How to train a cat to carry?

Fear of being carried in a cat is born through its associations. Think about what your pet’s “communication” with a sinister object is based on. Most likely, these are unpleasant visits to the veterinarian, accompanied by unpleasant procedures, meetings with unfamiliar (and not always friendly) animals, strange pungent odors. Perhaps the pet already had a negative experience of travel, which was deposited in his memory. In addition, many owners close cats in carriers while cleaning. Locked pets, hearing the roar of a vacuum cleaner and realizing their defenselessness, can experience extreme stress.

Cats are afraid of carriers because carriers are almost always associated with something unpleasant and frightening: noise, strange smells, restriction of movement, and sometimes physical pain. To wean a pet to be afraid, you need to interrupt his negative associations, replacing them with the most pleasant ones. It is better to form good associations with carrying in advance. How to do it?

To begin with, we take out the carrier from the dark, scary closet and find a place for it in the field of view of the cat. Why are we doing this? When the carrier is in the closet, the cat does not see it and does not remember it. But when hour X approaches and the owner takes out an ominous object, the cat, having seen it, immediately recalls its past experience and begins to think something like this: “Something extremely unpleasant is waiting for me now, just like then. I need to do everything in my power to avoid this!”. Indeed, after a few minutes the owner goes in search of the cat, she hides and resists, but she is still pushed into the carrier, and the stressful situation repeats again.

But if you leave the carrier open right in the room, sooner or later the cat will become interested in it, and it will begin to explore it. Of course, if the cat is already afraid of the carrier, you will have to go to small tricks to help a new acquaintance of the pet with the old enemy. And your best assistant in this matter is goodies.

Get special treats for cats (they are not only incredibly tasty, but also very healthy) and put a couple of pieces in the carrier. Do not be discouraged if the cat ignored this action and continues to stay away, stubbornly avoiding the ominous object. Take your time, in no case push the cat to the carrier, give her time and freedom of action. 

To draw your cat’s attention to the carrier, you can put catnip in it.

It may take a few days for the pet to understand:There is no threat, no one torments me, they don’t carry me anywhere“. After that, the little predator will be curious about what this item does in his possession and how you can use it.

If the pet is delayed in the carrier, encourage him. Give treats one at a time at short intervals. Then the pet will be able to understand that it is pleasant to stay in the carrier.

It is better to put the carrier in a place where the pet often visits, for example, not far from his own bed or in the corridor. If you put the carrier in a far corner, which usually did not receive the attention of the cat, then your pet will begin to ignore it with even more zeal.  

It is advisable to teach a cat to be carried from childhood, when negative associations have not yet been fixed in her. Many owners even put a comfortable bed in the carrier, and their satisfied pet is happy to bask on it without any memories of flights and veterinary clinics. Instead of a bed, you can put something with your scent or your cat’s favorite toys in the carrier. 

Don’t forget, our main goal is to show your pet that carrying is not scary, but quite pleasant and functional. And, of course, your cat will love to find tasty treats in it from time to time!

Now imagine how much easier life would be if you no longer had to catch a resisting cat and push it into a container 5 minutes before leaving. A pet that is accustomed to carrying and perceives it as a place of rest will gladly sit in it himself. Do not forget to praise him and treat him with a treat, because it helped so much in this matter!

Happy travels!