A Nebraska man was booked on suspicion of animal cruelty because he built a homemade box to put a six-month old kitten in; and then smoked marijuana through it.
While this sounds as stupid as it is, what it tells me is that there is a lot of ignorance on the subject of pet training in the world.
The man's girlfriend was also ticketed for cruelty because, while she claims she took in the cat about two months ago from friends who abused it, she obviously had no better suggestions about communicating with the cat than her boyfriend did.
"Schomaker said the cat would bite and scratch them but he didn't want to discipline it by swatting or squirting water at it. He said they didn't bring it to an animal shelter because they feared it would be put down."
While I am no means an advocate of an unlicensed person using drugs on their cat, it really doesn't seem like these two people were truly motivated by cruel impulses.
"He said he put the cat in the bong a total of three times and it seemed to calm the cat."
This is just dumb impulses.
What are the best ways to let a cat know biting and scratching are not acceptable? The same ones we use with our toddlers. We say "Ow!" We stop playing. And we act sad.
It works. And it's not difficult, either.
Often, a cat biting and scratching during play is just kitten exuberance. They need to learn that their claws and teeth hurt. And the best way to communicate that is the same way their littermates do; by vocally expressing our displeasure, and stopping play. This is not what the kitten wants. They learn they must moderate their force to keep it play.
Which brings up another point people need to know about cats. People used to the way dogs like to rough-house will often try the same moves on a cat or kitten. But they "play" much too roughly. When the cat feels threatened, they will defend themselves. People often say, "But the cat likes it! They keep coming back for more!" While it's true many cats will back off when the play becomes too rough, many other cats will feel compelled to let their person know it's too rough by being rough themselves. They are trying to communicate, too.
Cats are solitary predators. If they are too much of a pushover, they will suffer in their wild environment. So in play with people, these still wild instincts can get both the cat, and the person, in trouble.
I hope the couple involved, who don't seem to be cruel as much as they are misguided and ignorant, will investigate better ways of handling their cats. And perhaps they can use this as a lesson in learning.
Because cats are easy. When we know how.
Written by Pamela Merritt, The Way of Cats
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