yesterday we started work on the high-five trick. i held the cork target in my hand and held it up in front of her. the first attempt involved a few claws meeting skin, but not in aggression, i think. c/r for the attempt. a couple of times she lifted a paw part way and i rewarded that. tried without the cork and she was starting to get the idea. success once or twice with no cork (and no claws!) but a bit more consistent with the cork visible. some of this was in the bathtub at her request. she seems to like the food pinging about.
the dot on the bed game is certainly gaining popularity and intensity with the c/r when a paw catches the dot. i have to concentrate more on where the dot is, but she is much more likely to zoom around back and forth and in figure-eights. when she needs a breather i point the dot within paws reach, so we can develop just the paw to dot action. i am trying to get her interested in following the dot off the bed, so far i can get her to paw it (reluctantly) if it is just off the edge. we played the game twice in one night.
after reading some of the files on the cat-clicker group (information overload!) i made a simple puzzle box by cutting a few holes in a pasta box i rescued from the recycle box, then dumped a few bits of food inside. introduced it to her last night when she was obviously looking for something to do (feet and ankles were being eyed maliciously), and it kept her occupied for several minutes. i watched her figuring out strategies, and every so often she looked up at me as if to say, why don't you help me with this? when she finished she saw i was still watching her from the loveseat, and next thing i knew she was coming straight at me with wild eyes. started to take out apparent frustration on my arms, but while i felt claws, no damage was done. i yelled and she backed off. obviously not used to having to work or think so hard about food!
still full of energy after play and puzzling, to the point that she batted at my feet a few times when i was walking around. claws might have been out, but again no scratches. i quietly herded her into the bedroom with a floor cushion, and she knew there was no point in arguing. i closed the door part way, and she seemed to respect that, settled down on the bed. she reappeared a bit later zooming around the apartment, in a much needed release of energy. good! (i stayed out of the way.)
bedtime was a non-event. phew!
i am very lucky that she does not attempt to get me out of bed in the morning with aggression. instead she just keeps reminding me of her presence by hopping around the bedroom and lying down on whatever part of my torso is available (front, back or side!). every so often she will try and dig at the covers but i dont move, only mutter at her to stop. sometimes when i finally stick my feet out, she will rub on my toes... lovely tickly whiskers!
breakfast this morning, i still had to prompt her to jump up on the ledge (a little less reluctant) and she stayed up (i blocked her a couple of times, then she was more willing to stay.) i set up the puzzle box while she was eating brekkies, and left her alone after that. i think she got the food out of the box faster than last night, although i haven't timed her. either way, she left me alone and went back to bed, her usual routine.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
small blessings
when i got into bed last night chelsea glared at my legs under the covers, but i turned out the light so nothing happened. lucky that she already knows that when the lights go out at night, the game is over!
took 2 tries this morning to get her to stay on the ledge waiting for brekkies. she stayed longer than before, anyway! she still needs prompting to hop up, still hesitates before she follows the target, lots of meowing when i pick up her empty dish off the floor. right now i get it all prepared before she goes on the ledge so i can put the dish down without hesitation and give her my full (silent) attention while she stays on the ledge. i find if i see her thinking about hopping down, a hand up will remind her to stay for another c/r. i don't think i'll change this just yet, but eventually would like to see her hop up before i pick up the dish. similar experience at dinner time, but i think she stayed up the whole time i asked her to.
she was on my lap this afternoon when she tried the little kisses to get my attention, then a very soft test nip on my hand. i've decided on a zero-tolerance approach to teeth (admittedly with allowance for gentle touch when taking food from my fingers), so i immediately placed her on the floor. she went off and came back a bit later. i was leaning forward so lap wasn't available, she tried a bit of vocal complaining, tried a gentle push, then all of a sudden brought a paw up to wash her ear. missed clicking the first one, but she did it again after a short pause and i clicked with my tongue and let her on my lap. is this coincidence, or has she really caught on since those few c/r's yesterday?
at one point this morning i walked past her, and i could see her thinking about taking a swat at my feet but she took no action. very good, but i just kept walking. better if she's not even thinking about it, right?
thanks for the comments, folks! nice to know someone is out there... chelsea may become famous yet! (as opposed to the infamy she can claim now among my family and friends.)
