Cat Tricks, & How to Touch & Groom Difficult Pets
Deborah Wolfe shares cat trick training tips with a demo of 2 kittens learning to come, climb, follow a hand (or wand) and jump posts on command; all by seizing a playful moment and adding command words and praise with touch. Click on my YouTube to see this in action. Plus More tricks and training at Deb Wolfe- Pet Expert on YouTube . Deb talks about the benefits of cat neuter & spay and discusses bully dog breed bans after a recent incident with the owner still on the loose. Please send your text, type or voice clip pet questions, problems or guest suggestions to deb@petliferadio.com
If you live in Vancouver or nearby please Check out the post at Deb Wolfe-Pet expert on Facebook to see the face of the woman police are looking for in connection with this deadly dog attack on another dog. Do you touch your cat correctly? Does your cat or dog not let you touch certain body parts or regions such as the cat’s belly or groin; perhaps a dog with ear infection history doesn’t like ears touched or a cat with matting won’t let those areas be brushed? Deb gives advice that will make your pets trust you to touch them everywhere and teach you to read their body language for what they like most.
Listen to Episode #194 Now:
Transcript:
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Announcer: This is Pet Life Radio.
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Announcer: Let's talk pets.
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Deborah Wolfe: Hello, you're listening to Animal Party on Pet Life Radio, and that means you're listening to me, the host, Deborah Wolfe.
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Deborah Wolfe: So, I got a special treat for you.
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Deborah Wolfe: I'm gonna put in the show description today a link to my YouTube channel, and it's Deb Wolfe, D-E-B-W-O-L-F-E, Pet Expert, on YouTube.
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Deborah Wolfe: Deb Wolfe hyphen Pet Expert on YouTube.
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Deborah Wolfe: But I will put a link there, because yesterday I was thinking about this, so maybe it was the day before.
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Deborah Wolfe: Thinking about what I could put on there that my listeners would like to see.
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Deborah Wolfe: And I do get a lot of requests for demos of cat training.
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Deborah Wolfe: Even though I train dogs every day, that's what I get.
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Deborah Wolfe: I get requests for, how can I train my cat to come?
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Deborah Wolfe: How can I train my cat to shake paw?
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Deborah Wolfe: Well, that's already on my YouTube channel.
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Deborah Wolfe: Come and shake paw and some other basics.
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Deborah Wolfe: But I thought yesterday I would just show you a kind of fun way.
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Deborah Wolfe: You kind of seize the moment.
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Deborah Wolfe: You look at what your cat's doing anyway, just like you would with a dog when you're training it.
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Deborah Wolfe: And then you assign a command to it or a cute word, and then you give it a reward.
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Deborah Wolfe: So I did that yesterday with two kittens jumping along a fence.
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Deborah Wolfe: So jumping over fence posts and I got them to come when called, and I started to teach them to follow my hand, so tracking.
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Deborah Wolfe: And I started to teach them to jump over posts, so with the word jump.
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Deborah Wolfe: So three commands in one, just by observing.
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Deborah Wolfe: A few days earlier, when I was messing with some tarps, it got the kittens so excited that they ran out of the house and on to the fence and started running along the fence doing this game.
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Deborah Wolfe: So I thought, okay, I'll wait till they're doing that again, and then I'll encourage them.
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Deborah Wolfe: And one was doing it.
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Deborah Wolfe: So I ran my hand along the fence, getting him to learn to track a hand movement.
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Deborah Wolfe: And then I could do that with a wand if I was in a commercial setting, I wanted to make a TV commercial or something.
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Deborah Wolfe: But now he knows to follow.
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Deborah Wolfe: And then when he would catch up to the hand, I'd cuddle him.
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Deborah Wolfe: So now that's the reward, no treats or anything.
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Deborah Wolfe: Oh, and my pleasure, right?
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Deborah Wolfe: He's doing it to impress me.
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Deborah Wolfe: So he's excited that I'm impressed, right?
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Deborah Wolfe: So lots of happy voice and happy commands, you'll see.
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Deborah Wolfe: And when he jumps over the post, which he wants to do anyway, and he's going to do anyway, I assign the word jump, jump, jump.
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Deborah Wolfe: So now the cat knows to jump on command, which is fantastic.
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Deborah Wolfe: And while he was doing it, his brother decided to get in on the action.
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Deborah Wolfe: So two for the price of one.
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Deborah Wolfe: So if you want to see kittens being trained, the fun and playful way on a fence they love to play on, then check it out on Deb Wolfe-Pet Expert YouTube.
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Deborah Wolfe: Okay.
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Deborah Wolfe: So I'm going to get right into the news.
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Deborah Wolfe: We had some bad news here in the Vancouver area.
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Deborah Wolfe: And I know you're far away wherever you're listening, but there's news like this everywhere, unfortunately.
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Deborah Wolfe: And what's being done here is a little bit different.
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Deborah Wolfe: So later today on Facebook, Deb Wolfe-Pet Expert on Facebook, I'm going to post a photograph I took of the news here locally wherein they showed a woman with a very large pit bull type dog fleeing the scene after the woman by owning the dog had allowed it to kill another dog.
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Deborah Wolfe: The other dog was a tiny little poodle on a leash with a bunch of kids and another little dog at a little picnic area that was an on leash area.
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Deborah Wolfe: And this dog went into the area and basically just killed their dog, graphically, violently.
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Deborah Wolfe: And then the woman snuck up into the crowd, put it on leash and ran off while people were saying, grab her, stop her.
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Deborah Wolfe: So they posted her picture and they want people to know who she, they please want to find her basically.
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Deborah Wolfe: So I'm going to post her picture too later today.
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Deborah Wolfe: So if you want to see this woman and her pit bull leaving the scene of the crime, I froze the best picture that shows her face.
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Deborah Wolfe: It doesn't show the dog very well, but that's okay.
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Deborah Wolfe: It's the woman we want.
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Deborah Wolfe: Deb Wolfe-
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Deborah Wolfe: Pet Expert on Facebook.
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Deborah Wolfe: I'll be posting that later.
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Deborah Wolfe: So here's what happened.
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Deborah Wolfe: And now this is what's going on.
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Deborah Wolfe: If you're in Vancouver and you have a dangerous dog, that is a dog who's killed another animal, been part of a dog fight or an attack on a person unprovoked, it goes through a bunch of things.
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Deborah Wolfe: You make the accusation and then there's hearing and there's a lot of protocol.
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Deborah Wolfe: But eventually when they figure out that the dog is definitely a bad actor and likely to cause harm, he gets designated a dangerous dog.
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Deborah Wolfe: And then that dog, no matter what breed, doesn't matter, could be a pekingese, could be a Great Dane, doesn't matter.
