Fresh Start Pet Coaching

I was watching a rerun of Friends the other day and in this episode Rachel brings home a hairless cat. It turns out though that she paid something like $1000 for a cat that she can’t even touch. She ends up carrying it around with oven mitts on so that she can avoid being scratched.

The next day, I ended up working with a couple of cats that were complete opposites of each other. One, similar to Rachel’s cat on Friends, was untouchable, even by her owner. The other was sweet and cuddly even in an unfamiliar environment with new people.

So, how can you help your kitten become a friendly cat?

The answer is to socialize your kitten and introduce herto new people and places from an early age.

Anyone bringing home a new puppy will find large amounts of information on the benefits of socializing your puppy. However, kitten owners would have to look hard to find the same information. It seems to be expected that cats will dislike strangers, get stressed in car rides, and get nervous in unfamiliar places. This does not have to be the case.

It is not inherent in cats to dislike these things automatically. I have a friend whose cat enjoys going for walks around her neighborhood and many cats enjoy meeting new people. Cats that are socialized to new people and places from an early age are more comfortable with new environments and people when introduced to them as an adult. Most people however don’t realize that you can socialize your kitten and that socialization will result in a friendlier and more confident cat.

Here are 6 tips for socializing your kitten?

• Introduce your kitten to new environments such as the homes friends/family. This not only gets your kitten used to being in unfamiliar places, but also to traveling in the car to get to those places.
• Leash train your kitten. Start at a young age to get your kitten used to a leash an harness. Then you can take her out in the yard, on walks through the neighborhood, and to the park.
• Visit your veterinarian and groomer for treats and petting. This way your kitten will associate these places with positive experiences rather than just with poking and prodding.
• Allow her to meet many different people and animals.
• Keep it positive. You want every new experience and interaction your kitten has to be positive. When introducing new people and places reward you kitten with treats and petting when she is behaving the way you want.
• Take it slow. Whenever you are introducing your kitten to something new you want to go slowly and not overwhelm her with too much at once. Wait until she is comfortable with the first new thing you introduce before moving on to the next.

Are you bringing home a new kitten? Get your life together started off right by scheduling a kitten problem prevention session today.