took 2 tries this morning to get her to stay on the ledge waiting for brekkies. she stayed longer than before, anyway! she still needs prompting to hop up, still hesitates before she follows the target, lots of meowing when i pick up her empty dish off the floor. right now i get it all prepared before she goes on the ledge so i can put the dish down without hesitation and give her my full (silent) attention while she stays on the ledge. i find if i see her thinking about hopping down, a hand up will remind her to stay for another c/r. i don't think i'll change this just yet, but eventually would like to see her hop up before i pick up the dish. similar experience at dinner time, but i think she stayed up the whole time i asked her to.
she was on my lap this afternoon when she tried the little kisses to get my attention, then a very soft test nip on my hand. i've decided on a zero-tolerance approach to teeth (admittedly with allowance for gentle touch when taking food from my fingers), so i immediately placed her on the floor. she went off and came back a bit later. i was leaning forward so lap wasn't available, she tried a bit of vocal complaining, tried a gentle push, then all of a sudden brought a paw up to wash her ear. missed clicking the first one, but she did it again after a short pause and i clicked with my tongue and let her on my lap. is this coincidence, or has she really caught on since those few c/r's yesterday?
at one point this morning i walked past her, and i could see her thinking about taking a swat at my feet but she took no action. very good, but i just kept walking. better if she's not even thinking about it, right?
thanks for the comments, folks! nice to know someone is out there... chelsea may become famous yet! (as opposed to the infamy she can claim now among my family and friends.)
Thursday, September 25, 2008
chelsea: a history
i just posted the following to the cat-clicker list, by way of introduction. this outlines her aggressive tendencies, and the point at which i realized it was time to try something different.
read on:
read on:
hello all!
i've lived with cats all my life, and have developed a certain degree of understanding of the feline mind over 35 years, but 5 years ago i acquired a cute little kitten who grew into my cute little chelsea-monster. i think she is probably 1/8 siamese as her mum was the long, elegant exotic body with a fine wedge shaped head. chelsea is shorter in body, hint of wedge shape to her head and can be quite vocal, with a diverse array of sounds, but not the siamese yowl. she is also the most challenging and aggressive cat i have ever lived with. partly due to her nature, and partly, i suspect, to do with my decision to keep her as an indoor cat, the last 4 years in an apartment downtown. (all my previous kitties had the choice to go outside and most of them did. back then i lived in the suburbs.) she does enjoy the balcony, especially when foolish pigeons decide to land!
we have had battles of will for most of her life. i have had to teach her to suck up for meals, with the cue "be nice" and her rubbing on my hand. this she understands, but not always with enthusiasm.
bed time has often been a challenge, as she often thought i should feed her or entertain her instead of going to bed. ankles were threatened and attacked as i approached my bed, and legs were often at serious risk of being mauled through the duvet. i would sometimes cave in and give her treats before she got nasty, so i could sneak into bed. i would also resort to the threat of a spray bottle, or a glass of water in emergencies, to ward off attacks, and follow through with a good soaking if she attacked. she'd remember this for a week or 2 and behave, sleeping nicely on the bed then the cycle would start over.
typing on the keyboard has been a hazardous occupation at times. dirty looks and if i miss it a sudden death grip on my wrist leaving sometimes nasty toothmarks. this usually resulted in me yelling then shutting her in the bathroom for a timeout session of 2 or 3 minutes. this behaviour has also been through cycles of good and bad.
she occasionally gets a vacation at my parents house in the 'burbs, with lots of space to run around in, birds, squirrels and chipmunks to chase from window to window and walks on the leash in the garden. this was all great, but she has my mum wrapped around her little paw pad, and mum thought as long as she kept feeding the beast, she could tame her. i tried to insist on mum following certain protocols, but chelsea won the battles.
it got really bad this summer when she stayed at mum and dad's for 6 weeks, the last 3 with me present, so i could see how she took control. her terrorist tactics involved threatening and attacking mum and dad's ankles (although dad rarely feeds her, he does have heavy feet) to the point dad was afraid of her and resentful, and mum resorted to luring chelsea into the family room with a handful of food scattered across the floor. so chelsea got what she wanted!
and so we are back home, and last week i suddenly thought to look up cat aggression online, and lo! i find an article about the alpha cat. aha! now why didn't i recognize it before?? been staring me in the face (or glaring at my ankles) for the past 5 years! and this article recommended clicker training, and so i found karen pryor's site, and went out to buy a clicker and a bag of treats, and started bumbling through the initial training steps. picked up her book at the library last weekend, and refined my techniques a bit.