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Deborah Wolfe: Once he's declared vicious because of his actions, because the owner let him do this in the past, the owner's incapable of restraining this dog, the owner's incapable of making this dog safe.
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Deborah Wolfe: So once that happens, the dog must be leashed and muzzled everywhere, always in public.
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Deborah Wolfe: Okay, that's how it goes.
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Deborah Wolfe: Well, the city of Richmond, which is just a little bit outside of Vancouver, one, I guess you got a borough, one municipality south and where the Vancouver airport is, so popular city, big city, they have gone a step further.
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Deborah Wolfe: And what they've done is kept that part of the bylaw, but they've added to it that all pit bulls and pit bull-like dogs, and they further go into a description of many of the breeds, including the phrase bull-like, are considered dangerous in Richmond.
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Deborah Wolfe: And if you go to an event like the Richmond Night Market, you'll see a big giant poster outside the front gate, because you are allowed to bring dogs into the Richmond Night Market, and it's dogs on leash, any size, allowed.
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Deborah Wolfe: But these pit bull types have extra restrictions or are not allowed in the night market at all.
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Deborah Wolfe: And there's a big sign with their faces, their cute looking faces.
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Deborah Wolfe: About 10 of them make the list.
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Deborah Wolfe: So is that something you want to consider in your city?
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Deborah Wolfe: Would that help?
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Deborah Wolfe: Is that something that helps?
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Deborah Wolfe: I don't know.
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Deborah Wolfe: I've done shows with this before with Dr.
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Deborah Wolfe: Stan Coren, professor of psychology.
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Deborah Wolfe: He's written many best-selling books on dogs, and he understands this kind of thing, the way why an owner would let their dog, who they know is a threat, still be a threat and not contain it.
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Deborah Wolfe: And his take on this is that, well, I won't tell you his take.
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Deborah Wolfe: You'll have to look up that show.
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Deborah Wolfe: But there's a lot to this.
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Deborah Wolfe: Can you really go by breed?
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Deborah Wolfe: Is it fair to go by breed?
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Deborah Wolfe: There's so many nice pit bulls out there.
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Deborah Wolfe: There's so many bully-type dogs out there that are sweet and nice.
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Deborah Wolfe: But if they bite, their bite is so serious.
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Deborah Wolfe: And when they're bad, they're really bad.
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Deborah Wolfe: And when they're bad with bad owners, oh my God, that's a recipe for disaster, right?
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Deborah Wolfe: You got a bad owner with a golden retriever, okay, the dog runs away and it maybe rates the garbage of the neighbor or maybe goes swimming and won't come out of the water.
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Deborah Wolfe: Typical golden stuff, usually.
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Deborah Wolfe: But that's because goldens are meant to swim and meant to scavenge for smells and stir up birds.
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Deborah Wolfe: And they've got this special skill set built into their DNA.
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Deborah Wolfe: Well, biting dogs have a skill set.
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Deborah Wolfe: And when they discover they're good at it, they don't want to stop.
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Deborah Wolfe: So it's a difficult thing.
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Deborah Wolfe: I mean, I once had a couple who wanted me to teach their Golden Retriever not to swim in their koi pond.
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Deborah Wolfe: And that was nearly impossible.
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Deborah Wolfe: So you got to factor in breeding to some degree.
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Deborah Wolfe: And when I did that show with Dr.
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Deborah Wolfe: Stan Coren, it was basically are pit bulls bad and why are they bad if they are bad?
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Deborah Wolfe: And he gave a lot of reasons.
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Deborah Wolfe: The selective breeding for aggression, the dumping of dogs that aren't quite aggressive enough, but are still way too aggressive for normal life, the fighting industry and what it produces.
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Deborah Wolfe: But the big problem with all of this that I see is in most places when they make a breed ban, they affect the good actors as well as the bad.
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Deborah Wolfe: The bad people don't care, still break the rules.
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Deborah Wolfe: And on top of all of that, they just switch dogs.
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Deborah Wolfe: So if you can't bring a rottweiler around, okay, I'll go get a mastiff.
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Deborah Wolfe: Oh, I can't bring a mastiff?
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Deborah Wolfe: Okay, I'll get a cane corset.
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Deborah Wolfe: Oh, you didn't write Doggo Argentino, I'll get one of those.
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Deborah Wolfe: So you can get tougher and tougher and tougher dogs happening just to get around those rules.
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Deborah Wolfe: So this rule is interesting that it refers to all bull-like dogs.
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Deborah Wolfe: And still, if your dog does something terrible against society, it will still be deemed a vicious dog in Richmond, even if it's not a bully type.
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Deborah Wolfe: So this legislation might be more effective.
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Deborah Wolfe: I'm not sure.
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Deborah Wolfe: There's something to the cache of having the toughest dog on the block and wanting your dog to be tough.
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Deborah Wolfe: And I think that's a real mistake, a real misunderstanding.
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Deborah Wolfe: I do not think a dog that is underexposed to life and unable to decide who is friend, who is foe, is a better protection dog than a dog who knows it all.
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Deborah Wolfe: Who knows come sit, stay heal, knows the dog park, knows where to be, what to do, knows innocent child from robber in the night.
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Deborah Wolfe: You can distinguish these things.
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Deborah Wolfe: That's the kind of dog you want protecting your house.
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Deborah Wolfe: Okay, we're going to go to a break and come back and talk a little more about cats day two.
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Deborah Wolfe: On Animal Party, Pet Life Radio.
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Deborah Wolfe: This is Deborah Wolfe, host of Animal Party on Pet Life Radio.
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Deborah Wolfe: You know the expression, cats have nine lives?
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Deborah Wolfe: Well, what if you can give them one more?
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Deborah Wolfe: The Give Them Ten Movement is on a mission to help give cats an extra life.
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Deborah Wolfe: How?
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Deborah Wolfe: With spay and neuter.
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Deborah Wolfe: Spaying or neutering your cat helps them live a longer, healthier life.
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Deborah Wolfe: And it helps control free-roaming cat populations, too.
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Deborah Wolfe: Learn more about the benefits of spay and neuter and meet Scooter, the neutered cat, at givethemten.org.
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Deborah Wolfe: That's give them T-E-N dot org.
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Announcer: Let's talk pets on petliferadio.com.
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Deborah Wolfe: Hello, we are back on Animal Party Pet Life Radio, and I'm howling away like it's a dog show.
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Deborah Wolfe: So listen, cat owners, it's not a dog show, it's a pet show.
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Deborah Wolfe: Ciao, meow, all of you, welcome to the show.
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Deborah Wolfe: All right, so, yeah, the squeaky wheel gets the treat, huh?
