How to teach your cat to play dead


Teaching your cat tricks can be a lot of fun, since it is a very cute and at the same time funny way to go against the rebellious and individualistic spirit of these animals.

Also, teaching kittens some commands is very stimulating for their minds. Therefore, now we are going to explain how to teach your cat to play dead, which is a very common trick in dogs, but here we will show you how to apply it to kittens.


Some tips before starting

For you to be successful when teaching this new trick to your cat, it is important that you take into account some recommendations.

 The first thing is that you must understand that cats are not the same as dogs. The latter enjoy spending long periods of time doing tricks to interact with their owners. For their part, cats are very individualistic and although they do enjoy the time they spend with their owners, they do not like to be bothered by signaling them over and over again.

 Only give the order to your cat to play dead at times when you are playing with it and you see that it has a good disposition to obey you.

 Do not be angry, every time your cat does not follow the instructions, just relax, caress them and make it understand that it is a game and not a stressful moment.

 Use a treat that your cat likes very much so that you can get his full attention.

 You must be persistent, that is, you must repeat the trick several days in a row until you master it completely.


Step by step of how to teach your cat to play dead

Pay close attention so that you can follow the entire procedure to the letter without experiencing any difficulties. Take into account the tips that we told you earlier because they will help you execute each step correctly.

First step:

Call your cat by name with a treat in hand.

Second step:

Place one hand on it back and with the other, make the gesture that you are pointing at its head as if it were a weapon.

Third step:

You can say “bang bang” or also “Play dead.” At the same time, you will put pressure on your cat’s back slightly until it stretches on the floor.

Fourth step:

Release the cat and give them its reward. You should repeat these four steps until the cat no longer needs you to put your hand on its back.

The key in this exercise will be persistence, because surely the cat will not learn the trick all at once. For this reason, you must repeat the training daily for periods of time between 5 and 10 minutes, until the day comes when your cat plays dead when you give the firing signal and say the command you have chosen. 


Introduce the clicker into your cat’s training

Now that you know how to teach your cat to play dead, we want to take the opportunity to tell you that for this trick and for any other that you want to instill in your pet, a clicker can always be a great plus for you to achieve your goal.

This device is exactly the same as that used in dog training and fulfills the same function in cat training. This device emits a characteristic sound when pressed, which if used constantly in training sessions, the animal comes to associate the sound of “Click” with something that is well done on their part. 

Therefore, if you use the clicker to teach your cat to play dead, the ideal is that you make it sound just when it has done the trick and immediately give it a treat.

It is essential that the clicker only be used in training sessions and not at other times because this device would lose its meaning in the cat’s mind.


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