How can i teach my cat fetch?

[Zantos]

My cat has this ball she loves to chase. She is a Siamese and is fairly smart. I am wandering how I can train her to bring the ball back. She will chase it until i stop running after her and throwing it again.

[Deleted]

It depends on the cat.

Some are more willing to be taught than others. My cat taught herself. We threw things for her to chase and she would bring them back to us. Maybe she thought they were her "kills" and she wanted to bring us food. Cats often bring their kills home.

[NuLogic]

1. Throw away cat

2. Buy dog(retriever)

3. ?????

4. Profit

[Kev111]

Try mice with a rattle toy in them. My girlfriend's cat will NOT fetch a ball, but she sure as hell will fetch a mouse and bring it to you. Great way to keep the cat active, while also not having to do terribly much to play with them.

[lockedout]

1. Throw away cat

2. Buy dog(retriever)

3. ?????

4. Profit

Going to have to agree.

[Mayhem]

1. Throw away cat

2. Buy dog(retriever)

3. ?????

4. Profit

1. buy dog

2. throw cat

3. dog trained to fetch

4. cat useful for the last time

5. profit

[Felya]

You need a polydactyl cat:

[Cyberowl]

You don't have the right to tell a cat how to behave, it is not your property. Just because you are stronger doesn't mean you can control cats.

I AM A STRONG INDEPENDENT CAT WHO NEEDS NO MAN!

[lockedout]

You don't have the right to tell a cat how to behave, it is not your property. Just because you are stronger doesn't mean you can control cats.

I AM A STRONG INDEPENDENT CAT WHO NEEDS NO MAN!

With a dog avatar...

[Cyberowl]

With a dog avatar...

And an owl in the name. This is madness!

[Moralgy]

You don't have the right to tell a cat how to behave, it is not your property. Just because you are stronger doesn't mean you can control cats.

I AM A STRONG INDEPENDENT CAT WHO NEEDS NO MAN!

Go home dog, you are drunk.

[Tziva]

I don't think you can teach cats anything, you can only allow them to momentarily convince you that you have.

One of my cats plays fetch, but she more or less taught herself.

[lockedout]

My friends cat only fetches pennies. They have a change jar on their living room table and if you throw a penny the cat will fetch it and return it to someone, not always the person who threw it. The funny thing is I guess it either can't see silver change or just doesn't like it because it will only fetch pennies. Oh and no idea if they taught it or not.

[belfpala]

I don't think you can teach cats anything, you can only allow them to momentarily convince you that you have.

One of my cats plays fetch, but she more or less taught herself.

You can condition them, not really teach them. (example, mine immediately appears if I get out the can opener. I have no idea how she knows that's what I got out of the drawer, but boom, there she is.)

As for fetch, some cats will. Most won't. Cats are cats. They're just going to do their thing while being cats. You can't do anything about a cat being a cat.

[mizeri]

mine chased the ball around till it stopped then go into the pounce position and wait for me to throw it again

[Deleted]

Cats arent in it for you, they are in it for themselves!

[Denpepe]

taught some of our cat's to come to get on the window tablet if they wanted in, worked like a charm but it might have been because they get something out of it, ie get inside to their food

[Noomz]

My cat has this ball she loves to chase. She is a Siamese and is fairly smart. I am wandering how I can train her to bring the ball back. She will chase it until i stop running after her and throwing it again.

Cats don't care about pleasing you or care about what you think of them like a dog does.
If a cat fetches, they're a very unique exception to the rule and may be mimicing a dog if you have one in the family. But yeah, cats don't do fetching.

[Dessan]

The way I taught my cat (and she still doesn't do it every time, but that's all to do with what mood she's in) was by placing the ball at my feet for a while before picking it up and throwing it. If you keep this up they associate the ball being near your feet with the fact it's about to get thrown.

Make sure to have treats in your pocket (having a bag or tub never works as they're noisy and get the cats attention far too easily) if/when she starts to bring the ball back, or rolling it back to you offer a treat and pet them, say good girl and all that jazz. Then throw the ball again.

Do this every day two or three times (make sure you're not giving out too many treats!)

Eventually it happens more and more often, this is when you start getting less generous with treats, begin to only give them out when she brings it back to you as opposed to her rolling it your way.

I'd say you're looking at a few weeks for each phase though it can be less or more, some cats are far less stubborn than others. Eventually you won't need to give treats at all and a simple fuss will suffice to show she's doing it right.

Whatever you do, don't cave too often and fetch the ball all the time, when you do have to remember to put it at your feet before you throw it again and make sure she knows it's there. You can accompany this with saying something like "Go fetch" before you pick up the ball and throw it. Soon just the words will make her understand and lo and behold you now have a cat that plays fetch.

If the ball isn't working toy mice work, IKEA do these soft toys that my cat will "hunt" for me and she leaves them outside my door as if she's gone and made a kill (despite her being a house cat she somehow knows what mice are? lol) so she often fetches that as I throw it around for her, along with hiding it in places around the house for her to sniff out

Good luck!

[Cyberowl]

Admit it, you only want to copy that cat! (mute it before watching)