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Deborah Wolfe: I know, the dogs are making more noise than the cats most of the time, but not always.
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Deborah Wolfe: When cats are mating, they are extremely noisy.
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Deborah Wolfe: If you think your neutered tom is going to take it away, and you won't have to hear it, oh, you're probably wrong.
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Deborah Wolfe: He's going to draw lots of fancy females to him, and it's going to be happening all over your yard and in your neighborhood.
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Deborah Wolfe: And if you think the term cat-or-walling is a coincidence, and it has nothing to do with cats, I don't believe so.
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Deborah Wolfe: When cats are mating, the female makes a noise that's sort of like a high-pitched engine revving up in low gear, a kind of a sort of a thing.
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Deborah Wolfe: And it gets louder and louder and louder and louder.
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Deborah Wolfe: And it's nothing you want to hear.
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Deborah Wolfe: So nothing I want to hear.
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Deborah Wolfe: Tell you, because one plus one, one boy cat plus one girl cat, one boy kitten plus one girl kitten, any which way you throw it, five years later can be 11,000 cats.
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Deborah Wolfe: I know that sounds incredible.
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Deborah Wolfe: It does.
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Deborah Wolfe: But each litter can be 8 to 10 cats, right?
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Deborah Wolfe: 8 to 10 kittens produced.
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Deborah Wolfe: And if every one of those goes on to produce kittens, and the original female goes into heat every four months, has a litter, two months later they're weaned, she comes into heat again, starts over, starts over.
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Deborah Wolfe: So that's three to four litters a year.
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Deborah Wolfe: You get my math, right?
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Deborah Wolfe: That's all right.
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Deborah Wolfe: I think this number is actually too low.
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Deborah Wolfe: But that's the number that circulated out there or was by Marcy Kladnick years back when she did the research on trap, neuter and release.
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Deborah Wolfe: So I'm sticking with it because it's still astronomical.
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Deborah Wolfe: You don't want to look at your cat, you want him to turn into 11,000.
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Deborah Wolfe: No, you don't.
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Deborah Wolfe: So neuter and spay your cats.
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Deborah Wolfe: The other thing about that is they make way better pets, and they're way less likely to get hit by a car or get in a fight, or destroy things or even be aggressive to you.
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Deborah Wolfe: Like all of that is way better.
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Deborah Wolfe: Now, if you're a professional cat breeder and you know what you're doing and you contain your cats at all time and they're never allowed outside, does that sound onerous?
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Deborah Wolfe: It does to me.
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Deborah Wolfe: If that's all true and you have a market for your kittens and all that, all right, I suppose I'll concede that.
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Deborah Wolfe: But they can get out and they will want to get out and they'll be desperate to get out.
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Deborah Wolfe: So if you have kids and cats, your cat's going to get out when they're in heat.
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Deborah Wolfe: They just are, and then they're going to get pregnant.
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Deborah Wolfe: The best idea, you bought some fancy cat, three grand and you want to breed it and you're going to, well yeah, it's going to get out and mix with Joe down the street, pussy boots from next door, and you're not going to be able to make any money at this.
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Deborah Wolfe: So really cat breeding, dog breeding, it's a labor of love with very little revenue, very little.
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Deborah Wolfe: One C-section on a dog can cost you five grand in the end.
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Deborah Wolfe: It's an unplanned C-section where it's an emergency and there's emergency clinic fees and all night lab service and all that.
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Deborah Wolfe: But still, one blood transfusion on a dog in the same situation, emergency 911, you're at the vet, they call the clinic.
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Deborah Wolfe: Well, they don't do blood transfusions like they used to anymore.
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Deborah Wolfe: They don't bring a donor dog in from the SPCA that needs a home that's really big and docile and get him to donate to everybody for three weeks or so and then find him a good home.
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Deborah Wolfe: No, they don't do that.
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Deborah Wolfe: They don't do that.
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Deborah Wolfe: They make, I wish they did.
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Deborah Wolfe: They make you get a blood test of your animal so they can find the blood type and then they go get blood products to match and in the end, you're into it for a grand where it used to be a couple hundred bucks or less.
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Deborah Wolfe: So, yeah, this can be super expensive, cat breeding, dog breeding, and while the smaller animals are easier to take care of in some respects, they're very, very fragile.
00:14:07.262 --> 00:14:17.622
Deborah Wolfe: Like when I'm assisting with a difficult birth of puppies, I can use my baby fingers if I'm working with a large size dog to help facilitate the birth.
00:14:17.622 --> 00:14:19.722
Deborah Wolfe: You can never pull, you can never tug, right?
00:14:19.722 --> 00:14:21.702
Deborah Wolfe: these are really tiny little things.
00:14:21.702 --> 00:14:28.082
Deborah Wolfe: But if you're dealing with kittens or teeny tiny puppies, it's very difficult to assist.
00:14:28.082 --> 00:14:30.222
Deborah Wolfe: So you can have a lot of heartbreak.
00:14:30.222 --> 00:14:31.682
Deborah Wolfe: Breeding is not easy.
00:14:31.682 --> 00:14:33.262
Deborah Wolfe: I wouldn't recommend it.
00:14:33.262 --> 00:14:36.662
Deborah Wolfe: I would very much recommend spay and neuter to all of you.
00:14:36.662 --> 00:14:38.602
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, so I'm going to go through some things.
00:14:38.802 --> 00:14:39.642
Deborah Wolfe: Touch.
00:14:39.642 --> 00:14:43.622
Deborah Wolfe: sometimes I get these, well, I get lots of these emails actually.
00:14:43.622 --> 00:14:52.662
Deborah Wolfe: My cats, and then they say some nasty word, my cat's rude or my cat's vicious or my cat doesn't like people or something like this.
00:14:52.662 --> 00:15:02.522
Deborah Wolfe: When I touch it, it always scratches me or I can pet my cat for a few seconds, and then it always reaches out and smacks me so hard.
00:15:02.522 --> 00:15:06.882
Deborah Wolfe: It's like being whipped by a towel, these kinds of emails I get.
00:15:06.882 --> 00:15:07.682
Deborah Wolfe: What does that tell me?
00:15:08.262 --> 00:15:15.662
Deborah Wolfe: It tells me your cat wants attention if it lets you start, but that the attention you're giving it is not the attention it wants.
00:15:15.662 --> 00:15:17.142
Deborah Wolfe: So what do you need to do?
00:15:17.142 --> 00:15:19.742
Deborah Wolfe: Go lighter.
00:15:19.742 --> 00:15:21.042
Deborah Wolfe: Go less.
00:15:21.042 --> 00:15:21.782
Deborah Wolfe: Go lighter.
