Harness training tips?

[Jenni]

Does anyone have any harness training tips? Iniko was a natural, I did not have to work with her at all. Amadeus, not so much (of course - he has been the exact opposite of Iniko in every way). I am definitely going to keep at it a little each day but day one was definitely not a success.

Any tips would be much appreciated!

 

[Patti]

Some cats are definitely more difficult than others. What stage in this process are you at? If you are still struggling to even get the harness on, try to spend a few minutes each day just laying it on him, then loosely attach the straps for a few minutes at a time. Once you are able to put it on him snugly, he will undoubtedly roll around and act a bit crazy. It may look disconcerting, but if you continue to do this each day, or a couple of times a day he will eventually get used to it. Once he's used to the harness you can attach a leash and just let him walk around dragging it behind him for awile. Then once he gets used to the leash, you can start trying to pick it up and guide him with it. I find the easiest way to teach them to walk with the leash is to use a wand toy to encourage them to go in the direction I want them to go. Good luck, I hope you are successful!

 

[Vito]

I think Patti has covered it all really, Lola is still harness training and we are doing it just as Patti has advised, when we got to the point where she would let us put it on, we would leave it on for 10-15 minutes on and off over the course of a day, and gradually increasing the time. She wears it comfortable now, so now the leash trained commences Good luck

 

[Jenni]

Thanks for the tips! Amadeus is a smart little guy; It took him no time to figure out that harness means he gets to spend time outside. He still figuring out his balance when the harness is on but I think we have success!