Most people only ever need to move a cat from the sofa to a carrier. A show handler moves dozens of cats a day, between benching cages, to the judging ring, and back, often cats they've never touched before that morning, with a judge, a room full of spectators, and other cats within reach. There's no time to build trust cat by cat, and no room for a scratch, an escape, or a stressed cat that fights the hold. The technique that makes this possible is worth understanding whether or not a show ring is ever in your future.
Why show handling is a different skill from home handling
At home, handling a cat you know well means you can afford to go slowly, read the individual cat, and adjust. A handler moving unfamiliar cats through a show doesn't have that luxury. The hold has to work on almost any cat, has to be fast enough not to hold up a judging schedule, and has to keep the cat feeling secure enough that it doesn't need to fight, all at once. That combination is exactly what the side-carry was built to solve.
The side-carry: the core show hold
The cat is held horizontally against the handler's side, roughly at hip height. One arm runs underneath the chest and front legs. The other hand or forearm supports the length of the body through to the hindquarters, so the cat's full weight is distributed along the handler's arm and side rather than hanging from any single point. The cat's body stays close against the handler throughout, which keeps its centre of gravity aligned with the handler's own, so a sudden turn or a few quick steps doesn't create the sensation of falling that triggers a struggle.
This is also, not coincidentally, the fastest hold to execute correctly at speed. A handler can pick a cat up from a cage and be moving within a second or two, without needing to reposition hands mid-carry the way less practised holds often require.
The gentle contact that isn't a restraint
There's a real difference between the light, constant contact used in a side-carry and the escalating squeeze people sometimes apply when a cat starts to struggle in an ordinary hold. The side-carry's contact is broad, spread across the whole torso rather than concentrated at one point, and it never increases in response to movement. It's there to keep the cat's body aligned with the handler's, not to physically prevent the cat from moving. A cat that's properly supported this way rarely needs restraining at all, because the fall sensation that triggers struggling was never created in the first place. If you find yourself gripping harder as a cat moves, that's a signal the underlying support isn't there yet, not a signal to squeeze further.
How kittens are trained into this from birth
This hold isn't something a cat tolerates because it has no choice. At Bangkok Cats, a world championship cattery, kittens are handled from their first days of life, well before they're old enough to have opinions about it, so structured handling becomes the normal baseline rather than something introduced later against resistance. By the time a kitten is old enough to be shown, side-carry positioning, along with the kind of hands-on examination judges perform, checking the jaw, ears, coat, and muscle tone, is already familiar territory rather than a new and alarming experience. We cover this conditioning process in more depth in our piece on what it takes to raise a show kitten behind the scenes.
Bringing show handling home
You don't need to be preparing for a show hall to benefit from this technique. The same side-carry works well for moving a cat between rooms, settling it before a nail trim, or carrying it to the carrier before a vet visit, situations where a cat that's used to structured, confident handling stays calmer than one that's only ever been picked up haphazardly. A cat conditioned to any consistent, properly supported hold generalises that comfort to handling in general, which is the real payoff. Not a show ribbon, a cat that doesn't brace every time hands come toward it.
Frequently asked questions
Can I train an adult cat into the side-carry, or does it only work if you start as a kitten?
Adult cats can learn it, though it takes longer and more patience than starting from kittenhood. Begin with very brief side-carries, seconds only, paired with a reward, and build duration gradually the same way you would with any new hold. The earlier a cat starts, the faster it generalises, but the technique itself works at any age.
Is the side-carry safe for very large cats, like Maine Coons or big male Bengals?
Yes, and it's often more comfortable for larger cats than holds that concentrate weight at a single point, since the load is spread along the handler's arm and side. Handlers do need proportionally more arm strength and a firmer stance for a heavier cat, but the technique itself scales well.
Do professional handlers ever get scratched using this method?
Rarely, and almost always with a cat that arrives already stressed from something unrelated to the hold itself, travel, an unfamiliar environment, or proximity to other cats. The technique minimises the risk considerably, but it isn't a guarantee against every possible stressor a cat might be carrying into the moment.
What's the biggest mistake people make trying to copy the side-carry at home?
Holding the cat too far from the body. The whole point of the hold is keeping the cat's centre of gravity aligned with the handler's, which only works at close contact. Holding a cat out at arm's length in a side-carry position removes the stability the technique is built to provide.
Related reading
- How to hold a cat: the right method for every moment
- Cat holding mistakes that can actually cause injury
- Raising show kittens: what it takes behind the scenes
- Cat behaviour and training guide for Thai cat parents