00:15:21.782 --> 00:15:23.822
Deborah Wolfe: Go big or go home doesn't work here.
00:15:23.822 --> 00:15:26.202
Deborah Wolfe: Go less and go lighter.
00:15:26.202 --> 00:15:30.382
Deborah Wolfe: So cats are small animals, extremely sensitive.
00:15:30.382 --> 00:15:33.322
Deborah Wolfe: They love finger light touch.
00:15:33.322 --> 00:15:35.422
Deborah Wolfe: You could pet your cat with a feather instead.
00:15:35.782 --> 00:15:38.662
Deborah Wolfe: Now, you might decide to chase the feather and that's good too.
00:15:38.662 --> 00:15:43.402
Deborah Wolfe: But you could pet your cat with the tips of your fingers instead of your whole hand.
00:15:43.402 --> 00:15:47.262
Deborah Wolfe: You could stroke your cat with just one fingernail.
00:15:47.262 --> 00:15:48.242
Deborah Wolfe: Gently.
00:15:48.242 --> 00:15:55.362
Deborah Wolfe: Watch how this cat that used to swat you is now like pushing its whole body against you, try to get you to go harder.
00:15:55.362 --> 00:15:56.642
Deborah Wolfe: And there's the trick.
00:15:56.642 --> 00:15:58.382
Deborah Wolfe: You go as hard as the cat wants.
00:15:58.382 --> 00:16:00.822
Deborah Wolfe: You go as hard as the dog wants.
00:16:00.822 --> 00:16:01.702
Deborah Wolfe: It's not up to you.
00:16:01.702 --> 00:16:07.382
Deborah Wolfe: You don't say, okay, when you go to a massage therapist, and they ask you, is this touch right for you?
00:16:07.382 --> 00:16:08.822
Deborah Wolfe: And you say, oh no, a little harder.
00:16:08.822 --> 00:16:10.062
Deborah Wolfe: You say, hey, that's too much.
00:16:10.062 --> 00:16:12.842
Deborah Wolfe: Can you please be a little more gentle, right?
00:16:12.842 --> 00:16:14.182
Deborah Wolfe: Right away, they ask you that.
00:16:14.182 --> 00:16:16.242
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, same kind of thing.
00:16:16.242 --> 00:16:21.742
Deborah Wolfe: When you're stroking a cat, especially if it's not your cat or your dog, start really gently.
00:16:21.742 --> 00:16:28.522
Deborah Wolfe: If the dog or cat wants more, they are going to show you, they're going to press into you to try and get more pressure out of you.
00:16:28.522 --> 00:16:31.902
Deborah Wolfe: If they like it the way it is with a cat, they'll just start twirling.
00:16:31.902 --> 00:16:35.542
Deborah Wolfe: They'll start rubbing this part against you and that part against you.
00:16:35.562 --> 00:16:39.682
Deborah Wolfe: They sort of spin around and they move, and they move, and they move, and they move.
00:16:39.682 --> 00:16:42.522
Deborah Wolfe: That's a happy cat enjoying the pressure you're giving.
00:16:42.522 --> 00:16:46.262
Deborah Wolfe: But if the cat starts to move away, you're too rough.
00:16:46.262 --> 00:16:50.122
Deborah Wolfe: If the cat starts to move into you, you're a little too gentle.
00:16:50.122 --> 00:16:59.242
Deborah Wolfe: And the other thing I would suggest with a cat that swats after a little while is where on the cat are you touching the cat?
00:16:59.242 --> 00:17:01.942
Deborah Wolfe: So let the cat show you where it wants to be touched.
00:17:02.022 --> 00:17:05.322
Deborah Wolfe: Now, normally, that's going to be around the cheeks.
00:17:05.322 --> 00:17:09.842
Deborah Wolfe: It's where they have a lot of pleasure glands, and they'll release those hormones onto your hands.
00:17:09.842 --> 00:17:13.922
Deborah Wolfe: And then you can touch another cat, make that cat happy too, go back and forth.
00:17:13.922 --> 00:17:17.062
Deborah Wolfe: Well, that's kind of another topic, how to introduce two cats.
00:17:17.062 --> 00:17:19.602
Deborah Wolfe: We'll get to that later in another show.
00:17:19.602 --> 00:17:21.322
Deborah Wolfe: So right now, we're talking about touch.
00:17:21.322 --> 00:17:26.202
Deborah Wolfe: You can touch its face, you can touch around just above its eyes, between the ears.
00:17:26.202 --> 00:17:31.182
Deborah Wolfe: these are places that it's hard for it to scratch itself right behind the ears, all around the head and face.
00:17:31.862 --> 00:17:33.262
Deborah Wolfe: That's what cats like.
00:17:33.262 --> 00:17:38.202
Deborah Wolfe: Now, some cats will try and get your hand to go from head to tail along the back and stroke them.
00:17:38.202 --> 00:17:40.062
Deborah Wolfe: Just let them guide you.
00:17:40.062 --> 00:17:44.382
Deborah Wolfe: Just like you would the massage therapist, hey, my shoulders a little sore, can you work on that today?
00:17:44.382 --> 00:17:45.942
Deborah Wolfe: That's what's going on there.
00:17:45.942 --> 00:17:53.002
Deborah Wolfe: So don't ignore your cat's signals and pet it like a dog, right, left, right, left, right, left, right, left on the top of the head.
00:17:53.402 --> 00:17:54.542
Deborah Wolfe: No cat wants that.
00:17:54.542 --> 00:17:58.302
Deborah Wolfe: No, no, no, no, no, no, no, please, no, thank you.
00:17:58.302 --> 00:18:01.982
Deborah Wolfe: And now let's talk about where on the cat.
00:18:01.982 --> 00:18:06.082
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, so I kind of indicated you might avoid certain spots of the cat.
00:18:06.082 --> 00:18:07.282
Deborah Wolfe: Now that's true.
00:18:07.282 --> 00:18:17.282
Deborah Wolfe: If your cat is not very good at receiving cuddles from you and you're having trouble getting it to appreciate touch, then you don't want to start with the groin.
00:18:17.282 --> 00:18:19.502
Deborah Wolfe: You don't want to start with the underbelly.
00:18:19.502 --> 00:18:23.782
Deborah Wolfe: You want to start with the top of the cat, the places where it doesn't feel vulnerable.
00:18:23.782 --> 00:18:26.202
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, so here's the thing about cats and dogs.
00:18:26.202 --> 00:18:34.302
Deborah Wolfe: Most big dogs consider themselves predators as they are, although they could be prey to something like a bear or a lion, a polar bear, whatever.
00:18:34.302 --> 00:18:34.922
Deborah Wolfe: They're not.
