Scold your cat when it has done something stupid, hold it by the skin to punish it, clap your hands to scare it or even simply tell it “no!” », all these reflexes are more or less anchored in us. And yet, they promote the development of aggression in our feline friends. In any case, that’s what a new study on the subject suggests. Explanations.
Aggression breeds aggression
It is well known that wickedness breeds wickedness. So, even if our behavior when faced with cat mischief seems completely normal to us, it is in fact particularly negative. However, the more aggressive you show towards your animal, the more likely it is that it will also be aggressive.
Note that aggression is not only physical, it can also be verbal. In fact, spanking your cat is aggressive behavior, as is yelling at it. And the problem is that encouraging, despite oneself, aggression in a feline leads to numerous abuses: mistreatment, abandonment, even euthanasia.
To avoid this and for your cat to become a gentle and kind animal, you just have to abandon all these “reflexes”. This means no hitting (obviously!), no yelling or even punishment. In short, an education based above all on PO-SI-TIF!
Promote positive reinforcement
According to a recent study conducted by the University of Guelph (Canada), cats whose owners use positive reinforcement as a training method are subsequently less aggressive in their everyday lives.
Initially, the study wanted to know if kittens from shelters and placed with adoptive families could be more aggressive than others. But the researchers realized that in reality aggression in cats was not linked to their shelter experiencebut how their new family behaved towards them.
So, instead of throwing water on your cat when he suddenly decides to scratch the sofa, set up a scratching post nearby. And above all reward him when he uses it. Indeed, in education by positive reinforcement, the key is to always reward, via play or treatsthe good behaviors of your cat. As for unwanted behavior, well, the idea is not to react…
The most aggressive cats
According to the study, the cats who showed the most aggression towards their owners were the females. Which perhaps indicates a particular sensitivity to take into account among feline women when adopting a cat.
On the other hand, in homes where several cats resided, the latter showed much less aggression towards their owners. It therefore seems that community life with other cats is a positive factor for our feline friends. Provided of course that they each have enough space to appropriate their own territory.
