to ask can you train a cat, has anyone ever tried and if not why not?

[PittTheMiddleOneNoOneMentions]

I was looking at these cute little kittens and thinking how young they looked.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/the_litter_tray/2955143-So-who-got-a-new-kitten-recently-Lets-see-then

Cats seem quite bright generally and I was wondering why it is that you can't take a young one and train it like a dog?

Is it that Cat PR (" We are independent so you can fuck off if you think I'm going to do what you say) is so strong that no one ever tries?

Didn't they used to train lions for the circus? How come you can't get a cat to "sit" or "come for a walk"?

Disclaimer: I have never owned a cat as I expect is obvious!

@Weedsnseeds1 Where do you go on holiday that you can take WeedsCat? I'm on holiday at the moment and really really missing my big fat furry nutter... although my best friend is looking after him and judging from the pictures she's sent he's missing me a lot less! I'd still love to be able to take him with us though.

My cats knew 'time for bed'. They also knew to come home and in from the garden when I rang the little bunch of bells at the back door. But that was it in over forty years of cat ownership. Different cats obviously, so clearly the training faults lay with me.

Just as well the careers advisor steered me away from my dreams of lion taming.........

yesitsme I have taken him glamping in a safari tent ( so solid canvas and wood floor) to a log cabin and a barn conversion. All only max 2 hours in the car and UK. All advertised as pet friendly, but did ring to check that covered cats as well as dogs first!

I have 3 who answer their names. One of them understands NO! The others will come if I rustle a bag of Dreamies. All attempts to harness train have failed. One will fetch if she feels inclined to play. I find Orientals most willing to engage and British Shorthairs most indifferent.I love them dearly...

My cat is white and green eyed, thats so interesting about the deafness. I think his hearing is great but I've wondered about his eyesight. Vets never said anything though.

Yes Melody - I think blue (or red) eyes is albino white, typical cat colour eyes is "normal" white fur. Ours did indeed have yellowish eyes, which didn't stop my grandmother insisting that they were deaf, despite evidence to the contrary!

My cat is pretty well trained - knows which furniture he's allowed on, never gets on tables, goes to the back door to be let out when he has to go, even sits for treats. I once read that cats are more intelligent than dogs because they possess the ability to freely think and can choose to ignore you.

Thanks Weeds - glamping sounds like my kind of thing!

-starts looking for next year's holiday-

This is how my cats would react if I tried to train them

m.youtube.com/watch?v=whwiMrBNWCA

This thread reminded me of this classic Eddie Izzard joke. Gareth Pavlov's cat experiment....

I have trained my cat to lie in the sun on the windowsill swishing her tail and giving us dirty looks, she has mastered it so well.

We've taken our cat three times on self catering holidays, yes.
He doesn't go on a lead so stays in the house but is as good as gold and makes himself at home.

Ours has a few learned responses but I wouldn't call it training as she has no desire to please. It's more things she does to achieve or avoid the result that she knows goes along with it.

So she obeys 'Catname NO', as otherwise she'll be shooed away or picked up. Jumps off my knee when lightly touched under her front legs as if to lift her, again to avoid actual lifting. Comes running when she hears her name, the rustling of food packaging, or air kisses, as these all mean food.

Her most impressive achievement is learning that, if she makes 'fight noises' outside the front door in the middle of the night, even when there is no other cat there, then I will leap out, call her in and give her Dreamies. (She's small and elderly so needs rescued from fights, but also ex-feral and can't be kept in.) I can tell when she's faking it by the size of her tail.