00:18:34.922 --> 00:18:37.282
Deborah Wolfe: They're in a pack and they're predators.
00:18:37.282 --> 00:18:41.182
Deborah Wolfe: But small dogs, they're prey and they know that.
00:18:41.182 --> 00:18:42.782
Deborah Wolfe: They live their life knowing that.
00:18:42.782 --> 00:18:44.762
Deborah Wolfe: They know they could be prey to another dog.
00:18:44.762 --> 00:18:46.802
Deborah Wolfe: They could be prey to a bird of prey.
00:18:46.802 --> 00:18:50.162
Deborah Wolfe: They could be prey to a bobcat, mountain lion, coyote.
00:18:50.442 --> 00:18:54.222
Deborah Wolfe: I mean, they're food for a lot of animals and the same with cats.
00:18:54.222 --> 00:19:00.542
Deborah Wolfe: So even though they're remarkable predators, they're always worried about being prey.
00:19:00.542 --> 00:19:03.442
Deborah Wolfe: They're very, very small in the world they live in.
00:19:03.442 --> 00:19:05.642
Deborah Wolfe: So they're running around thinking about it.
00:19:05.742 --> 00:19:08.922
Deborah Wolfe: Everything's bigger, everything's faster, everything's stronger.
00:19:08.922 --> 00:19:12.602
Deborah Wolfe: Now, they're pretty well-armed with weaponry and those claws.
00:19:12.602 --> 00:19:15.442
Deborah Wolfe: But even still, a cat feels like prey.
00:19:15.442 --> 00:19:20.982
Deborah Wolfe: A lot of the animals that would try and hurt a cat, would try and get at its underbelly.
00:19:20.982 --> 00:19:26.602
Deborah Wolfe: That's where the bottom under the throat and the belly is where they're sort of weak.
00:19:26.602 --> 00:19:29.242
Deborah Wolfe: So they don't want you touching there.
00:19:29.242 --> 00:19:32.882
Deborah Wolfe: It's also the genitals, the groin, they don't want you touching there.
00:19:32.882 --> 00:19:33.962
Deborah Wolfe: That's private.
00:19:33.962 --> 00:19:35.002
Deborah Wolfe: So what do you do about that?
00:19:35.002 --> 00:19:40.182
Deborah Wolfe: Well, when you're first dealing with a cat that's aloof or difficult or aggressive, you don't touch there at all.
00:19:40.182 --> 00:19:57.382
Deborah Wolfe: But if you've got a rescue kitten or a cat in your life that's just new, touch it there, touch it everywhere in an inoffensive quick sort of a way, as you're petting it on its face, as you're petting it on its head and its back and all the places it likes, slide your fingers down and just run them down its tummy.
00:19:57.382 --> 00:20:07.862
Deborah Wolfe: So it gets used to the idea that it's not in trouble, it's not in a dangerous life-threatening situation just because its tummy is being touched or its groin is being touched.
00:20:07.862 --> 00:20:22.302
Deborah Wolfe: And I would suggest right away with those cats, you get a brush down there so that when they get their full coat, when they have their spring bolt, when they're old and they can't groom themselves, they're willing to let you brush them all over every part of them.
00:20:22.302 --> 00:20:31.822
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, so we're going to come back from a break and talk about how to get a dog or cat who really doesn't want to be handled or touched to allow you to do these things.
00:20:31.822 --> 00:20:35.442
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, stay tuned on Animal Party Pet Life Radio.
00:20:39.902 --> 00:20:41.722
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00:21:39.393 --> 00:21:47.933
Deborah Wolfe: Hello, you're back on Animal Party and Pet Life Radio, and you're listening to How to Train a Cat, basically.
00:21:47.933 --> 00:21:55.513
Deborah Wolfe: We're doing how to get your cat, if it doesn't already let you, and most cats won't, how do you get your cat to let you groom it?
00:21:55.513 --> 00:21:59.033
Deborah Wolfe: How do you get your cat to let you touch every part of it?
00:21:59.033 --> 00:22:00.033
Deborah Wolfe: And the same with dogs.
00:22:00.033 --> 00:22:02.713
Deborah Wolfe: There's a lot of dogs who just sit down.
00:22:02.713 --> 00:22:11.993
Deborah Wolfe: Now, most of these dogs, the reason they do that is they have mats somewhere, and they've had previous experience of people pulling them out or something.
00:22:11.993 --> 00:22:15.033
Deborah Wolfe: Maybe they had ear infections, they don't want their ears touched anymore.
00:22:15.033 --> 00:22:18.633
Deborah Wolfe: Maybe they had anal gland problems, they don't want their anals touched anymore.
00:22:18.633 --> 00:22:20.673
Deborah Wolfe: They got whatever issue they got.
00:22:20.673 --> 00:22:21.893
Deborah Wolfe: They remember.
00:22:21.893 --> 00:22:25.913
Deborah Wolfe: So don't think your dog or cat is so stupid, they don't remember, they totally remember.
00:22:25.913 --> 00:22:29.833
Deborah Wolfe: So now you have to teach your dog or cat that that was just one time.
00:22:29.833 --> 00:22:34.133
Deborah Wolfe: It only hurt that time because it was a problem, it's not going to hurt every time.
00:22:34.133 --> 00:22:37.693
Deborah Wolfe: Otherwise, you run the risk of getting the problem over and over again.
00:22:37.693 --> 00:22:44.333
Deborah Wolfe: We don't want to have a cat or a dog who needs to be sedated with drugs every time it needs to be brushed.
00:22:44.333 --> 00:22:47.873
Deborah Wolfe: When I used to do house calls, I used to go to many homes like this.
00:22:47.873 --> 00:22:54.533
Deborah Wolfe: I remember this one cat and his name was Richard, but nobody called him Richard, everybody called him Dick.
00:22:54.533 --> 00:22:56.613
Deborah Wolfe: There was a reason for that.
00:22:56.613 --> 00:23:04.793
Deborah Wolfe: The big, big, white, beautiful, exquisitely fluffy cat with shocking blue eyes, just gorgeous.
00:23:04.793 --> 00:23:07.353
Deborah Wolfe: Maths every place on him.
00:23:07.353 --> 00:23:09.613
Deborah Wolfe: And don't you dare try and take him out.
00:23:09.613 --> 00:23:22.013
Deborah Wolfe: So I used to get called to help with Dick because I was their dog walker, and they were amazed that Dick would come to me and rub against me and try and get picked up by me because Dick was known to be a pretty grumpy cat.
00:23:22.013 --> 00:23:24.273
Deborah Wolfe: So in the end, I was able to groom Dick.
00:23:24.273 --> 00:23:25.293
Deborah Wolfe: Why I called him Richard?
