Is it ever okay to slightly penalize your cat?

Question

I have a 11 month old Oriental Long Hair cat named Toby. Sometimes, if he runs outside, or if he breaks something, I put him in the closet for about 20 minutes. Does the cat understand he is being punished or is he unaware of the connection between being in trouble and the closet?

Answer 1

Hi there...Cats have a fairly limited concept of punishment. Many people assume that their cat “knows” it is being bad, because it does something wrong, such as scratching the furniture, and then skulks away. In fact, the cat is just associating the presence of its owner with being yelled at. He is not recognizing that scratching the couch is bad – to your kitty, scratching is a normal behaviour (that also happens to feel good, and that may be reward enough to risk being yelled at).

Most behaviours that cats are punished for are actually normal feline behaviours – they just may not be what we humans consider acceptable. With that in mind, it is important to recognize that these normal behaviours may need accommodation, and with simple behaviour modification techniques, the “problem” may go away.

Unfortunately, there is a lot of outdated or just plain inaccurate information about punishing cats available. Whether you heard it from your veterinarian, your friend or the internet, we’re here to tell you that all types of physical punishment are not only detrimental to your relationship with your cat, but they JUST DON’T WORK. This includes confining, spanking, pushing, scruffing and pinning down, swatting with newspaper or other objects, and the popular choice for many people – nose tapping. Many people think that nose tapping is a harmless way to correct a cat. If you think of the size difference between your finger and a cat’s nose, you will notice that it is equivalent to a human being “tapped” on the nose with a rolling pin...which most of us would agree doesn’t sound like a pleasant experience. Physical punishment has many negative effects on your relationship with your cat. The first thing you may notice is that your cat starts to cower whenever you approach it with your hands. For fearful cats, this will only reinforce their fear of humans.

The other thing that happens is that punishment can turn a sweet cat into an aggressive one. If you swat or spank your cat, he may feel that you are “escalating” the situation or provoking it to fight. Many cats respond to a nose-tap with a bite or swat – not exactly the response you may have been expecting...especially if you were looking for guilt or remorse.

Many cats engage in problematic behaviours out of boredom. Just as with children, they may see “negative” attention (such as being yelled at) better than no attention at all. Often, in the case of a very bored cat who isn’t getting enough mental stimulation, humans actually reward negative behaviours byshouting. In this situation, the cat is looking for some sort of response from the human – that reaction is frequently enough of a reward that the cat will knock things off your dresser or scratch your furniture, even if he knows he may get in trouble for it.

So, do we just give up and let the cats do whatever they want? The answer is an unequivocal, no. But, there are ways to “correct” bad behaviour that are much more effective than yelling or hitting your cat. Cats learn by trial and error. If they try something and have a good experience, they will do it again. If they try something and have a bad experience, the behaviour is more likely to be extinguished – although not always immediately. Sometimes they will keep trying in hopes that the good experience will return – just as humans will play the slot machines time and time again, hoping for the “big payoff” – before finally giving up.

A four step plan to encourage your cat to be well-behaved looks like this:

1. Prevention: Give your cat an appropriate outlet for “normal” feline behaviours
2. Use correction, but only when appropriate
3. use Remote punishment to discourage undesirable behaviours
4. Reward to reinforce good behaviours

Answer 2

Cat's cannot understand punishment AFTER the fact(crime). Your cat has no idea why you do this to him and thinks you are crazy, he might get fearful of the closet but will never learn why he goes in it. cat can't understand that THEY broke something. Cats cannot understand not being PERMITTED to go outside.

the best thing YOu can do is take these situations away. never keep the outside door open, and if your cat jumps on things, make sure nothing is close to the edge so that it cannot fall off.

Answer 3

In a cat's mind there is no connection between the crime and being put in the closet. Better to catch him doing something wrong and yell "no" or squirt him with a water bottle.

Answer 4

I think it is much better than spanking the cat. Actually, when my cat used to misbehave real bad, I used to pick him up, march him to his kennel in the laundry, turn off the lights and close the door. He meow-meows, then waits patiently. I go back let him out after 1/2 hour tops. I had some success in curbing bad behavior this way. But the technique that really works in discouraging bad habits in my cats is to introduce activities that are more acceptable - makes them "forget" the bad habit.

Answer 5

Unfortunately your cat won't be able to make the connection. As suggested previously, the best thing you can do is carry a squirt gun around with you. Spray it only while it's in the act of doing something it shouldn't be. If you catch him once the deed has already been done, then it's too late to bother disciplining him. Let it go, and wait until you catch him the act.

Answer 6

The cat can't make that connection. It would be better to keep breakables where he can't get at them. I would be careful about the closet thingie. He might just think all those things hanging from hangers make just dandy toys. Next question will be about shredded clothing from cat batting it around. LOL

Answer 7

Toby can't associate the misbehavior with the punishment.

Whenever he misbehaves, use a strong "NO" immediately so that he knows what the "no" is for. You can also spray him w/ a water pistol. They dislike it yet it doesn't not harm them in any way.

It may take a while for him to learn, but be patient and consistent.

Answer 8

20 minutes may be too long. Cats time outs should begin from the moment they misbehave and last only a couple of minutes. If you give them time to find something to entertain themselves or to go to sleep, they forget what they're there for. So I think a couple of minutes time out is OK but no longer. Good luck!

Answer 9

lol i don't think that's too effective.. but I used to throw my cat, Taylor, in another room for biting me. After about 10 minuets she'd be sweet again.

Answer 10

get a squirt gun. spray him whenever he misbehaves. Not only will he stop doing the undesireable behaviour but if you time it correctly he won't even connect the water with you.