A review by yvnn
The Trainable Cat: A Practical Guide to Making Life Happier for You and Your Cat by Sarah Ellis, John Bradshaw
3.0
I got my first cat and I thought: what better than to read this book?
Let me start by saying that half of it was pretty useful. It gave me insights in cat behavior and where it comes from. I especially like the parts where they talk about why certain behavior is embedded in a cat and what you can do to make him feel comfortable about it.
What I disliked most is the constant repetition in the book. Long story short: whatever you want to teach your cat, approach him in steps, reward him after every step. Don't train for too long and repeat the training every day. So about halfway in the book it felt to me like I was reading the same thing over and over again, explaining each time why you should do it that way. Maybe for some people this works, but for me it felt very repetative and started to annoy me.
And then the cat came. Maybe he is just a little angel but I didn't need any of the steps. He gets in and out of the carrier without any problems, he loves the vet and he doesn't care about treats or rewards. So for me, about 60% of this book wasn't relevant. I think it probably will be for others, just not for me.
Also, the writing in 2 parts makes it even more repetative. I would have liked it when the training and explaining about the behavior was more intertwined, instead of talking a bit about the training in the behavior part, and the other way around. Not a great book, can be helpful but most of all it's not really an easy read.
Let me start by saying that half of it was pretty useful. It gave me insights in cat behavior and where it comes from. I especially like the parts where they talk about why certain behavior is embedded in a cat and what you can do to make him feel comfortable about it.
What I disliked most is the constant repetition in the book. Long story short: whatever you want to teach your cat, approach him in steps, reward him after every step. Don't train for too long and repeat the training every day. So about halfway in the book it felt to me like I was reading the same thing over and over again, explaining each time why you should do it that way. Maybe for some people this works, but for me it felt very repetative and started to annoy me.
And then the cat came. Maybe he is just a little angel but I didn't need any of the steps. He gets in and out of the carrier without any problems, he loves the vet and he doesn't care about treats or rewards. So for me, about 60% of this book wasn't relevant. I think it probably will be for others, just not for me.
Also, the writing in 2 parts makes it even more repetative. I would have liked it when the training and explaining about the behavior was more intertwined, instead of talking a bit about the training in the behavior part, and the other way around. Not a great book, can be helpful but most of all it's not really an easy read.