My new kitten loves to play but sometimes she bites sooo hard she draws blood...I don't know a good way to train her to stop doing this...
2007-02-27 06:57:11 · 7 answers · asked by Nicolleta 2 in Pets ➔ Cats
Get some soft toys that she can dig into instead of attacking your hands - you can get teething treats & toys from the pet store. NEVER encourage her to play with your hands - when you play with her, direct her attention to the toy, and not your hands. If she attacks your hand and won't let go, relax your hand completely to defuse her attack instinct, then remove your hand from her grasp, get up, and ignore her for a few minutes. When you go back to play with her, encourage her to go for the toy, and if she goes for your hand, get up & ignore her for a few minutes again. She'll soon figure out that if she wants to play, she'll get to play more if she leaves your hands alone. I don't recommend hitting your cat or squirting her for this behavior, because it may damage her trust in you, and you may end up with a 'head-shy' cat (one who winces and shies away when you reach forward to pet her, because she's afraid of being hit, instead of leaning into your hand for a pet when you reach for her as a trusting cat will).
Another tactic you could try is when she gets too rough, hold her neck gently by the scruff (don't pick her up by the scruff or you could hurt her - just hold her by the scruff to hold her still for a moment while her feet are on a solid surface) and cover her face with your other hand for a second or two. That's the way mother cats discipline their kittens when they get too rough. It works well for some cats & kittens, but if the cat is really overexcited and worked up it may not work - if it doesn't work, just get up and ignore her for a few minutes until she calms down.
Also, get some interactive toys that she can chase and pounce on - feathers on a stick & string like the 'da bird' toy are great, and laser pointers are good if your kitten will chase them. Playing with her with toys like that every day will help focus her energy and help keep her from attacking you inappropriately.
Play aggression: http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?action=library&act=show&item=playaggression
Play therapy:
http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?action=library&act=show&item=playtherapyforcats
2007-02-27 07:31:41 · answer #1 · answered by Bess2002 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I love the water bottle as a training tool, but not for something up close and personal like play training.
If each time she bites too hard you take the play away for about 30 seconds, coupled with an offensive noise then she will get the idea pretty soon. A loud "NO" will work to deter your pet, but I prefer a hissing sound made through my teeth-- this is a sound they instinctively recognize as "no" and it is much less difficult on you and your household. You have to start out with rather loud hissing, but you can graduate this to a very soft sound. I can now hiss very quietly at my cat and correct her behaviour without my guests even noticing that the kitty almost sniffed in her coffee cup!
2007-02-27 07:35:41 · answer #2 · answered by DidoDeeDee 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
although she is most likely teething it is best to cut this habit immediately before she learns it is okay to play rough. things to discourage the habit may be a loud noise every time she does it so she becomes alarmed learning it is wrong. also try a spray bottle to discourage any bad behaviors. i personally push my kittens nose in and say "NO!" but aggresively enough that she gets the hint. whichever you choose be sure to keep up with it and ur kitten will eventually catch on. GOODLUCK!
2007-02-27 07:06:09 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Bump her on the nose everytime she does it. Or get a spray bottle and squirt her with it. That'll teach her not to bite.
2007-02-27 07:23:37 · answer #4 · answered by Sarah Fairchild 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
my cat did this as a kitten. i yell "ow" push him away and act like he hurt me really bad and avoid him for a while. it worked! the hissing that another poster mentioned is good too, i do that when my cats misbehave and they respond well.
2007-02-27 07:50:40 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is probably is just a phase that she is going thru. when my cat was a kitten she did the same thing.
2007-02-27 07:01:37 · answer #6 · answered by Beckah 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
get rid of it and rescue a dog from a shelter.
2007-02-27 07:01:18 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 5⤋