You’ve spent the time you needed to get your cat used to wearing a collar with tags. You’ve introduced a harness and your cat is comfortable with having the harness nearby. You’ve done your best to “fit” the harness to your cat without actually putting the harness “on” your cat yet.
Now it’s time to help the cat learn to wear the harness happily.
First, ask yourself—why would a cat resist wearing a harness?
The most likely reason a cat initially resists wearing a harness is that the harness makes the cat feel unsafe. A cat that has never seen a harness is picked up, the harness is put on him, and the cat is placed on the ground. The cat, surprised, feels that something has caught hold of him. Instinct tells the cat to escape the something—to struggle, to fight, to run, to get away.
Avoid your cat’s fearful response to wearing a harness by giving the cat all the time he needs to get used to having the harness near him, then “around” him, before you ever fasten it “on” him.
A cat might also feel uncomfortable in a harness, even if he doesn’t feel unsafe. A cat that’s never worn anything on his body is much more likely to feel uncomfortable in a harness. That’s why I’ve suggested that you first acclimate your cat to wearing a collar comfortably.
But a cat who wears a collar comfortably might still feel uncomfortable in a harness that does not fit. Maybe the harness is too tight, maybe a part of it rubs on the cat in a way that hurts or annoys him. Maybe the harness is too loose, maybe a part of it is hitting against the cat or impairing his ability to move freely. Maybe a buckle or some VELCRO®-type fastening tape is pulling at his fur.
When the harness is uncomfortable, the cat’s reaction will probably be to try to get out of the harness, one way or another. And once the cat hits on a way of escaping the harness that works, he is far more likely to use that way to escape again. Avoid creating a serial harness escaper!
A cat that is harnessed suddenly, without preparation, might also exhibit what could be a form of learned helplessness—total shutdown. You’ve probably seen the videos . . . a cat or a dog wearing a harness and leash, flat out on the ground, refusing to move. Often it appears the animal is unconscious, but it’s not. It’s fully conscious, but lying limp and immobile. In many videos, the human on the other end of the leash attempts to drag the animal (I’ve seen this more with dogs than cats) and the animal allows itself to be dragged and does not stand up.
The whole point of slowly working up to having a cat (or a dog!) consent to wearing a harness is not frightening the animal into trying to escape or into shutting down completely.
Photo by Marni Fowler
You won’t know exactly how well the harness you’ve chosen fits your cat until he has it on. When putting it on your cat for the first time, your job is to come as close as possible to a proper fit, and then to adjust the harness immediately at any time you think it may be uncomfortable for your cat.
Put the harness on the cat.
Before you fasten anything, make sure the fastening points of the harness meet appropriately.
If they don’t, take the harness completely off the cat to make the adjustments you think will work.
Try it on the cat again.
Removing the harness from the cat should not signal “end of fun.” It’s never going to be the last thing you do before walking away!
Remove the harness and do something with the cat that you know the cat enjoys—petting, playing with a toy, being brushed. It has to be rewarding to the cat, of course, so pay attention to his response. Then put the harness back on again.
When the harness fits well and the cat is used to having it put on and taken off without its being secured, it’s time to buckle one buckle or press together one set of fastening tapes. Not all of them! You can add more, one at a time, as the cat becomes accustomed to the exercise.
It takes as long as it takes. Every cat is different.
Does it feel as if the cat is “stalling out” suddenly? Has he stopped cooperating? Try to finish each session on a positive note, perhaps with some interaction the cat really enjoys. Then think about what’s happening and try to figure out why.
Next session, go back a few steps and work up again to the point the cat seemed hesitant or uncooperative. Ask a family member to video your sessions so you can see what’s going on. You may notice something that you can easily change and fix!
When you’re sure the cat is comfortable in a harness that fits properly, it’s time to try the cat “out of your hands” in his new accessory.
Do this training inside, in a room with closed doors, without anywhere he can escape you or furniture he can hide under. Ideally, you will set the cat on the floor and pick him right up again, because setting him down should not predict that he is free to go.
With the cat wearing the fastened harness:
Put him down.
Pick him up.
Sit on a chair or sofa with him beside you or in your lap.
Unfasten and fasten one buckle on the harness.
Stand up.
Put the cat on the floor.
Pick him up.
Walk around with him.
Sit in a chair.
You get the picture: the cat is handled kindly while he wears his harness.
In that safe room where the cat can’t hide, move on to letting the cat walk a few feet while he’s wearing his harness, then go to him or call him to you, pet him, pick him up, fiddle around with the harness, pet him, put him down (with harness fastened properly), let him walk around a bit, and so on.
When you’re fairly sure the cat won’t take off, harness and all, to hide on an inaccessible shelf of a closet or wedge himself under your heaviest piece of furniture, try him in “regular” rooms.
Your goal is to avoid losing a harnessed cat in your home. It’s really a safety issue!
In general, it’s not safe to leave a harnessed cat unsupervised in your home. You’ve fitted that harness so well that, should it get caught on something, it’s not likely to come off the cat easily. That could be very dangerous for the cat.
While it’s certainly wise to harness your cat often inside to encourage him to feel comfortable wearing that harness, take it off when you’re not nearby to hear a commotion and to extricate him from any possible danger.
When do you add a leash to the harness?
If you’ve read the last few weeks’ articles, I bet you’ve guessed that it’s not “just before the first time you head outside with the cat”!
That’s right. Take just as much time getting the cat used to the leash as you took getting him used to the collar and then to the harness. In fact, I suggest that you start out not with a leash, but with a foot or so of cord. An old shoelace cut in half would work, or a piece of household twine.
Cut the cord short enough that it’s unlikely to trail on the ground if the cat is standing.
Tie the cord onto the harness where you’d normally attach the leash (do this when the harness is not on the cat).
If the harness has both a front (chest) and a top (back) attachment for a leash, use the one nearer the cat’s back. The cat may be less likely to try to play with and “pursue” a short cord that’s mostly out of his sight. It would be good if the cat never sees the cord/leash as something to chase!
Let the cat wear the harness with the short cord attached until the cord is of no interest to the cat, until the cord does not inhibit the cat in any way. Ideally, the cat will see the harness with the cord (and eventually the leash) as equipment with which he does not interact except by wearing them.
When the cat has shown he is used to the shortest cord, substitute a cord twice as long as the first one
Go from there.
Again, how long it takes to work up to the whole leash will vary from cat to cat, household to household. Practicing regularly is very important. Short “training” sessions multiple times during the day are usually best.
Don’t worry if you miss a day or even two. Go back a few steps when you start to practice again, remembering how to set the cat up for success.
Always remove the harness from the cat when you are through training unless you will be near the cat to supervise him closely and carefully. Be safe, not sorry.
Next week, we’ll take that collared and harnessed cat outside—very, very carefully!
