Cat Behavior and Training

       A while ago attended our first cat show and cat agility trial.

What an experience!   Agility for cats is a relatively new activity but it is catching on in the U.S. and other countries.  There is an organization devoted to the sport called the International Cat Agility Tournaments (www.CatAgility.com) 

      The agility course we observed had 2 tunnels, a cat-size version

of an A-frame (cat walk), weave poles, a horizontal "ladder" (ladder walk), and 2 hoops.  Trained, competitive cats can complete the course in

under 30 seconds.  Most of the cats we observed were experiencing the course for the first time.  The owners were using various sorts of toys to lure their cats through the course.  In a timed trial, they had 3

minutes to complete the course.

The course was set up for novice cats.  For advanced cats, as seen in the photos at www.catagility.com,  the hoops could be raised, and also be separated, requiring the cats to jump through 4 rather than 2.   Also, the two pieces of each platform could be separated by as much as 6 feet,

requiring the cats to jump this distance.

Although the cats we observed were inexperienced in agility, they all seemed to share several characteristics.  They were extremely playful cats at home, they were well socialized and not afraid of

new environments, and they showed a natural curiosity about their world.

When first put onto the course, the cats seemed to require several minutes to feel comfortable there.  They would sniff and look around before being able to show any interest in their toys.  The owners often

switched from one toy to another to keep their cats interested.  It was surprising how many of the cats could be lured through the course successfully.

The cats seemed to have the most difficulty jumping up on the catwalk and the platform rather than going under them.  This makes sense, because of cats' tendency to want to hide or get under things when frightened.  Probably for a similar reason, some cats would enter the tunnels, but would not want to come out.  And just as beginning dogs can do with jumps, their tendency was to go around the hoops rather than through them.

You can see videos of cats running agility courses on the web such as at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THFeH8g_Hs0.  They are great fun to watch.  If you get a chance to see a live competition at a cat show, don’t miss it. 

If you'd like to start training your cat, try "Clicker Training For Cats" by Karen Pryor or "Cat Training in 10 Minutes" by Miriam Fields-Babineau.  Cat agility equipment is also available from the ICAT website(www.CatAgility.com).