just over a week of training and we are both coming along nicely. i have set up a blog, so if anyone wishes to read more of my rambling, please do check it out. i would appreciate any input!!
http://chelsea-cat.blogspot.com
i do have questions, but i think i will save them for later. if you have read all that, thank you!!
enthusiastic clicker newbie,
fiona
hrrmph!
apparently i just missed a dirty look because i suddenly found my wrist in a death grip. tooth marks on my arm and chelsea is having a timeout in the bathroom. i guess i couldn't expect instant perfection! i think this is the first time in over a week. probably an improvement from pre-clicker days.
time to let her out and ignore her a bit longer.
time to let her out and ignore her a bit longer.
adding to the repertoire
play tonight consisted of chasing the dot over my bed again. not sure of exact timing for clicking. as she is running, or the instant she stops with the dot on her paw? latter is tricky as it involves me having precise aim. she got tired (or bored) after a few rounds, but still showed interest so i wiggled the target on the bed right in front of her, which she pawed quite firmly several times. kept staring at me after that grew old but wouldn't chase the dot or do any target work so the session was over and i walked away.
later on caught her sitting on her shelf on the plant stand looking into an empty plant pot. c/r twice!
c/r twice for sitting on the paper again. i moved it to the hallway after that but she showed no interest.
from my lap, lured her to walk full circle around the papasan with me sitting in it. been working on this for a few days now, she has been reluctant to go too far up as the chair can be unstable without me to weigh it down. c/r every few steps tonight, with a greenie treat near the top.
managed to catch her with a paw behind the ear when she was grooming. she was a bit surprised at the clicker seemingly out of nowhere, but i got her several times. this is a recommended trick in karen pryor's book, intention is to shape it to look like she's listening hard. also clicked her grooming over her shoulder, hope i can shape this into something like looking over her shoulder.
got to decide when to start adding cues (commands, hand signals etc.). not sure if she is consistent enough in any of her actions to get it, but i will see what can be done tomorrow.
sweet kitten on my lap purring again. there was a moment of dirty look earlier, but i gave a slight nudge and she removed herself from my lap. all good!
later on caught her sitting on her shelf on the plant stand looking into an empty plant pot. c/r twice!
c/r twice for sitting on the paper again. i moved it to the hallway after that but she showed no interest.
from my lap, lured her to walk full circle around the papasan with me sitting in it. been working on this for a few days now, she has been reluctant to go too far up as the chair can be unstable without me to weigh it down. c/r every few steps tonight, with a greenie treat near the top.
managed to catch her with a paw behind the ear when she was grooming. she was a bit surprised at the clicker seemingly out of nowhere, but i got her several times. this is a recommended trick in karen pryor's book, intention is to shape it to look like she's listening hard. also clicked her grooming over her shoulder, hope i can shape this into something like looking over her shoulder.
got to decide when to start adding cues (commands, hand signals etc.). not sure if she is consistent enough in any of her actions to get it, but i will see what can be done tomorrow.
sweet kitten on my lap purring again. there was a moment of dirty look earlier, but i gave a slight nudge and she removed herself from my lap. all good!
more ledge sitting and target training
this morning she hopped up on the ledge in pursuit of the target (currently a cork stuck on the handle of a paintbrush, originally started with just a pen, but she sometimes found that threatening, so the cork was added, pen was lost, paintbrush found, and all is good), c/r with regular food and she hopped right down in anticipation of breakfast. back up on the ledge with target prompting (a tap on the surface gets her attention) and a little hesitation before jumping up again, c/r. waited a few seconds and she almost jumped off then stopped herself! c/r, count to 5, c/r with brekkies on the floor. yum!
after breakfast she showed interest in going out on the balcony so i offered the target so she had to reach up at the patio door. paw to target, c/r with an open door. she wasn't sure if that was the reward and followed me back to the kitchen to see if there was more. there wasn't. eventually returned to stick her head out the door. i am unsure what to do when she seems unsatisfied with reward, especially as she is expecting food above all else.
as far as aggression goes, she did threaten my hand while on my lap last night. i was typing, of course. it started with little kisses, then graduated to rubbing the front of her teeth on my hand, then a gently test nip, at which point i removed her from my lap, preventing further damage! she accepted this boot and wandered off. hopped back on my lap a bit later and behaved herself, for the most part. dirty looks got another eviction, without argument.