00:23:25.293 --> 00:23:30.593
Deborah Wolfe: Anyway, I was able to groom Richard, no problem, all over, and there was a few things I did.
00:23:30.593 --> 00:23:42.173
Deborah Wolfe: Every time I visited their dog, which was a few times a week, I'd make sure to interact with Richard, Dick, Dick the cat, without doing anything offensive to him.
00:23:42.173 --> 00:23:49.713
Deborah Wolfe: Give him a little temptation treat, give him a little stroke, play with him a little bit as I was taking the dog in and out or changing the water, the food.
00:23:49.713 --> 00:23:51.673
Deborah Wolfe: Just make him think I'm a good person.
00:23:51.673 --> 00:23:53.233
Deborah Wolfe: So that was the start of it.
00:23:53.233 --> 00:24:04.353
Deborah Wolfe: And then I would start to stroke him when I was there and I would intentionally stroke him where he was offering and do one quick stroke to the area he didn't want, which was the back thigh and the underarms.
00:24:04.353 --> 00:24:10.233
Deborah Wolfe: That was this big fluffy white cat's big nemesis, the matte center.
00:24:10.233 --> 00:24:12.373
Deborah Wolfe: So he really didn't want to be touched down there, but he liked it.
00:24:12.373 --> 00:24:19.933
Deborah Wolfe: So top of him was brushed immaculately, and the bottom looked like it's something out of the bush, the poor guy.
00:24:20.613 --> 00:24:22.293
Deborah Wolfe: So that's how it started.
00:24:22.293 --> 00:24:24.713
Deborah Wolfe: And eventually he would come to my lap.
00:24:24.713 --> 00:24:26.713
Deborah Wolfe: They went away, so I had to spend more time there.
00:24:26.713 --> 00:24:34.533
Deborah Wolfe: So I started doing my phone calls, my office work while I was there, so I'd give the cat extra time and the dog extra time while I was there after walking the dog.
00:24:34.533 --> 00:24:38.253
Deborah Wolfe: And eventually Dick would jump on my lap, and he'd let me brush him all over.
00:24:38.253 --> 00:24:44.733
Deborah Wolfe: And so I'd brush the top of them, and then I'd quickly brush a couple strokes on the bottom where he doesn't like it, and go back to the top.
00:24:44.733 --> 00:24:46.973
Deborah Wolfe: And I would do this over and over.
00:24:46.973 --> 00:24:50.113
Deborah Wolfe: And eventually he just let me do everything.
00:24:50.113 --> 00:24:51.913
Deborah Wolfe: So what's everything?
00:24:51.913 --> 00:25:01.553
Deborah Wolfe: If I have a dog or cat with mats, and they're dry, I got to say, don't do this when they're wet, and don't do this if you're about to go put them in a bath or walk them in the rain.
00:25:01.553 --> 00:25:11.253
Deborah Wolfe: If they're dry, take some cornstarch, just like the kind you use in the kitchen, and take a big clump of it in your hand, it actually feels okay, and then rub it into their mat.
00:25:11.253 --> 00:25:14.853
Deborah Wolfe: Just rub it right into the whole mat, and then brush it out.
00:25:14.853 --> 00:25:17.733
Deborah Wolfe: And you will find the mat comes out, most mats.
00:25:17.733 --> 00:25:22.413
Deborah Wolfe: Now you start when you're brushing a mat or combing a mat, you start from the ends always.
00:25:22.413 --> 00:25:33.013
Deborah Wolfe: And if you're cutting it out, you have to be so careful because it can start inches away and then mat together, and you can easily cut the skin and make a cat or dog bleed.
00:25:33.013 --> 00:25:38.473
Deborah Wolfe: And if that happens, they're way more likely to be resistant to having you touch those areas again.
00:25:38.473 --> 00:25:41.773
Deborah Wolfe: So you want to go super, super slow and super, super careful.
00:25:41.773 --> 00:25:50.713
Deborah Wolfe: And I would suggest you try with the cord starch and a gentle brushing ends first, then the middle of the hair to the end, then the root to the end.
00:25:50.713 --> 00:25:53.353
Deborah Wolfe: Do that before you ever get any scissors out.
00:25:53.353 --> 00:26:11.813
Deborah Wolfe: And if it is a job for scissors, you might want to pay a professional groomer because, and then after all that's done and your cat or dog is shaved and there's no mats at all, then start the training where you're brushing, brushing, brushing where they like it, quick little diversion down to where they don't and back up where they like it.
00:26:11.813 --> 00:26:15.073
Deborah Wolfe: And you always end before they've had enough.
00:26:15.073 --> 00:26:17.633
Deborah Wolfe: So you need to be able to read your cat's posture.
00:26:17.633 --> 00:26:24.793
Deborah Wolfe: As you're brushing it, if you feel it stiffen and it's like not having it anymore, you feel the claws getting ready, just stop.
00:26:25.213 --> 00:26:28.633
Deborah Wolfe: Because it's really important that you are the one who ends it.
00:26:28.633 --> 00:26:34.633
Deborah Wolfe: You don't want the cat to think it has to lash out to end the grooming session, because then it will lash out at you every time.
00:26:34.633 --> 00:26:37.633
Deborah Wolfe: You'll have scars on your legs and bleeding calves.
00:26:38.713 --> 00:26:42.333
Deborah Wolfe: And you'll have to wear hockey gloves to groom your cat.
00:26:42.333 --> 00:26:46.773
Deborah Wolfe: And we don't want any of that at Pet Life Radio.
00:26:46.773 --> 00:26:48.573
Deborah Wolfe: So yes, you can train your cat.
00:26:48.573 --> 00:26:55.133
Deborah Wolfe: And I want you to go to Deb Wolfe-Pet Expert on YouTube to see how to easily train cats to follow your hand.
00:26:55.133 --> 00:26:57.973
Deborah Wolfe: Or you could use a training tool.
00:26:57.973 --> 00:27:01.653
Deborah Wolfe: One of those long wands that you attach cat toys to is perfect.
00:27:01.653 --> 00:27:05.213
Deborah Wolfe: But a pointer stick, a yard stick, anything like that is perfect.
00:27:05.213 --> 00:27:08.193
Deborah Wolfe: Just a big stick, a cane, anything like that.
00:27:08.193 --> 00:27:10.573
Deborah Wolfe: And you can teach your cat to follow it.
00:27:10.573 --> 00:27:12.413
Deborah Wolfe: And then you can teach it to do anything.
00:27:12.413 --> 00:27:20.373
Deborah Wolfe: If you teach your cat to come to his name and sit and shake paw and follow a training one, you can teach your cat to do anything.
