High Fiving Cats

Seeing a ton of high-fiving cat video on Social Media lately ?

Galaxy launched Cat Pawsitive las year , a program that encourages animal shelters to teach cats cute tricks( cue : high-fives) to make them more attractive for adoption.
Shelters across the country, including KC Pet Project, are hopping onto the bandwagon .

The premise is pretty simple. A kitty who can sit on command, jump through a hoop, give a paw bump or a high five demonstrates to a prospective owner that it can listen to instructions and connect with others.

The program , as Galaxy says , can make a shy cat open up and more aggressive cats play nice.

The biggest benefit though :
Shelters can be a pretty scary place for animals, and activities like learning tricks go a long way in relieving stress.
Big life changes can lead to cats losing their mojo, their confidence, their “raw cat essence,” Christie Rogero, program manager for Cat Pawsitive, tells Mother Nature Network.
Cats have been known to withdraw and shut down in a shelter setting.

“When they arrive in a shelter, they may have lost the only family they’ve ever known, or they may have come from a difficult life as a stray on the street,” Rogero said.

“We help those cats to feel more secure and confident while interacting with new people, to even spend more time at the front of their cages actively soliciting attention from prospective adopters than hiding in the corner with their face to the wall. They get the kind of enrichment that cats need to be themselves and show their true personalities to potential adopters. This helps them to make connections and to get adopted more quickly.”

Ahead of National High Five Day on Thursday — who knew that existed? — Galaxy is having a contest, inviting animal shelters and pet owners to post online photos and videos of cats giving high fives, using the hashtag #CatPawsitive and the tags @TheJacksonGalaxyProject and @HaloPets.

Entries are rolling in.

“Training a cat to do tricks seems intimidating but isn't as hard as we think,” said Stephen Holdeman, manager of feline behavior and training at KC Pet Project.
“What is needed is the right amount of patience, timing and motivation.”

His explanation :

After he finds out what kind of food the cat likes, Holdeman uses a technique called “operant conditioning,” which associates a cat’s action with the prediction of getting a reward such as a favorite food or treat.

He also uses a clicker, a popular training device that makes a clicking noise.

“In the initial stages, we get the cat used to the idea that when it hears the sound of the clicker, one of its favorite treats appears,” Holdeman said.

“After we have bridged these two ideas together, we can use the clicker to reinforce different actions the cat does to let them know that if they repeat it, they will get a treat.”

Then he tries to get the cat to “target” something with its paws, usually getting them to play with a wand or toy. He “clicks” the clicker when the cat touches the object with its paw.

TIMING IS IMPERATIVE

“Making sure the timing of the click is lined up with the action we want is important, so the cat doesn’t start to ignore its relevancy,” he said.

“After several repetitions, the cat starts to link everything together, and learn that when they touch the specific object, they get a treat, and they’re more than happy to repeat it. What remains is to let your extended hand be the target, and we’ve got a high five.”

So far, about 30 shelters across the country have worked with the Cat Pawsitive program, with another 50 expected to participate this year, according to Mother Nature Network.

More than 400 cats who participated were adopted during the first two semesters of the program, created by The Jackson Galaxy Project, a charitable program of GreaterGood.org.

Seeing a ton of high-fiving cat video on Social Media lately ?

Galaxy launched Cat Pawsitive las year , a program that encourages animal shelters to teach cats cute tricks( cue : high-fives) to make them more attractive for adoption.
Shelters across the country, including KC Pet Project, are hopping onto the bandwagon .

The premise is pretty simple. A kitty who can sit on command, jump through a hoop, give a paw bump or a high five demonstrates to a prospective owner that it can listen to instructions and connect with others.

The program , as Galaxy says , can make a shy cat open up and more aggressive cats play nice.

The biggest benefit though :
Shelters can be a pretty scary place for animals, and activities like learning tricks go a long way in relieving stress.
Big life changes can lead to cats losing their mojo, their confidence, their “raw cat essence,” Christie Rogero, program manager for Cat Pawsitive, tells Mother Nature Network.
Cats have been known to withdraw and shut down in a shelter setting.

“When they arrive in a shelter, they may have lost the only family they’ve ever known, or they may have come from a difficult life as a stray on the street,” Rogero said.

“We help those cats to feel more secure and confident while interacting with new people, to even spend more time at the front of their cages actively soliciting attention from prospective adopters than hiding in the corner with their face to the wall. They get the kind of enrichment that cats need to be themselves and show their true personalities to potential adopters. This helps them to make connections and to get adopted more quickly.”

Ahead of National High Five Day on Thursday — who knew that existed? — Galaxy is having a contest, inviting animal shelters and pet owners to post online photos and videos of cats giving high fives, using the hashtag #CatPawsitive and the tags @TheJacksonGalaxyProject and @HaloPets.

Entries are rolling in.

“Training a cat to do tricks seems intimidating but isn't as hard as we think,” said Stephen Holdeman, manager of feline behavior and training at KC Pet Project.
“What is needed is the right amount of patience, timing and motivation.”

His explanation :

After he finds out what kind of food the cat likes, Holdeman uses a technique called “operant conditioning,” which associates a cat’s action with the prediction of getting a reward such as a favorite food or treat.

He also uses a clicker, a popular training device that makes a clicking noise.

“In the initial stages, we get the cat used to the idea that when it hears the sound of the clicker, one of its favorite treats appears,” Holdeman said.

“After we have bridged these two ideas together, we can use the clicker to reinforce different actions the cat does to let them know that if they repeat it, they will get a treat.”

Then he tries to get the cat to “target” something with its paws, usually getting them to play with a wand or toy. He “clicks” the clicker when the cat touches the object with its paw.

TIMING IS IMPERATIVE

“Making sure the timing of the click is lined up with the action we want is important, so the cat doesn’t start to ignore its relevancy,” he said.

“After several repetitions, the cat starts to link everything together, and learn that when they touch the specific object, they get a treat, and they’re more than happy to repeat it. What remains is to let your extended hand be the target, and we’ve got a high five.”

So far, about 30 shelters across the country have worked with the Cat Pawsitive program, with another 50 expected to participate this year, according to Mother Nature Network.

More than 400 cats who participated were adopted during the first two semesters of the program, created by The Jackson Galaxy Project, a charitable program of GreaterGood.org.