Want to know how to discipline your pets? Don’t! I hate the term, “discipline,” because I think people take it to mean punishment. There’s never any need to punish your pet. If your pet is misbehaving, it just means they need kind, effective training.
In this post, we’ll cover:
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- How to Discipline Your Dog
- 7 Effective Dog Training Techniques
- How to Discipline Your Puppy
- 2 Super Effective, Easy-to-Follow Puppy Training Programs
- How to Discipline Your Cat
- 8 Effective Cat Training Techniques
- How to Discipline a Kitten
- 7 Effective Kitten Training Techniques
- My Top Recommendations for Kind, Effective Pet Training
How to Discipline a Dog
The goal when disciplining a dog is to teach them how to behave in a way that also creates a loving, trusting bond between you and your dog.
Here are 7 kind, effective dog training techniques:
1. Ignore bad behavior. If it’s a minor bad behavior like barking or whining, ignore them until they stop. You don’t want your dog to think these behaviors will get them attention.
Don’t speak to them or make eye contact while they’re whining or barking. Once they stop, reward them with a treat or praise for the calm behavior.
2. Positive reinforcement. It’s always effective to immediately reward your dog with a treat or praise the second they do something good. They’ll quickly learn that good behavior gets a good consequence!
3. Be consistent with commands. Use basic commands like, “leave it,” or “no,” or “off” in a firm tone. It’s important not only to make the commands simple, but to also make sure that everyone in the household is using the same commands so the dog doesn’t get confused.
4. Redirect them if they’re misbehaving. For example, if the dog is chewing on something they shouldn’t, give them a chew toy instead, and reward them with praise once they start chewing on the appropriate chew toy. You can find a nice selection of dog chew toys on Amazon.
5. Give them a time-out. Putting your dog in a calm, quiet place can help with bad behavior. This is especially effective if the behavior stems from over-excitement, like barking, jumping or playing too rough.
Giving them a brief time-out (one or two minutes is usually enough), will give them a chance to calm down.
Don’t use their crate for this. You don’t want them to think of their crate as punishment. And don’t use time-outs so often that they aren’t effective any more.
6. Never use physical or verbal punishment. Physical punishment such as hitting is never ok, and, if you’ll use effective dog training techniques, won’t be necessary. You also should not yell at your dog.
Both physical and verbal punishment will only make the bad behavior worse, can lead to fear and aggression, and ruin trust.
Use the kind techniques we’re discussing in this post to correct bad behavior and always reward them immediately when they stop the behavior.
7. Keep the rules for your dog consistent. While your dog is young or in training, it’s imperative that everyone in your household agrees on the rules. You can’t, for example, have one person who invites the dog up on the couch, while another person insists they stay off.
Your dog may be able to learn who’s who and what’s what as they mature and get used to your household. But while in initial training, keep the rules consistent.
My Recommendation for Dog Training
I’ve been recommending Professional Dog Trainer and Behavioral Specialist, Doggy Dan, for dog and puppy training for the last 9 years.
Doggy Dan is the owner of the website, TheOnlineDogTrainer.com. It’s video-based online dog training that’s effective, easy-to-follow and inexpensive.
Doggy Dan has just come out with a free web class on how to stop dog reactivity, whether it’s barking, jumping on people, chewing on things and even aggression. In this webinar, Doggy Dan gives away his proven techniques to solve any dog behavior issue. Sign up here:
Free Mini Dog Training Course
Another alternative for dog training is a free, mini dog training course from TrainPetDog.com. In that course, you’ll learn how to stop unruly and disobedience dog behavior. You can sign up for the free dog training course here:
How to Discipline a Puppy
Disciplining a puppy requires far more patience, because they’re young and also because their attention span is very short! It’s normal for puppies to make lots of mistakes, so try to avoid getting frustrated with your puppy!
The dog training techniques we’ve discussed also apply to puppies. But I can also recommend some dog training programs specifically for puppies.
Recommended Puppy Training Programs
Recommended Puppy Training ProgramsDoggy Dan has created several puppy-specific training programs that are kind and effective. I recommend these two, especially if you’re a first-time puppy owner.
Potty Training Made Easy. This is a free, step-by-step video series where you get to watch Doggy Dan working with a puppy owner to do effective house training. You can sign up for the free video series here.
The Puppy Coach. This is a complete and thorough training, perfect for puppy owners! It covers every aspect of puppy training. Best of all, this training program is only $19! You can check it out here.
You can learn more about Doggy Dan’s puppy training programs in my post, How to Train a Puppy.
How to Discipline a Cat
How to Discipline a CatPeople think disciplining a cat is difficult, but it doesn’t have to be. To accomplish proper cat training, you need to focus on setting up your cat’s environment to encourage good behavior.
Using gentle redirection is also very effective for disciplining a cat.
Here are 8 kind, effective cat training techniques:
1. Redirect bad behaviors. If your cat is doing something wrong like scratching your furniture, gently redirect them to their scratching post, then praise them when they use the scratching post.
If your cat is playing too rough, you can redirect them to a cat toy to discourage biting your hands.
2. Positive reinforcement. Rewarding good behavior with treats or praise is always effective when training any pet. Whenever your cat behaves properly, such as using their scratching post instead of your furniture, reward them with a treat or praise while they’re doing it.
Cats will be more likely to behave in a way that brings them a reward, so praising them whenever you see them doing something good is very effective.
3. Don’t use physical or verbal punishment. Hitting your cat is never ok, nor is yelling at them. This will only make their bad behavior worse and will most likely result in your cat being afraid of you and not trusting you.
Using a firm command like, “no,” then redirecting them to a more appropriate behavior is way more effective than being mean.