dinner time tonight i started a bit earlier than usual and did some more target training. reaching up a wall, following up the cat tree, reaching out with a paw from the top of a cat tree (a bit hesitant, like she wasn't sure if she wasn't going to fall off!), follow into the bedroom, onto a chair, onto window ledge. preliminary introduction to ringing bells (i have a string of little bells hanging in the window, i think this would be a cute way to get attention). we only got as far as her brushing against them a couple of times, enough to produce sound for c/r, then she lost interest. which meant when we went in the kitchen she was not keen on hopping up on her ledge. got her to touch nose to target once, then tapped target on ledge a few times until she agreed to follow. c/r with greenie cat treat (special!) then a few counts, some with my back to her, and c/r (mix of regular food and greenies) before the final reward of dinner on the floor. bravo!
after breakfast she showed interest in going out on the balcony so i offered the target so she had to reach up at the patio door. paw to target, c/r with an open door. she wasn't sure if that was the reward and followed me back to the kitchen to see if there was more. there wasn't. eventually returned to stick her head out the door. i am unsure what to do when she seems unsatisfied with reward, especially as she is expecting food above all else.
as far as aggression goes, she did threaten my hand while on my lap last night. i was typing, of course. it started with little kisses, then graduated to rubbing the front of her teeth on my hand, then a gently test nip, at which point i removed her from my lap, preventing further damage! she accepted this boot and wandered off. hopped back on my lap a bit later and behaved herself, for the most part. dirty looks got another eviction, without argument.
dinner time tonight i started a bit earlier than usual and did some more target training. reaching up a wall, following up the cat tree, reaching out with a paw from the top of a cat tree (a bit hesitant, like she wasn't sure if she wasn't going to fall off!), follow into the bedroom, onto a chair, onto window ledge. preliminary introduction to ringing bells (i have a string of little bells hanging in the window, i think this would be a cute way to get attention). we only got as far as her brushing against them a couple of times, enough to produce sound for c/r, then she lost interest. which meant when we went in the kitchen she was not keen on hopping up on her ledge. got her to touch nose to target once, then tapped target on ledge a few times until she agreed to follow. c/r with greenie cat treat (special!) then a few counts, some with my back to her, and c/r (mix of regular food and greenies) before the final reward of dinner on the floor. bravo!
first entry: one week progress report
written: wednesday, 24 september, 2008 11:30 PM
one week since we started and big improvements! tonight she pawed the target with more vigour than she's shown before, for a piece of her food thrown into the bathtub! she has also started following the target: up and down the cat tree, up onto the kitchen ledge to wait for her dinner (started that yesterday, i think she's already catching on to waiting until her dish is on the floor.)
i was just in the kitchen after hearing her fishing in a sink of dirty dishes for a bit of food i had dropped there earlier. started to clean up a bit since i was there. (thanks chelse!) and lo! she hops up on the ledge of her own accord, after abandoning the top of the fridge (no reward there)! i had to click and reward and she hopped down for the food. called her back and she hopped up again for the target. c/r every few seconds when she stopped meowing. even when a piece fell on the floor she stayed up. i turned my back to be busy for a bit, she stayed up. finished by throwing a piece of food into the hall, then she thought about it briefly and followed the long way round. i asked her if she wanted more by offering the target but she wanted to lead me into the bedroom for more playing on the bed but i declined. definitely enough food for today!
she probably wanted more of the game we are developing. chase the laser pointer dot, catch it with your paw, c/r with food where you caught the dot. almost like catching a fly, but with better success rate, and greater frequency! the best place to chase a dot is on my bed, according to chelsea, which is fine by me when i'm not in it. (i have not been mauled in bed since we started, only once threatened her with spray bottle at the very beginning and she walked away. last night she did kick at my leg under the covers when i invaded her space too much but she stopped without incident.) she obviously likes the sound and feel of zooming around and pouncing on the duvet, and now dot chasing lasts longer than pre-clicker, and is probably more satisfying to end up with something to crunch on rather than nothing but a dot to stare at (or to ignore, or one that just vanishes).
started holding her paws last night when she was grooming on my lap. c/r for relaxing under my touch. little kisses on my hand or arm also c/r, so much better than the threat of a hand mauling when i am typing a long email to a friend!!
caught her sitting on a paper i had left on the floor, c/r twice until she moved. will work on that some more.
