My wife and I have a 6 month old Tabby cat, and she is adoreable, but she can be very aggressive. Sometimes she'll just bite and scratch us really hard and when we raise our voices or try to let her know that its wrong to bite and scratch, she gets even more angry! Is this just a stage, or do time-outs and punishments help.
Also, she is going to get fixed sometime this month, so I don't know if that will change anything or not. Thanks for the help!
2006-09-18 11:22:24 · 18 answers · asked by mikewz82 1 in Pets ➔ Cats
it is normal, especally in female kittens, but aggressiveness towards you should not be tolerated or it will only get worse. try spraying with water or a firm voice saying "no"
don't forget to reward good behaviour.
they are smart, they will catch on
2006-09-18 11:31:26 · answer #1 · answered by allyalexmch 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
First, make sure you have lots of toys.
second, get some "bitter apple" spray, most petstores sell it, it taste really bad, you can spray it on anything, including youself. Spray some on your hands and I guarentee your cat will think will only try bitting you once.
If she's hyper in other things too you can spray her with a squirt gun when she is doing something she is not supposed to, this will startle her since she is not expecting it (especially if you do it from behind), but it will not hurt her.
To give you a little hope I rescued a 4 day old kitten that used to tear up bottles so bad that I had to replace the nipples on them every 2 days. He now is 5 yrs old and very calm. There is hope, the fixing should help some too, good luck.
2006-09-18 14:16:26 · answer #2 · answered by Animal lover 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Hate to say this, but it may just be her personality. Cats, like people, have their own personal, individual traits.
Raising your voice is very likely to increase her aggression, because face it -- if somebody ten times your size was shouting at you, you'd probably be scared and defensive too!
The squirt bottle idea mentioned earlier is a good suggestion. Also, getting her spayed is necessary anyway, so you can hope it helps. It may, it may not.
Try ignoring her when she acts up -- most cats really don't like "time outs". But make sure that when you do speak to her and play with her, you use a gentle tone and avoid rough or quick movements. Some cats get aggresive when they're overstimulated, even though they really don't mean to be mean.
What one cat might take as play or even petting might provoke another to lash out. It's not meanness; it's instinct. Some cats just need quiet voices and gentler handling.
Good luck to you.
2006-09-18 14:06:50 · answer #3 · answered by sparticle 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree with Rach that training is needed here. There is no reason at all for your cat to abuse you in this way. Yes, she will "settle down" after her spay operation and just getting older and she may never stop doing this to you unless you make training corrections with her now.
The nose bop is good and I have seen cats do this to one another. Another thing is to scruff her firmly behind her neck and get close enough to hiss in her face (another thing a mother cat will do to correct her kittens), say a firm "No!" and put her away from you. So use either this one-two-three step procedure or use the nose bop. Whichever it needs to be totally consistent and every member of the family must follow through on what you decide.
Water spraying is much overused and this behavior calls for a much more personal hands-on treatment. I would do the same thing with a 3-month old kitten.
2006-09-18 12:56:56 · answer #4 · answered by old cat lady 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
She's still a baby, but don't let her get away with biting and scratching! When our cats were young, they would climb up onto the computer desk and knock things all over the floor. Yelling and making noises didn't really phase them, so we got a spray bottle. Anytime they did something we didn't want them to, we just sprayed them with water and they hated it! Now whenever they see us reach for the spray bottle, they turn around and walk away. They learn very quickly. If your cat is scratching, biting, or doing something like what our cats did -- just use the spray bottle. I PROMISE it will work. Good luck :)
2006-09-18 11:32:43 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
1) Make sure she is okay physically.
2) She could be trying to tell you she is hungry. Leave dry food (and water) in bowls at all times so she can eat and drink at her leisure. Don't use the cheap crap either, it's mostly filler.
3) Cats do not like a dirty litter box.
4) Buy her some toys! Or, give her things like the plastic ring from a milk jug to play with. Wad up a piece of paper and throw it. A large paper bag to crawl in and out of. Keep her busy.
Cats will tell you what they want if you are paying attention!
Good luck
2006-09-18 11:46:50 · answer #6 · answered by mickeyg1958 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Whenever she bites at your hands pull your hand completely out of her sight and immediately replace it with a toy. Teach her to show her aggression and play energy towards her toys and it will eventually become a habit. It's a good idea to keep toys all over the house until she gets past the stage of going after your hands. Don't worry, she can be trained. Also, raising your voice could be "threatening" to her a little bit and putting her on the defensive and since it doesn't seem to be working I would leave that out and try the toy therapy.
2006-09-18 11:34:25 · answer #7 · answered by GraceandMickey A 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Spaying and neutering does tend to calm cats down a bit, as does time; as they age, they settle down....much like humans.
But you NEED to get the biting and scratching under control. She may not simply "grow out of it"....and if that ends up being the case, it will be harder to break her of it the longer she's allowed to do it.
Keep a spray bottle handy....when she bites or scratches, give her a quick squirt. Don't EVER hit her with anything. This will only make her meaner.
2006-09-18 11:29:04 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Getting it fixed will help out a little, but right now the cat is in the kitten stage. Once it gets older it will calm down.. Just be patient
2006-09-18 11:30:29 · answer #9 · answered by kimberly24241999 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
My mom is a "cat-woman", and i know that if you get cats fixed they usually calm down A LOT. But i think that that really only has a big effect on male cats. If she is young, just wait it out. She more than likely will grow out of this stage.
2006-09-18 11:32:18 · answer #10 · answered by MaR 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Just let her grow up...when she's older, she'll be much quieter...she's just a baby now and that's what they do.
Time outs and punishments do NOTHING for a cat except make it meaner...they have no idea why you're ' harrassing' them, so don't waste your time or you may end up doing much more harm than good...
Getting her fixed WILL help, too, so good for you in getting her fixed.
She'll grow out of this soon and you'll miss her being playful. It is just a stage :-)
2006-09-18 11:27:56 · answer #11 · answered by Peachy 5 · 1⤊ 2⤋