My cat's behavior...?

Question

It is becoming out of control. Seriously. I cannot control her. She goes off doing things that she isn't supposed to do. I tried everything...spray bottles, NO, and have come to hitting her a bit. Is there anything suggested? I really need to get her behavior in shape. She also chews like crazy on my wires n cables.

Thanks for your advice. Like I say...I have tried the squirt bottle, NO, and else. It seems she has a hard time learning these responses. I don't know.

She is a 2yr old mixed breed. Very loving, very sweet. An indoor-only cat.

Answer 1

We disciplined my cat from the time when he was little till now but picking him up by the scruff up his neck and saying, "No!". He would then be put in a seperate room for 3-5 minutes.
He is about 6 now and now just responds to "NO!" If he is doing something and hears NO he runs and knows to stop.

Answer 2

Your cat is obviously bored. You need to make sure you have plenty of toys for her. If she is scratching up your furnature, then you need to buy a scratch post. Go buy her a cat tree and hang some toys on it with string. Or you can find ones that already on strings. Do not hit her! Keep using the spray bottle. It should work unless she likes water. In that case, try a rolled up newspaper. It doesn't hurt the cat at all, but the sound will scare her. Her chewing on cables and wires is a result of boredom. Make sure you play with her a certain amount of time per day also. Try buying a laser light. You can sit down and just drive her nuts with that thing.

Answer 3

You don't state exactly what her behavior is that is out of control, except for chewing on wires. She is 2 years old, it is very hard to train a cat of this age. Do not hit her, cat do not respond well to hitting and you could make her worse. You either have to remove whatever she is doing that is wrong, or put her in a room where she can not do whatever it is she is doing. This is a hard question to get a good answer for. Sorry can't help you much more than that.

Answer 4

At only 2 years old, she is still a young cat and has a lot of energy that needs to be spent. Particularly as she is an indoor only cat.

Physical punishment will only make a cat fear and resent you. The water bottle method is the same thing, it teaches the cat to fear you. I know that a lot of people say that they only have to reach for the bottle for the cat to stop whatever they are doing, but it is the owner they are afraid of, not the bottle. If it were, the bottle could be left out on it's own as a deterrent. Cats are not stupid - they know the bottle doesn't squirt water unless the owner is holding it. When mine are kittens, I teach them basic words such as "no", "out" and "down". When I catch them doing something wrong, I used the appropriate word and physically moved them aside. They quickly understood, and now I only have to say the word for them to behave.

Cats are not pack animals and therefore have no desire to please anyone else in order to work their way up the family pecking order. Positive reinforcement for good behaviour, such as praise or food treats works much better. Cats will quickly adopt behaviour that benefits them in some way.

As for the cable chewing, there are a few things that you can try to break the habit;

* I know this may not be easy, but wherever possible you need to deny her any access to those items that she's chewing. Buy some trunking to cover cables and electrical wires.

* The items that you cannot store away, put eucalyptus or menthol oil on them. Cats hate the smell. You can also leave "bait" pieces of cable on which a few drops of menthol or oil of eucalyptus have been smeared. This deterrent will often reform the most ardent chewers. Sometimes denial for a couple of weeks causes the behaviour to stop.

* Shouting her when you catch her in the act, isn't advised as you may just find she resorts to chewing these items in secret or when you are not there. Instead, try to focus her attention elsewhere by offering her toys to play with, or start a game with her.

* If it's the chewing sensation that she enjoys, then try providing her with tough chunks of meat to eat. This means she will have to spend more time focused on eating her meals.

You don't say what other behaviour of hers you find unacceptable, but it could simply be that she is bored. Perhaps in her effort to find things around the home to amuse herself, she is inadvertently getting into trouble with you. If were able to consider allowing her brief periods outside, even on a harness, this will further her level of mental stimulation and will reduce the importance of home for activity. Make sure you set aside time each day strictly for playing games with her. Cats love practising their hunting skills and toys that dangle off the end of a wand stick are perfect for this. Any games that involve chasing, hunting and jumping will keep her amused. The web article below offers good suggestions on keeping an indoor only cat amused.

http://www.celiahaddon.co.uk/pet%20problems/cats/indoor.html

Is she an only cat? She's still young and may appreciate a feline companion. Having a friend to play with would keep her both mentally and physically fit. Should you decide to consider this option, I've posted a link to a web site that will help you introduce a new cat to yours.

http://www.tulsa-animalshelter.org/tips/intro%20cat.htm

With patience and kindness, you can teach your cat what is acceptable behaviour.

Good luck.

Answer 5

Hitting your cat is just wrong, in most likeliness she has no idea why you are, if you don't know how to discipline her without taking such measures I'd consider giving her up instead.

By the sound of it, it honestly sounds like she is bored.
Cats who are bored and no where to release their energy often become a bit destructive, at least that's the way I've experienced them. Kinda like kids really.
Does she have toys and such to be occupied with?
My cat had a habit of doing things she wasn't supposed to (Chewing over head set wires, ruining toilet rolls etc) but got much muuuuch better after the combination of saying no&squirting her with water and that she got some toys to play with.

Answer 6

Never, ever hit a cat. If you did something wrong, would you want to be hit? Kicked? All you're going to do is make her even more nervous. Cats do respond to the word "No!" if you remove her from the source right away. Cats will chase and get into anything, that's why I keep boxes and shoe laces around for them to bat at, chase. Even my sons have laser lights that the cats chase all day.

Wires and cables are a big no-no, I use empty toilet paper rolls to keep my cables neat and away from tempting a cat, but they need to learn the word NO, it takes time and consistency, but once they get it, you can holler it across the apartment and they will understand.

Answer 7

DONT HIT HER!
Thats Just Wrong!
She doesn't know what she is doing!
First you need to sit her in an room with no distractions and show her different things if she goes over to some wires or furniture pick her up and bring her back and say firmly 'NO!' or try it the treat way.I know cats arent like dogs.But this did work for my cat who loves chewing and scratching furniture.
After a while she hopefully will start to listen.If she doesnt maybe its because she doesnt play enough.
Try buying some cheap shoe laces and play with her until she's worn out.

Answer 8

chewing on cables can be a very serious problem because the cat can get electrocuted. My vet told me to put cayenne pepper on all of my wires, you know, hot sauce. The lady at the shelter told me to cover as much wire as I could with paper towel tubing to keep her from getting access, that worked real well and it was inexpensive. I also shouted "NO" a lot and used a coffee can filled with coins, shaken very hard, that scared her bad. Then basically she just out grew it.

Answer 9

I used a aluminum pie plate or foil. Cats absolutly hate this sound and the look of this stuff. If you wrap the wires in aluminum foil your baby will stop chewing them. Also don,t forget rewards for good behavior.Petco has all kinds of treats. My cats like the pet candy.

Answer 10

Please don't hit your animal. The hand that goes towards her should ALWAYS be a loving hand!
She's being a "Cat" having some strange cat moments, they go thru nonsense like that. I am a mom to 4 cats & have had cats all my life.
Ensure she has had her annual checkup, vaccinations etc, Get her a kitty condo if u havent already, cats do get bored u know....especially mentally, so when that happens they amuse themselves anyway they can.