keep missing her looking up at the ceiling when a car passes by (she likes to watch the reflections which appear when the sun is in the right place).
missed her turning around for the dot at one point, will work on that with target or dot. maybe i can get her to do it on the ledge for dinner!
she did bite my hand (but not with great force) at one point this afternoon. i was petting her when she was only in the mood for food. i can't remember if i had clicked and tried to reward with a pet. obviously the wrong idea if i did. anyway, she didn't get food after biting! i walked away.
i have been rewarding by opening the door to the balcony, today she sort of hesitated before going out, apparently considering if there was food as well. there wasn't. she seemed okay with that.
glad she is accepting regular food as reward, either after dot chasing, or thrown to chase as a reward. greenies cat treats are too big to keep up with demand, especially as she likes them so much. will have to keep them somewhat special or she'll get bored of them too. i may look into keeping a bit of chopped up cooked chicken in the freezer for variety. she simply doesn't love peppers or mushrooms enough (or is too picky about them) for me to use them as regular rewards.
overall very pleased with results despite my occasional bumble. nice relaxed purring kitty on my lap now, relaxed me typing this account! thank you karen pryor and all those sensible clicker trainers out there!
one week since we started and big improvements! tonight she pawed the target with more vigour than she's shown before, for a piece of her food thrown into the bathtub! she has also started following the target: up and down the cat tree, up onto the kitchen ledge to wait for her dinner (started that yesterday, i think she's already catching on to waiting until her dish is on the floor.)
i was just in the kitchen after hearing her fishing in a sink of dirty dishes for a bit of food i had dropped there earlier. started to clean up a bit since i was there. (thanks chelse!) and lo! she hops up on the ledge of her own accord, after abandoning the top of the fridge (no reward there)! i had to click and reward and she hopped down for the food. called her back and she hopped up again for the target. c/r every few seconds when she stopped meowing. even when a piece fell on the floor she stayed up. i turned my back to be busy for a bit, she stayed up. finished by throwing a piece of food into the hall, then she thought about it briefly and followed the long way round. i asked her if she wanted more by offering the target but she wanted to lead me into the bedroom for more playing on the bed but i declined. definitely enough food for today!
she probably wanted more of the game we are developing. chase the laser pointer dot, catch it with your paw, c/r with food where you caught the dot. almost like catching a fly, but with better success rate, and greater frequency! the best place to chase a dot is on my bed, according to chelsea, which is fine by me when i'm not in it. (i have not been mauled in bed since we started, only once threatened her with spray bottle at the very beginning and she walked away. last night she did kick at my leg under the covers when i invaded her space too much but she stopped without incident.) she obviously likes the sound and feel of zooming around and pouncing on the duvet, and now dot chasing lasts longer than pre-clicker, and is probably more satisfying to end up with something to crunch on rather than nothing but a dot to stare at (or to ignore, or one that just vanishes).
started holding her paws last night when she was grooming on my lap. c/r for relaxing under my touch. little kisses on my hand or arm also c/r, so much better than the threat of a hand mauling when i am typing a long email to a friend!!
caught her sitting on a paper i had left on the floor, c/r twice until she moved. will work on that some more.
keep missing her looking up at the ceiling when a car passes by (she likes to watch the reflections which appear when the sun is in the right place).
missed her turning around for the dot at one point, will work on that with target or dot. maybe i can get her to do it on the ledge for dinner!
she did bite my hand (but not with great force) at one point this afternoon. i was petting her when she was only in the mood for food. i can't remember if i had clicked and tried to reward with a pet. obviously the wrong idea if i did. anyway, she didn't get food after biting! i walked away.
i have been rewarding by opening the door to the balcony, today she sort of hesitated before going out, apparently considering if there was food as well. there wasn't. she seemed okay with that.
glad she is accepting regular food as reward, either after dot chasing, or thrown to chase as a reward. greenies cat treats are too big to keep up with demand, especially as she likes them so much. will have to keep them somewhat special or she'll get bored of them too. i may look into keeping a bit of chopped up cooked chicken in the freezer for variety. she simply doesn't love peppers or mushrooms enough (or is too picky about them) for me to use them as regular rewards.
overall very pleased with results despite my occasional bumble. nice relaxed purring kitty on my lap now, relaxed me typing this account! thank you karen pryor and all those sensible clicker trainers out there!