00:27:21.013 --> 00:27:23.593
Deborah Wolfe: Now, do cats learn as well as dogs?
00:27:23.593 --> 00:27:24.473
Deborah Wolfe: Do they?
00:27:24.473 --> 00:27:26.053
Deborah Wolfe: Well, I think so.
00:27:26.053 --> 00:27:29.713
Deborah Wolfe: Some cats, just like some dogs, do not want to learn, right?
00:27:29.713 --> 00:27:30.453
Deborah Wolfe: They just don't.
00:27:30.453 --> 00:27:31.833
Deborah Wolfe: They're just not interested.
00:27:31.833 --> 00:27:39.333
Deborah Wolfe: Some cats are way more interested in just being pet and being warm and having nice food and having nice vibes.
00:27:39.333 --> 00:27:41.093
Deborah Wolfe: There's a lot of cats like that.
00:27:41.093 --> 00:27:56.913
Deborah Wolfe: But if you've got a cat who's knocking stuff off the counter, who's messing with your feet on the stairs, who's running around hiding weird things, like maybe he dives into your shoe or grabs your sock, or if it's a rolled up sock, or maybe a lighter.
00:27:56.913 --> 00:27:59.173
Deborah Wolfe: They seem to like lighters and coins.
00:27:59.173 --> 00:28:03.053
Deborah Wolfe: And you hear it sliding across the floor.
00:28:03.053 --> 00:28:04.413
Deborah Wolfe: Scrape, scrape, scrape.
00:28:04.413 --> 00:28:11.573
Deborah Wolfe: And things, when you go clean the house and you pick up the corners of rugs, there's all these weird things stuffed under there, like coins and keychains.
00:28:11.753 --> 00:28:13.653
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, that's a cat who wants a job.
00:28:13.653 --> 00:28:14.513
Deborah Wolfe: He's bored.
00:28:14.513 --> 00:28:15.833
Deborah Wolfe: He's coming up with jobs himself.
00:28:16.973 --> 00:28:19.673
Deborah Wolfe: And coming up with games himself.
00:28:19.673 --> 00:28:21.833
Deborah Wolfe: And he wants you to interact with him.
00:28:21.833 --> 00:28:25.653
Deborah Wolfe: So every cat out there comes when their cat food's poured, right?
00:28:25.653 --> 00:28:30.653
Deborah Wolfe: So just stand there before you pour the cat food, and say his name.
00:28:30.653 --> 00:28:35.353
Deborah Wolfe: Ginger, Puss in Boots, Fluffy, Michael, whatever it is.
00:28:35.353 --> 00:28:36.393
Deborah Wolfe: Richard.
00:28:36.393 --> 00:28:37.653
Deborah Wolfe: Say his name.
00:28:37.653 --> 00:28:40.573
Deborah Wolfe: And if he doesn't come right away, shake the food.
00:28:40.573 --> 00:28:41.453
Deborah Wolfe: Now he's coming.
00:28:41.453 --> 00:28:43.053
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, now you see him.
00:28:43.053 --> 00:28:44.033
Deborah Wolfe: Now say his name again.
00:28:44.033 --> 00:28:44.833
Deborah Wolfe: Don't pour the food yet.
00:28:45.353 --> 00:28:48.673
Deborah Wolfe: Richard, Puss in Boots, come.
00:28:48.673 --> 00:28:49.973
Deborah Wolfe: Now he comes.
00:28:49.973 --> 00:28:51.333
Deborah Wolfe: Now pour the food.
00:28:51.333 --> 00:28:53.873
Deborah Wolfe: Tomorrow, you won't have to ask twice.
00:28:53.873 --> 00:28:56.313
Deborah Wolfe: The next day, you won't have to shake the food anymore.
00:28:56.313 --> 00:28:57.793
Deborah Wolfe: That's how fast cats learn.
00:28:57.793 --> 00:28:59.493
Deborah Wolfe: They learn so fast.
00:28:59.493 --> 00:29:00.853
Deborah Wolfe: So I would do that.
00:29:00.853 --> 00:29:05.933
Deborah Wolfe: And if you want your cats to respect you and come to you and learn from you, I wouldn't free feed them.
00:29:05.933 --> 00:29:07.433
Deborah Wolfe: Give them two meals a day.
00:29:07.433 --> 00:29:09.733
Deborah Wolfe: And of course, they might not eat it all at once.
00:29:09.733 --> 00:29:10.573
Deborah Wolfe: They might be left over.
00:29:10.573 --> 00:29:11.413
Deborah Wolfe: That's okay.
00:29:11.413 --> 00:29:16.793
Deborah Wolfe: But make the feeding not just grow on trees, not just occur in the food bowl.
00:29:16.973 --> 00:29:18.753
Deborah Wolfe: Make it something you do for them.
00:29:18.753 --> 00:29:21.833
Deborah Wolfe: Because especially dogs, it's really important.
00:29:21.833 --> 00:29:24.033
Deborah Wolfe: They respect the provider.
00:29:24.033 --> 00:29:25.553
Deborah Wolfe: And you are providing.
00:29:25.553 --> 00:29:27.453
Deborah Wolfe: So why not take the credit?
00:29:27.453 --> 00:29:28.113
Deborah Wolfe: Right?
00:29:28.113 --> 00:29:29.513
Deborah Wolfe: All right.
00:29:29.513 --> 00:29:32.173
Deborah Wolfe: I think we've done the whole show now.
00:29:32.173 --> 00:29:34.953
Deborah Wolfe: And I've got so many topics for next time.
00:29:34.953 --> 00:29:39.653
Deborah Wolfe: Going to talk more about cats for sure, and more about dogs, and how to train them.
00:29:39.653 --> 00:29:41.113
Deborah Wolfe: So are cats smarter than dogs?
00:29:41.113 --> 00:29:46.113
Deborah Wolfe: Well, I'd say a dog who's already learned to think.
00:29:46.113 --> 00:29:55.713
Deborah Wolfe: A dog who's already learned tricks and reward, and is interested in performing, who is one of these breeds, Border Collie, Doberman, Standard Poodle.
00:29:55.713 --> 00:29:59.813
Deborah Wolfe: In my experience, I'd take one of those over anybody on a challenge.
00:29:59.813 --> 00:30:03.553
Deborah Wolfe: You know, you need to train this dog 10 tricks in a half an hour, we're coming back to film you.
00:30:03.553 --> 00:30:04.313
Deborah Wolfe: Go!
00:30:04.313 --> 00:30:05.693
Deborah Wolfe: Yeah, I'd take one of those.
00:30:05.693 --> 00:30:06.433
Deborah Wolfe: Okay?