4. Use a cat deterrent spray. I found this effective to keep my cat, Whiskers, from pulling up the carpet in the corners of my living room.
You can purchase a cat deterrent spray. They won’t like the smell of it, and they’ll stop going near it.
Cats scratching furniture is a common problem. You can get help from my post, How to Stop a Cat from Scratching Furniture (includes video).
5. Keep certain places off-limits. To get some good examples on how to do this, read my post, How to Keep Cats Off Counters (includes video). The techniques in that post will work not just for counters, but for any area you want your cat to stay away from.
6. Keep your cat entertained! Cats will often misbehave if they’re bored. You can get good ideas on ways to keep your cat entertained in my post, How to Keep Indoor Cats Happy (includes video).
Giving your cat appropriate ways to get mental stimulation and physical exercise goes a long way toward having a well-behaved cat!
7. Be consistent with the rules. You, and everyone in your household, must agree on the boundaries for your cat and be consistent with the rules.
Set clear boundaries like staying off the counters, not scratching furniture, not biting, etc., and make sure everyone stays consistent with discouraging those behaviors.
Training your cat will be easier and faster if the rules remain consistent.
8. Take a break if they’re over-stimulated. Cats will misbehave if they become over stimulated. An example is when you’re petting your cat and all of a sudden they start biting your hand. Cats can’t control their impulses when they’re over-stimulated.
Stop whatever is going on (playing, petting, etc), for a moment to let your cat calm down. Ignore the cat for this moment and only resume the activity once they’re calm.
Whenever my cat, Whiskers, starts biting me when I’m petting him, I always stop petting him and say, “Biting Mommy is never the right thing to do.” Then I just sit there. He calms down immediately LOL.
Read my post, How to Train a Cat (includes video), for more tips on stopping bad cat behavior.
My Recommendations for Cat Training
My recommendation for effective cat training is The Complete Cat Training Guide from KingdomofPets.com. This is an eBook filled with step-by-step techniques to solve 25 common cat behavior problems.
It’s $37 and comes with a money-back guarantee. You can read my full review here, or check out the eBook here:
Clicker Training for Cats
Some people have had success with clicker training for cats. I can recommend a clicker-training expert named Karen Pryor.
She has lots of products, books and training instructions for clicker training a cat.
You can visit her website here.
You can also purchase her books on Amazon here.
You can also check out cat expert, Jackson Galaxy’s YouTube channel for help with tons of cat issues!
How to Discipline a Kitten
How to Discipline a KittenDisciplining a kitten requires way more patience than disciplining a cat because they’re still learning, exploring their environment, and trying absolutely everything!
Here are 7 kind, effective kitten training techniques:
1. Redirect when they get crazy. Kittens will often scratch or bite during play. They think it’s fun! The best way to deter this is to redirect them to something that’s ok to bite, like a kitten toy.
If your kitten bites or scratches you, say, “No!” or “Ouch!” and immediately stop playing or petting them. They’ll quickly learn the fun stops if they bite!
Resume petting or playing once they’re focused on the toy and not your hands!
2. Reward them for good behavior. Whenever you catch your kitten behaving appropriately, like using their scratching post, being calm, or using the litter box, reward them with a treat, petting or praise. They’ll make the connection that these behaviors get good stuff!
3. Get a scratching post. Because scratching furniture is a common cat behavior issue, I suggest getting your kitten a scratching post as soon as possible.
Any time you see your kitten scratching the furniture, gently redirect them to their scratching post, then give praise when they scratch on that instead.
That’s my boy, Whiskers, in the picture with his scratching post. He loves it and scratches on it every single day!
4. Don’t punish your cat physically or verbally. To do so will only make the problem worse and make your cat afraid of you. Building trust with your cat is critical, and yelling at them or hitting them will ruin trust instantly.
You can use a firm “No!” or make a sound like clapping to easily interrupt any bad behavior, then redirect them to an appropriate activity.
Unless you want to end up with a fearful, anxious, aggressive cat, please don’t hit or yell at your kitten.
5. Keep certain things and areas off-limits. Be consistent with your kitten on what’s not theirs! You can use a cat detterent spray, double-sided tape, or even tin foil to make certain surfaces unpleasant for your kitten.
6. Don’t reward bad behavior with attention! One of the biggest mistakes kitten owners make is unknowingly rewarding their kitten for bad behavior by responding.
Even if you respond with disapproval, your kitten will still see it as getting your attention.
Always ignore any attention-seeking behaviors. Don’t let biting, scratching or excessive meowing work for them. Only give them your attention when they’re behaving properly.
7. You’ve heard it before – consistency is key! Kittens need consistent boundaries and gentle direction in order to learn how to behave. Be patient and repetitive and your kitten will eventually figure out what’s ok and what’s not.
And one more thing. Once your cat is an adult, you’ll long for the days when they were a cute little kitten! So make sure you enjoy your kitten while they’re young. They’ll be full grown before you know it!
For help with getting everything your kitten needs, read this post with a printable new kitten checklist.
My Recommendation for Kitten Training
My recommendations for effective kitten training are the same as for cats. The Complete Cat Training Guide and Karen Pryor’s Clicker Training for Cats.
You can get more help training your kitten by reading this post from TheSprucePets.com, Reasons Kittens Misbehave and How to Discipline Them.
I Donate to Animal Charities
I Donate to Animal CharitiesThank you for visiting my website! I hope you found these tips on how to properly discipline your pets helpful.
I earn a small commission on some of the products and services I talk about on my website.
I donate 10% of my earnings to animal charities. Click here to see the list of animal charities I donate to! Debra
Check out my posts about Dog Training
Check out my posts about Puppy Training
Check out my posts about Cat Training
