behaviors are bad, but you have to be willing to take the time to show them.
First of all, violence is never a method to use, and unfortunately, when getting frustrated in training, some people may wish to take that out by being physical in disciplining their pet, but I cannot stress enough that you just can't do that with a cat. Instead, you need to focus on making the cat understand consequences to behaviors, instead of making them scared of what you may do.
But, before we take a look at how exactly you can discipline your cat successfully, let's first take a look at exactly the kinds of responses or behaviors you may want to correct in your cat.
Aggression:
Cats are multi-faceted creatures, with a myriad of reactions and moods, but one of the major points that you must handle with any animal, be it the more aggressive dog or the placid cat, is that aggression means your cat is trying to tell you something.
First, there is actual playful aggression. This kind of aggression was trained into the cat since they were kittens, but it really just comes down to a cat playing fairly rough. Also called conditioned aggression, the behavior can easily continue into adulthood for the cat, and so it is important that if you're given the opportunity to actually raise a kitten, you allow the kitten to play with a toy instead of possibly growing too rough while dealing with other cats. Even a spray gun can be used, but we'll talk about that later.
The major point, however, is that there is a real difference between playful aggression and painful aggression. The latter occurs when your animal is really in pain, which means that the only way to show you how much they hurt is to bite or scratch at you. They can't just go find a thermometer to tell you they have a fever, so if your cat seriously tries to injure you, go find a veterinarian immediately. This isn't a discipline concern, it's become a health issue.
Now, let's take a look at a few non-aggressive methods for disciplining a cat, starting with what is known as a face push method. This method is often overlooked but surprisingly effective for cats. If your cat is doing something you find unacceptable, simply firmly push - not hit - the cat's face and tell it "No!" Doing that makes it clear to your feline that the behavior isn't good, and if you repeat the action when the cat does it again, over time it understand what's going on.
If that method doesn't seem terribly enticing for you, there's always the rattling bottle method. By taking a bottle that you partially fill with coins or small rocks, when your cat acts up, shake that bottle or maybe drop it on the ground. Give it another firm "No!" and your cat will figure out that the behavior is inappropriate. A word to the wise, though: the cat can easily become desensitized to the sound, so make sure you don't over-use this method or it's effectiveness could run out.
Finally, ther is the tried and true method of using a squirt gun. Just fill a squirt gun with some water and a slight dash of vinegar, then, when you have a misbehaving feline, you can squirt them from afar. Hopefully, you can squirt them on the fact, as it's clearer, and add your firm "No!" to it.
Any of these methods will work, but it's up to you to see which one suits you.
Above all else, a ragdoll cat will always be independent
