Training Tips: Carrier Training Cats

Step 1: Set up the environment and carrier.

When first introducing the carrier to your cat, leave it out in the open as if it were just a normal part of the room. Keep it somewhere where your cat regularly spends time and make sure they can access it at any time. Remove the door or secure it so it can’t swing or shut on its own.

Put some tiny pieces of treats (half the size of a pea) or some of their dry kibble into the carrier before your cat enters the room. This will encourage them to enter and explore the carrier on their own without any pressure.

Tip: If your cat already has big feelings about the carrier, try draping a towel or small blanket over the top and sides.

Step 2: Begin training to associate the carrier with food and good feelings.

Once or twice a day, do a focused training session:

• Let your cat enter the room and toss them a treat any time they look in the direction of the carrier. For now, stay away from the carrier so your cat doesn't worry about being forced inside.
• Continue tossing treats as they approach, sniff or engage with the carrier.
• Allow your cat to choose to interact with or move away from the carrier. Giving them this freedom will help them understand they won’t be forced into a scary situation, making them feel safer and more interested in going into the carrier. 

Plan to do several sessions following these steps until your cat seems more enthusiastic about engaging with the carrier.

Tip: If they do enter the carrier, give them a treat jackpot — a larger quantity of treats all at once. Some cats will startle or become fearful if you reach towards the carrier while they're in it, so having the jackpot inside the carrier before you start the session will work best for most adult cats.

Step 3: Leave happy surprises inside or on top of the carrier.

When you're not actively training with the carrier, keep it in the room and toss a couple of treats or pieces of kibble on top or inside it throughout the week. If you placed the food too far back in the carrier and it hasn’t been eaten, move it closer to the entrance. You can also leave small toys inside, such as pipe cleaners, balls or toy mice, catnip-filled toys, etc. 

The goal isn't to "bribe" your cat into the carrier, but rather to reward them for choosing to engage with it. By putting treats within easy reach, we reduce the likelihood of bad feelings or too much pressure being associated with the carrier. Many cats may start investigating further inside the carrier on their own, even if the treats were just placed by the entryway. 

Continue leaving treats for your cat in the carrier throughout the training process to keep them engaged.

Step 4: Begin training them to enter the carrier. 

To help them feel more comfortable entering the carrier on their own, we can use a method called shaping, which breaks down a hard behavior into easier steps.

We reward each small step toward the final behavior (entering the carrier) as the steps occur:

a) looking in the carrier’s direction --> b) looking inside the carrier --> c) moving toward the carrier--> d) going inside (jackpot reward this!)

It’s helpful to see an example of shaping to understand the concept, so check out this video demonstrating how to get your cat comfortable entering a carrier using this method.

Once your cat is comfortable going into a carrier, move to the next step.

Step 5: Introduce the carrier door.

If you removed the door, reattach it and make sure it can’t swing closed. If your cat's behavior changes after you add the door, repeat the earlier training exercises until they return to the same level of comfort or enthusiasm. 

If your cat is calm and comfortable with the door attached:

• Slowly begin reaching a hand towards the door as your cat is engaging with or inside the carrier.
• Make sure they can see you and that their back is not to you — we don’t want them to feel trapped.
• If at any point they flinch, fidget or freeze, stop and remove your hand.
• If possible, touch the door and remove your hand while treating the cat for staying calm.
• Do this several times until your cat does not appear to react. 

A note on door sounds: Many doors have a latching mechanism with springs that make a scary noise for cats. Practice desensitizing them to these sounds before moving on to the next steps! 

• Start while your cat is relaxed and facing the carrier, but is still some distance away from the carrier.
• While sitting next to the carrier, use one hand to squeeze the latch mechanism and the other to toss a treat at the same time.
• After doing this a few times, make the latch sound again, but this time, wait to toss the treat until immediately after the sound.
• In the beginning, toss the treats away from the carrier.
• Once your cat is enthusiastically participating and does not seem to mind the sounds, begin tossing a bit closer in the space between your cat and the carrier (but always closer to the cat). 

The goal of this game is to decrease the distance between your cat and the carrier when they hear the sound of the latch, so they want to approach when they hear that sound instead of moving away.

Step 6: Introduce door movement.

At this point, your cat should be comfortable moving into and out of the carrier. Now it's time to add movement to the door, which might be challenging for some cats. Watch their body language closely and remember to go slowly despite the excellent progress you've already made! 

Begin moving the door slowly, about 1 inch at a time (inwards and then back out), and reward your cat for remaining calm either at a distance from the carrier or while engaging with it in some way. Ideally, your cat will allow you to move the door while they’re inside the carrier before you move to the next step. As with the other exercises, treat while doing this! 

Once you can close the door at least halfway while your cat remains calm inside, begin building the second half of the 'close'! 

Immediately after the door reaches the closed position (not latched), open it all the way — you're not quite ready to linger with it shut yet! Continue rewarding for calm, relaxed behavior. Repeat this several times.

Step 7: Close the door and build duration.

A note on choice: If at any point during this exercise your cat needs to step out for a moment to take a break, that's absolutely OK! See if they'll go back into the carrier on their own again afterwards — that's the signal they're ready to continue. If they take a longer break or go do something else, they're done for the moment. And that's also OK!

Once you can close the door while your cat remains calm in the carrier, it's time to build duration! 

• Hold the door shut for 1-3 seconds before opening it all the way. Pause for 5-10 seconds, then repeat. Reward your cat for remaining in the carrier for the duration of the door being closed, as well as once the door has been opened again. 
• After doing this a few times, begin to squeeze the latch while the door is fully open. Reward them for remaining calm and release the latch again before shutting for 1-3 seconds. Slowly increase the duration the door is shut (not latched) and repeat several times. 
• Next, squeeze the latch while closing the door for a few seconds. Slowly increase the duration you hold the latch down while rewarding your cat for remaining calm while the door is shut and when it opens all the way. Repeat this several times.
• Finally, close and latch the door for one second while rewarding your cat for remaining calm. Unlatch and open the door and reward them for remaining inside or allow the cat to exit. Increase the duration that the door is closed and latched at a pace your cat is comfortable with!

Step 8: Practice movement and continue building comfort

From here, start building comfort with the carrier being picked up and being moved with the cat inside. This should be a gradual and mindful process, just like the earlier steps.

Throughout this process, be sure to continue associating the carrier, movement and travel with rewards and prepare to have higher value treats on hand as you run into challenges at any level of this training plan! 

Tip: ALWAYS hold your carrier with two hands/arms underneath it, as opposed to holding it from the handle. The swinging of a carrier is scary and feels insecure, whereas supporting it from underneath is much more comfortable for you both. In addition, cats prefer to be higher up, rather than at a height that might bring them face-to-face with a pup while at the vet!