You may recall that I’ve written about Cat Pawsitive before, the clicker training initiative for shelter cats. Well, some exciting things have taken place since the 2017 program wrapped up last year. And the current 2018 Spring semester is already well underway!
GreaterGood.org
Last year, GreaterGood.org took an interest in The Jackson Galaxy Foundation, which had already run two successful semesters of the Cat Pawsitive program. And this past October, The Jackson Galaxy Foundation merged with GreaterGood.org and became The Jackson Galaxy Project, a signature program of GreaterGood.org! You can read more about the merger at greatergood.org/jackson-galaxy.
An Expanded Program
What does the merger mean for the Cat Pawsitive program? Well, for starters, The Jackson Galaxy Project (JGP) was able to expand on the already established program and it has now become Cat Pawsitive Pro (CPP). That means that more shelters across the United States can participate in the clicker training program, which means more shelter cats will benefit!
Queen Sasha at Carver Scott Humane Society works on targeting.
Program Manager for Cat Pawsitive, Christie Rogero says, “This year’s Cat Pawsitive Pro Spring semester has been especially exciting for me. We’ve worked hard over the past couple of years not only to teach positive reinforcement techniques to our participating shelters, but also to learn from the shelters. Because of this, each new class has an even greater pool of resources available. The cats, of course, benefit immensely from this, and we’re already seeing an amazing number of inspiring, heartwarming, happy-tears stories coming out of the Spring 2018 class.”
Regarding the merger, Christie goes on to say, “This is also the first CPP class with The Jackson Galaxy Project as a part of GreaterGood.org, and it marks the start of an exponential expansion of the program. In the coming weeks, we will be officially announcing details about this expansion, and I am overjoyed at the prospect of bringing this lifesaving program to more organizations.”
About Cat Pawsitive Pro
According to founder Jackson Galaxy, CPP “is about awareness, enrichment, innovation, and increased adoption placement on a grassroots level. I know that the work done during this program will have a ripple effect, helping so many cats in need and the humans who care for them.”
The five trainer-mentors (Miranda K. Workman, Samantha Bell DiGenova, Sara Russell, Lisa Stemcosky and Cary Munschauer) are currently working with their assigned shelters during weekly training sessions for the program, which uses positive reinforcement clicker training. The program’s goals include:
- improving cat “adoptability”
- enriching day-to-day life for cats in shelters
- building feline social skills, especially for shy or fearful cats
- promoting the human-cat bond
- teaching and empowering animal shelter staff and volunteers
Murphy at Carver Scott Humane Society – already adopted! High five to that!
Cat Pawsitive Pro 2018 Spring Semester Shelters
The ten participating shelters are listed below, and each shelter has staff and volunteers currently working with their cats. And what do you know – several of the CPP cats have already been adopted!
- Allen County SPCA (Fort Wayne, IN)
- Bakersfield SPCA (Bakersfield, CA)
- BARCS (Baltimore, MD)
- Carver Scott Humane Society (Chaska, MN)
- Dakin Humane Society (Springfield, MA)
- Five Acres Animal Shelter (St. Charles, MO)
- Florida Keys SPCA (Key West, FL)
- PAWS (Seattle, WA)
- Paws4ever (Mebane, NC)
- Pima Animal Care Center (Tucson, AZ)
Jasper at PAWS. First some training, then some loving!
Volunteer Writer
I’m happy to have returned this year as a volunteer writer for the program. Two of my three shelter articles have already been published and you can read them on the JGP website. I will also be responsible for checking in with each shelter for mid-program updates and once again after the program has completed. Stay tuned for more to come from Cat Pawsitive Pro!
- Bakersfield SPCA
- PAWS
- Pima Animal Care Center
Be sure to follow all of the Cat Pawsitive Pro updates on the JGP’s Facebook page!
GreaterGood.org is an independent 501(c)(3) charitable organization devoted to improving the health and well-being of people, pets, and the planet. Source
The Jackson Galaxy Project, founded in 2014, is a Signature Program of GreaterGood.org, a public 501c3 nonprofit organization. The Project is the realization of Jackson’s long-standing dream of bettering the lives of animals at risk and helping the people who care for them.
***All photos and videos used with permission from The Jackson Galaxy Project.
What do you think about Cat Pawsitive Pro? Do you think your local shelter cats would benefit from clicker training?
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I had no idea you could clicker train cats! and what a fantastic way to keep them busy in the shelter! awesome!!!
That really is a great idea, but of course anything that helps adoptions is always a plus!
This is really cool! There is an account I follow on IG with deaf cats that clicker trains with a light! Just goes to show that cats rule!!!
Wonderful project >3
I hope something like this will be done here, on this opposite side of the ocean!
Ciao
Sid
This is fantastic program! The more people can do to help cats be more “adoptable”, the better. Many cats are scared or stressed in a shelter environment, and programs like this are so helpful for them. I inquired about writing for them as well, but they’re based in LA. :(
we thinkz thiz izza awesum eye dea N see a shelter on thiz list that gram paw dude came frum !!
