I adopted a 1.5 yr old kitty from the shelter a week ago. When I first met him he was very sweet, wanted to be loved and showed no aggression other than light nibbling when I touched his paws. Well, we brought him home and he really is a sweet loving cat. EXCEPT he bites when he gets annoyed. This has been worrying me a bit but thought it was something I could handle until I brought him to my vet for the shelter check and rabies shot. He flipped out, scratched and bit the vet. Even after the vet let him go he was trying to attack him. The vet said he thought I should rethink him as I have a 4 year old daughter.
I'm devastated.
Any advice on this. He has bitten and scratched me a bit but I really didn't think it was excessive since I just got him and he is getting used to everything.
Any ideas on getting him to stop the biting etc? Should I give him back? HELP!
2007-12-04 13:44:10 · 9 answers · asked by jlgj 3 in Pets ➔ Cats
You should definitely take what the vet said into consideration...
Idk about the biting but if
he keeps clawing id get him
declawed and i know if a dog gets nuetered
he calms down, maybe the same is true for a cat?
2007-12-04 13:49:59 · answer #1 · answered by Amber N 1 · 1⤊ 2⤋
That's an awful shame. Did the shelter have any information on the past history of the cat? He might have been "surrendered" for that type of behavior in which case you should have been informed.
Call the shelter immediately and let them know what has happened. Since it has been only a week you should be able to return him on the vet's recommendation and your concern for your child.
I don't think you should eat yourself up with guilt about doing that. Not all homes are going to fit all cats and if the cat is returned the shelter will have this information and be better able to place the cat in an appropriate home.
2007-12-04 13:55:26 · answer #2 · answered by old cat lady 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
He might have been abused in a former home. I would try some kitty prozac. I had one of my cats on it and it really, really helped. Your vet can write a prescription for it and you can have the pill form compounded in to a lotion. There are compounding pharmacies out there - so call around to Rite Aid, Walmart, etc., or ask the vet if he knows of one. You then rub that lotion on the cat's ear. That stuff really calmed my cat down.
The other thing you can do is by Feliway spray, which is a spray that mimics a cat's pheromones. It helps with urine marking, aggression, and several other problems. I got some at PetSmart and is helps a lot. They have Feliway spray and diffusers that you can plug in to the wall.
See this:
http://www.catfaeries.com/feliway.html
Good luck!
2007-12-04 13:52:39 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
He might remember the vet and being at the shelter. He might have thought he was going back!
Has the kitty been good with your daughter? That's the best way to tell. If so, I would give it time. It takes a couple months for them to settle into a new home.
I had one kitty who was great to me and whoever I lived with at home, but hated being in strange places like the vet's office and would freak out.
EDIT: Oh and make sure your daughter knows to let the kitty come to her, and not chase it around. :-)
2007-12-04 13:49:46 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
tell me you're not any more severe. before each thing, you abdicate in charge puppy possession by ability of no longer spaying your cat and allowing her to get pregnant and that i do not provide a crap if she is a purebred cat. there are a good number of them being killed in shelters. She provides delivery and then you leave her for just about per week and characteristic a finished stranger come into your position to look after her. After her replace in hormones, attempting to guard her little ones and all this upheaval you come back domicile which causes even better confusion for the cat and then you ask your self why she is behaving in this style of way? And instead of coping with it you're making it worse by ability of throwing her in a crate to bypass who's conscious the position, probable a kill preserve the position the completed little relations receives nuked. How chilly are you able to get? What enormous difference does it make if the aggression will bypass? you've already keen to unload her - by ability of no fault of her personal - without attempting to resolve the priority. in case you somewhat want to help this cat, then provide her a danger to regulate to the prevailing domicile difficulty. placed her in a quiet room at the same time with her foodstuff, water, litterbox and a container or provider the position she has a touch den for her kittens and then close the door and leave her on my own. do no longer bypass in there except you should furnish better foodstuff/water or scoop clutter. That way she will attempt to regulate - back - guard her little ones and is not any longer a danger for your daughter. If she has been a effective cat for all this time before some days in the past, provide the undesirable cat a danger for pity's sake. besides, I even ought to ask your self no matter in the adventure that your darling daughter did some thing to impression the cat in a roundabout way, like attempting to puppy the kittens.
2016-10-25 11:29:51 · answer #5 · answered by azucena 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's only been a week, the cat is stressed out. Try to find out what ''annoys'' him, and avoid doing it. Teach your 4 yr old daughter to respect the boundaries when it comes to your new cat.
You cannot judge a cat within a week, since the cat is not adjusted to the new home & family.
2007-12-04 13:49:17 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Being a cat from a shelter,he could have been ill-treated by his previous owner.Give him time to settle into your home.Please do not get him declawed,as this is a very painful procedure.A declawed cat is unable to scratch and clean itself properly,and will not be able to climb when outside,or be able to defend himself against other cats.
2007-12-07 13:58:48 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would expect any cat to get stressed out at the vet but your vet has seen a lot of cats, and I think he knows if your cat's behavior is unsafe for your daughter. I think you should consider your vet's recommendation.
2007-12-04 13:47:31 · answer #8 · answered by drshorty 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
How he acts at the vet doesn't count and i wouldn't worry about your daughter
When petting him, watch his tail. If it starts to twich and move, he is getting over stimulated and it is time to syop petting
2007-12-04 14:21:23 · answer #9 · answered by Ken 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