Training Techniques for Addressing Undesirable Behaviors

While it is easier to prevent undesirable behaviors than to manage them (see section on Techniques to Prevent Unwanted Behaviors), positive reinforcement training can still help reverse these behaviors.

Disciplining Can Have Negative Effects

  • Disciplining in the form of verbal or physical punishment (e.g., using squirt bottles) in an attempt to stop unwanted behaviors can increase feline protective emotions, lead to additional undesirable behaviors, and potentially break down the human-cat relationship.
  • The protective emotions also make it more difficult for the cat to learn new behaviors.
Since many behaviors perceived as undesirable to the caregiver are normal cat behaviors, a change in human behavior is often needed. For example, if a cat is scratching a sofa, using a furniture protector for the sofa and placing a tall, sturdy scratching post or cat tree in that location will allow the cat to engage in normal scratching behavior on an item that caregivers prefer to be scratched. The cat is then rewarded for what we want the cat to learn.

Undesirable Behaviors

Undesirable behaviors can include waking caregivers early, play biting, jumping on counters or dining tables, scratching furniture or carpet, vocalizing for attention, and house-soiling.

Causes of undesirable behaviors:
  • Normal cat behaviors done at a time or place that are undesirable to the caregiver.
  • Unmet physical or social environmental needs of the cat (See Setting Up the Environment for Success).
  • Caregivers inadvertently reward undesirable behaviors.
  • Illness or pain.
  • Multifactorial.

When to Seek Medical Attention

Recommend a medical assessment if a cat is:
  • Biting or scratching people.
  • Urinating or defecating outside the litter box (soiling or marking).
  • Exhibiting chronic anxiety or compulsive behaviors.
  • Showing any changes in their usual behavior(s).
A medical workup is also recommended for increased vocalization, as hypertension, hyperthyroidism, pain, and loss of special senses should be ruled out.

Waking Caregivers Early

This attention-seeking behavior can include vocalizing, pawing at caregivers, or knocking items off of dressers and/or shelves. As cats normally eat at dusk and dawn, cats may wake caregivers very early in the morning to be fed with one or more of these behaviors.
Reasons for the behavior:
  • A person will get out of bed and feed the cat so that they can go back to sleep until the alarm rings. However, this human behavior teaches the cat to continue to wake them early for food since the cat is inadvertently rewarded for the behavior by getting the food they wanted. Disciplining or punishing the cat for waking them will only lead to the cat’s anxiety and frustration.
Solution:
  • As cats are hunters and foragers, it’s best to take the human out of the feeding equation.
  • One option is a cat feeder that is timed to open earlier than when the cat would start to wake the person.
  • To simulate normal hunting and feeding behaviors, recommend a treat dispenser that can be set to a certain time to toss one dry kibble at a time and in different directions.
  • This is very rewarding to the cat and will keep the cat busy, allowing caregivers to get their desired sleep.

Vocalizing Frequently for Attention

Cats primarily use vocalizations to communicate with caregivers, as they rely on more subtle signs for intercat communication (e.g., smell, subtle visual cues). They may vocalize to seek attention, particularly during specific times of day, such as when caregivers return home after a long day of work.
Reason for the behavior:
Solution:
  • In addition to meeting the individual’s needs, it is important to ensure positive and predictable human-cat interactions at consistent times daily to help mitigate this attention-seeking behavior.
  • This approach does not need to be based on specific times, but rather a routine schedule when caregivers typically have more time.
    • For example, cats need interactive play at least twice daily, and this, and other positive human-cat interactions, can be scheduled before and after work, or in the evening and before bedtime.
  • Reward calm and quiet behaviors with preferred treats and attention.
  • Positive reinforcement training, such as mat training, is an effective way to teach a cat a new, desirable behavior to replace the undesirable one.
  • If the cat vocalizes at specific times, redirect their behavior before it starts, offering an alternative activity to prevent vocalization.

As mentioned earlier, a medical workup is also recommended for increased vocalization as hypertension, hyperthyroidism, pain, and loss of special senses should be ruled out.

Getting on the Counter

Cats often jump onto counters or a table because they may not have enough places to perch near their humans, or they have learned through classical conditioning that the counter is associated with delicious food.
Reasons for the behavior:
  • Perhaps a caregiver has given the cat bits of human food from the counter with the goal of getting them down from the food, but instead, it has inadvertently rewarded them.
  • As cats are solitary hunters and scavengers, getting onto the counter is rewarding because they have learned that they can get food there.
  • Even if yelled at or squirted with water, or using a deterrent such as a scat mat—which will likely cause fear-anxiety and additional undesirable behaviors—the cat will continue to jump onto the counter because the food is so rewarding.
Solution:
  • The best way to stop this behavior is by changing human behavior from verbal or physical punishment to positively reinforcing desirable cat behavior.
  • Human food should never be left on the counter or in other locations that cats can access.
  • Instead, a caregiver should provide desirable and high perches nearby with at least one warm option (cats usually prefer warmth, such as a sunny window or a safely heated commercial cat bed or mat, but not a heating pad as it can cause burns), and place treats on them.
  • This rewards the cat for going there to rest.
  • You can also train the cat with luring and capturing, rewarding the cat when they go to a perch instead of the counter.