984 …pawz UP !! :) ♥♥♥
I’ve been a fan of Jackson Galaxy from his show on TV My cat from Hell, however was unaware of this cat pawsitive program. How wonderful over 300 cats have been adopted as a result. I’m sure this program will continue to grow and flourish. Will have to share this post as well.
Wow, I am totally impressed!!!! Then why am I so shy about trying to clicker train my own cats…?!?
*shrug*
I didn’t know about the merger but it sounds like it is really going to help so many more cats. I have always been drawn to the shy cats and agree that they often get overlooked in both cageless and more traditional shelters. I would love to try Cat Pawsitive training with the cats at the shelter where I volunteer. I wonder how the training would differ with cats in cages vs. cats in cageless shelters.
This merger sounds like WONDERFUL news. Bein’ able to help even more cats in shelters is a wonderful thing.
Now ’bout this positive reinforcement trainin’ thing… DOES IT WORK WITH PEEPS? Inquirin’ minds wanna know. MOUSES!
Sounds like a wonderful project-I always feel so sorry for the shy cats-this will be great if it gets more adopted out!
What a fantastic program and I never knew that cats could be trained with clickers WOW. I learn something new every day and pray it will help them get adopted
Awesome and a great technic to make cats more adoptable. I have heard a clicker as mom has tried to train me in the fine art of a leash. I hate the sound of the clicker and run away. I hate that noise. Kitties who can stand that sound are far and above better than me. Well, I won’t say better. I’d say different.
Shoko
What a cool program! We hope more shelters can take advantage of this. (Though honestly, we failed miserably at clicker training ourselves.)
Yay for Murphy already being adopted and yay for this program! I am so happy about the expansion!! This is all pawtastic news!
This is such a great program, I wish more shelters were involved.
This is so exciting! I’ve never tried clicker training but it sure sounds like fun!
It’s awlays a good thing when kitties find their furevers. Unfurtunately our shelters don’t wanna fee the cats much less spend enuff time with them to train them. Big hugs
Luv ya’
Dezi and Raena
I know a lot of folks who clicker train. This warmed my heart to learn of the merger, as it sounds very paw-sitive and a good idea for everyone involved. Purrs for a fab blog post!
Two of my own cats have been clicker-trained. The third is a former feral. Training her takes a lot more patience and effort, but we’re sticking with it.
Yes, I’d love if our local shelters would introduce clicker training to our cats. Unfortunately, I don’t think it’ll happen anytime soon…. Thanks for the update!
As a volunteer at my local animal shelter I know first hand the benefit to shelter cats of good training. I absolutely love Jackson galaxy and am so pleased to hear about his program and the new partnership. It must be so rewarding to be involved. I’m going to share this post with the Coordinator at my local shelter. Thanks so much for sharing!
TW had bought a clicker once but never had the onions to use it. HAH! We love Greater Good Org. TW buys a lot from the Animal Rescue Site, including JG stuff.
What a wonderful program! I love how it helps to make cats more adoptable! I’m happy to hear about the merger of Jackson Galaxy to form this new program
What a great program to help the kitties find their furrever homes :) We loved to see the high five, so sweet <3 Good Luck Pawkisses to all the kitties in the world, to find their furrever homes soon <3 <3 <3
Hi Chatty Cats, we love your supurr informative posts guys, and that clicker training sounds purrfect fur assisting kitties in acquiring a happily effur aftur. We are all fur increasing adaptability by whateffur means available – great post and thanks fur sharing!
Big hugs
Basil & Co xox
How interesting! As a dog person I know little about cats, but I’m going to share this with a friend who volunteers with the cats at the Denver Dumb Friends League.
Mummy brought a clicker for me ages ago but she gave up trying to train me. I guess I’m not trainable. But I think some cats are if it’s done right :)
What an awesome program! I’ve never heard of anything like this. What a great idea to help enrich shelter cats lives while also making them more adoptable. Love everything about it. Thanks for sharing!
I remember as a kid being told that you can’t train cats. I didn’t really think about it much (we only had dogs) until my sister got her cats. 30 years ago she was training them to walk on a leash and do some tricks. I think that clicker training will help get cats out of the shelter and into loving homes.
Anything with an aim to increase adoptions can’t be wrong! One of the participating shelters is in my area – though I’ve never heard of them before. I can’t wait to see more great work on behalf of the cats!
We love this program. I hope that more shelters will participate soon. Thanks for such an excellent article. We’re going to do a link back to this post on our blog so people can learn more about it.
That’s so cool! We love anything that helps cats be more adoptable, and this certainly fits the bill!
Wow, that is just wonderful! I would love it if the shelters in my community chose to purr-ticipate in that program! And thanks for all you do in writing about the program! Mew Mew!
This is such a great program, and we’re so happy it’s helping so many kitties get adopted. We’re hoping shelters in our area participate.
Oh goodness! We just realized we already commented! MOL
I’ve read about this program before and love everything about it. Awesome job raising more awareness, I’d love to see it gaining more momentum.