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I would never describe Patrick as the most cooperative cat, and he certainly lives up to the notion that cats are stubborn and independent, however with a little bit of coaxing (and a few treats) he seems to be able get the hang of simple tricks and tasks.
As Patrick is a keen connoisseur of most foods (what cat isn’t?) we thought it would be good to teach him to sit on command for his treats, rather than grabbing them out of my hand. I had always assumed that Patrick was untrainable, however after following a few simple steps, he has been learning this trick with ease. As with teaching a cat anything, it took a little bit of patience and lots of praise but the results were definitely worth it!
HERE ARE THE STEPS WE FOLLOWED TO TEACH PATRICK TO ‘SIT’:
Step 1: We made sure we had a favorable treat handy (Patrick loves a bit of tuna or salmon)
Step 2: When Patrick was in a standing position, we held the food in front of his nose, though not too high or else he would stand on his back legs!
Step 3: We then moved the food in an upward motion (again not too high) and gently pushed his bum to the ground – saying ‘sit’ at the same time.
Step 4: As Patrick’s bum touched the floor, we gave him the treat and lots of praise for completing the task
Step 5: We repeated this until Patrick got the hang of this (which was surprisingly quickly) and begins to sit when you make the upward movement near to his nose and say ‘sit’. Soon we will be able to complete the trick without the treat!