00:30:06.433 --> 00:30:13.153
Deborah Wolfe: In fact, I probably wouldn't take the Doberman because I'd have to prove myself to him first as the leader and I don't want to have to do that in a half an hour.
00:30:13.633 --> 00:30:20.153
Deborah Wolfe: So I'd probably pick the Border Collie or the Standard Poodle, or maybe a Golden Retriever who really, really tries hard.
00:30:20.153 --> 00:30:30.333
Deborah Wolfe: Now, that's kind of interesting because the top three, no matter how you test them, all different ways of intelligence are always going to be the Doberman, the Border Collie and the Standard Poodle.
00:30:30.333 --> 00:30:32.953
Deborah Wolfe: And the Golden Retriever is down around five.
00:30:32.953 --> 00:30:34.653
Deborah Wolfe: So why would I pick him?
00:30:34.653 --> 00:30:39.313
Deborah Wolfe: Because he wants so badly to please me and that's a very good trait.
00:30:39.993 --> 00:30:43.353
Deborah Wolfe: That's the trait that's sometimes missing from cats.
00:30:43.353 --> 00:30:49.853
Deborah Wolfe: So you need to find a cat who's either really, really wants to please you all the time.
00:30:49.853 --> 00:30:51.293
Deborah Wolfe: He's kind of in your tools.
00:30:51.293 --> 00:30:52.893
Deborah Wolfe: He's kind of on your computer.
00:30:52.893 --> 00:30:56.173
Deborah Wolfe: He's trying to figure out what you're doing, whatever your work is.
00:30:56.173 --> 00:31:02.593
Deborah Wolfe: He's watching you, trying to interact with you, not trying to heckle you, but trying to accompany you, that kind of cat.
00:31:06.033 --> 00:31:15.373
Deborah Wolfe: Or, so that's what I would call a please you kind of attitude in a cat, a cat that wants to please its owner.
00:31:15.373 --> 00:31:18.313
Deborah Wolfe: But there's also cats who just want to star.
00:31:18.313 --> 00:31:19.353
Deborah Wolfe: They want to be seen.
00:31:19.353 --> 00:31:20.533
Deborah Wolfe: They want to show off.
00:31:20.533 --> 00:31:22.153
Deborah Wolfe: That's a great cat to train too.
00:31:22.153 --> 00:31:23.233
Deborah Wolfe: I pick one of those too.
00:31:23.233 --> 00:31:24.653
Deborah Wolfe: They're like, look what I can do.
00:31:24.653 --> 00:31:26.053
Deborah Wolfe: Look what I can do.
00:31:26.053 --> 00:31:29.473
Deborah Wolfe: That six-year-old in the swimming pool, mommy, mommy, watch me jump.
00:31:29.473 --> 00:31:30.933
Deborah Wolfe: Mommy, mommy, all day long.
00:31:31.153 --> 00:31:34.353
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, that kind of cat is great to work with too.
00:31:34.353 --> 00:31:46.693
Deborah Wolfe: So if you take one of those two cats who's already learned a trick or two, likes to please people or is really keen to show off, and you compare them to the two top breeds I like to train, border collies and poodles or golden retrievers.
00:31:46.693 --> 00:31:48.953
Deborah Wolfe: Let's say golden retriever, because most of you know them.
00:31:48.953 --> 00:31:58.393
Deborah Wolfe: Okay, so golden retriever really wants to please you, kind of like a seeing eye dog versus a cat who really wants to show off, because that's the kind of cat that works the best for me.
00:31:59.113 --> 00:32:00.433
Deborah Wolfe: Who would learn faster?
00:32:00.793 --> 00:32:02.653
Deborah Wolfe: Depends on the trick.
00:32:02.653 --> 00:32:05.013
Deborah Wolfe: It totally depends on the trick.
00:32:05.013 --> 00:32:07.153
Deborah Wolfe: I would say they're neck and neck.
00:32:07.153 --> 00:32:15.713
Deborah Wolfe: But who would I be able to rely upon to remember it the next day and the next day and the next day and not have to repeat too much, just do a review?
00:32:15.713 --> 00:32:16.833
Deborah Wolfe: The dog.
00:32:16.833 --> 00:32:18.733
Deborah Wolfe: The cat might get bored of the trick.
00:32:18.733 --> 00:32:20.713
Deborah Wolfe: The cat might lose interest.
00:32:20.713 --> 00:32:22.773
Deborah Wolfe: So that's kind of the difference for me.
00:32:22.773 --> 00:32:27.413
Deborah Wolfe: Dogs, especially an overachieving golden retriever, they love repetition.
00:32:27.713 --> 00:32:28.973
Deborah Wolfe: They won't get bored.
00:32:28.973 --> 00:32:33.473
Deborah Wolfe: If they know they're doing it right and you're rewarding them, you can throw that ball all day.
00:32:33.473 --> 00:32:36.233
Deborah Wolfe: The standard poodle is a little more like a cat.
00:32:36.233 --> 00:32:42.493
Deborah Wolfe: The third or fourth time you throw it, if he's not a super fetch intense dog and most poodles aren't.
00:32:42.493 --> 00:32:46.593
Deborah Wolfe: If there's no other dogs who want that ball, because that makes the ball worth more to a poodle.
00:32:46.593 --> 00:32:52.373
Deborah Wolfe: If it's just you and him and you're throwing it, the third time you throw it, he looks at you like, if you want this ball, why are you throwing it away?
00:32:52.373 --> 00:32:53.693
Deborah Wolfe: I've done this trick already.
00:32:53.693 --> 00:32:55.613
Deborah Wolfe: Can we do something else, please?
00:32:55.613 --> 00:32:56.513
Deborah Wolfe: That's like a cat.
00:32:57.193 --> 00:33:06.073
Deborah Wolfe: So, if you're training a cat, please don't repeat and repeat and repeat until your cat walks away from you thinking, you must be stupid.
00:33:06.333 --> 00:33:12.433
Deborah Wolfe: Instead, once he gets it right once, do it one more time right and move on.
00:33:12.433 --> 00:33:18.833
Deborah Wolfe: You can move on to cuddles, you can move on to food, you can move on to play, you can move on to another trick.
00:33:18.833 --> 00:33:21.213
Deborah Wolfe: But don't bore the cat and don't bore the poodle.
00:33:21.873 --> 00:33:30.493
Deborah Wolfe: All right, everybody, that wraps it up for Animal Party on Pet Life Radio from me, Deb Wolfe, and Animal Party Pet Life Radio.
00:33:30.493 --> 00:33:33.173
Deborah Wolfe: Be good to your animals.
00:33:33.173 --> 00:33:36.533
Announcer: Let's talk pets every week on demand.
00:33:36.533 --> 00:33:39.113
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