Biting

A cat may bite or scratch to protect themselves if they are in pain or feeling sick, as human interaction may cause more discomfort. Veterinary attention is needed to rule out medical problems and to address human safety. Punishment can lead to fear of people and potentially more biting or scratching behaviors, and is never appropriate.
Play Biting
Caregivers often think it’s cute to move their hands and feet for kittens to nip at. This human behavior teaches the cat that play biting is acceptable, but these cats continue to do this as they grow, and people soon learn that the bite of an adult cat, even in play, is painful.
Solutions:
  • • It is recommended to replace hand play with play sessions using a toy on a wand or another object (i.e., toys that can be tossed down a hall to elicit chasing) a minimum of twice daily to satisfy the cat’s hunting instincts and to keep hands out of reach.
  • If a cat still tries to nip at feet as people walk through the home, recommend redirecting the “hunting” to a toy by carrying a dangling wand toy when walking through the home for the cat to learn the appropriate behavior.
  • Educate caregivers that object play should continue routinely regardless of the cat’s age, as this simulates hunting behavior, satisfying an important feline environmental need.
Biting with Petting
Even if a cat wants to be petted and enjoys it for a while, if petted too long, too quickly, or too vigorously, they may then turn and bite with the goal of stopping the overpetting.
Solutions:
Biting with Frustration
An even more serious problem is biting with frustration.
Reasons for this behavior:
  • This usually occurs when a cat sees an outdoor cat or there is physical conflict between household cats, and the caregiver tries to intervene or comfort a cat.
  • The cat is highly frustrated and aroused as they cannot reach the cat outdoors, or the household conflict was abruptly stopped, and they redirect their bite onto the person.
  • This is a normal response to the frustration, not a bad behavior, even though it is dangerous. The cat does not want to bite the person, but is still aroused and feeling unsafe, unintentionally biting the person.
Solutions:
  • Caregiver behavior should be redirected to never approach or pick up a highly aroused cat, but rather to intervene with a visual barrier.
  • Good examples are placing a large piece of cardboard or opaque (not clear) plastic between household cats or a privacy film on windows or patio doors where outdoor cats come to the home (see 2024 AAFP Intercat Tension Guidelines: Recognition, Prevention, and Management for more information on protecting human safety, and managing intercat tension between household cats or an outdoor cat frustrating an indoor cat).

House-Soiling or Marking

One of the least-desired behaviors to caregivers is house-soiling or marking.
First: Determine if There Is a Medical Cause
  • As underlying medical problems are common, a thorough history, examination with orthopedic assessment, and diagnostics should be performed. In addition to a baseline dependent on the cat’s life stage (see 2021 AAHA/AAFP Feline Life Stage Guidelines), the following is indicated.
  • These diagnostics are necessary to rule out uroliths and other bladder abnormalities, and to identify stress-related feline idiopathic cystitis, also known as bladder pain syndrome (see 2014 AAFP/ISFM Guidelines for Diagnosing and Solving House-soiling Behavior in Cats), or diarrhea or constipation and their etiologies.
  • If urine soiling is occurring, a urinary ultrasound, urine culture, and other diagnostics as needed are required (the urinalysis is included in the baseline).
  • If it is fecal soiling, the assessment of fecal consistency, checking for parasites, and other diagnostics as needed are required.
Next: Are Environmental Needs Being Met?
  • If medical conditions are ruled out, the cause is feline distress within the cat’s physical and/or social environment.
  • Instead of punishment or use of aversives, which can increase a cat’s distress and worsen undesirable behaviors, it is best to address the cat’s environmental needs.
  • This includes using the optimal litter and placing litter boxes in appropriate locations for each cat, cleaning soiled areas with recommended enzyme breakdown products (see 2014 AAFP/ISFM Guidelines for Diagnosing and Solving House-soiling Behavior in Cats and the House-Soiling Guideline Brief), and minimizing the individual’s stressors.
  • Ensure that litter boxes are placed in different locations in the home, with at least one box per floor to allow easy exit and entry, and to minimize potential blocking access to boxes by another cat or other species (see 2024 AAFP Intercat Tension Guidelines: Recognition, Prevention, and Management for more information about intercat tension and blocking behavior).
If the house-soiling is secondary to feline idiopathic cystitis, manage the condition both medically and by modifying the environment to minimize all stressors within the home. Additional diagnostics and management are indicated if there are recurrences.

Undesirable Scratching

Scratching is a normal cat behavior that serves multiple functions, including marking their territory and maintaining nail health. Cats prefer to scratch mark in prominent areas, which may lead to furniture or carpet scratching. Often, this is when they wake up. Increased scratching behavior is a sign of distress. The FelineVMA strongly opposes declawing, which can lead to both acute and chronic pain and undesirable behavior changes.
Solutions:
  • Some cats prefer horizontal surfaces to scratch, so a caregiver may provide several options to learn what an individual cat desires. A cat’s preference may change as they get older; for example, a senior cat is likely to change their preference from vertical to horizontal surfaces.
  • Use treats, toys, or preferred human attention to entice and reward the cat’s use of scratching posts or other scratchers through positive reinforcement training.
  • Resolve the undesirable behavior by recommending the caregiver provide sturdy and tall scratching posts or cat trees with sisal rope or other preferred scratching materials in the location(s) they are scratching.
  • Additionally, if the cat has already learned to scratch the sofa or carpet, apply a carpet or furniture protector, such as plastic commercial sofa protectors adhered onto the sofa (do not use double-sided sticky tape as a deterrent, as punishment is not the goal), to allow normal scratching behavior that caregivers prefer.
  • Throw blankets may also be used to aid in protecting furniture.
  • Cats like to scratch when they wake up, so keeping an appropriate scratching surface near the cat’s preferred resting spot is helpful.
  • See Claw Friendly Educational Toolkit for additional detailed information.

Key Takeaways


Recommend the following to caregivers to change unwanted behaviors:
  • No punishment or disciplining
  • Meet the cat’s environmental needs to allow for normal and instinctual cat behaviors in locations the cat prefers
  • Redirect and positively reinforce desired behaviors
  • Human change is needed if caregivers are inadvertently rewarding undesirable behaviors
  • Have patience!
  • Changing unwanted behaviors takes time and consistency