Megan began to train this trick by teaching Pavlov to target her hand (learn how to teach your cat to target here). Once Pavlov was targeting her hand consistently, Megan started guiding him into a spin by placing her hand near his nose and slowly moving her hand in a small circle. As soon as Pavlov made even a small step in the right direction, Megan marked the behavior with a click and rewarded him with a treat. She uses tuna paste as a reward—it's delicious, easy to administer, and quick for Pavlov to consume. 

Gradually, Megan was able to guide Pavlov into completing a full circle. Once he was following her hand and spinning consistently, she added the verbal cue "Spin" before moving her hand. Over time, Pavlov learned to associate the cue with the action, and Megan was able to fade out the hand target.

Interested in more training tips for friendly, well-behaved felines? Learn fun and useful behaviors to teach your cat in KPA’s Train Your Cat course.

Happy (Cat) Training!