Very Aggressive Cat, need a some tips!!

[tabatha42183]

We have a very aggressive cat, she bites and scratches for no reason at all and does this constantly. My husband and I have "attack" wounds all over our arms, hands, legs, and my face (as she attacks while I'm watching tv) Does anyone have any tips on how to "train" her NOT to do this? Please help!!! I don't want to get rid of her but if she keeps this up I'm afraid I'm going to have to TIA for any help at all!!

[Auntie Debbie]

You can set aside certain times in the day where you can play with her constructively. Using interactive toys, such as the cat dancer, fetch with simple crumpled up pieces of paper or fuzzy mice are big hits here.
When she attacks humans, scold her by saying NO! and then follow up with ignoring her for a period of time. She may be attacking you to engage in play. Praise her when you're petting her and she is behaving, maybe give her a treat for behaving.
There are some links on "Aggression", "Attack Cat" and "Behavior" under the Feline section of my website (Debbie's Feline Health) under Favorites on the menu on the left side of the board. I hope you find something helpful there and that you can get her to calm down! Please let us know how it's going, ok?

[stacy0w]

Real good advice. Our kitten is 5 months old and I have MANY old and new wounds from his attacks. During the night he attacked my face and hit me in the eye so hard I couldn't see for a couple hours out of that eye. Needless to say, he's a little hyper at times but we now play with him for about an hour right before bed and now he sleeps straight through. He's better during the day too if he gets his play time.

[tabatha42183]

I try to play with her all the time but she just doesn't want to play with us I tell her no when she attacks but that just seems to make her attack more like reverse physcology or something I'll check out your website and see if I can find anything that helps and will let you know if she EVER calms down and gets the biting to a minimum or hopefully stopped!!

[paulette2]

Here's a suggestion that I used with my Poopie when she was a kitten:

Take several thick white tube sox and fill the toes with catnip, tie a knot in sox. Place them in various rooms in your house. As soon as cat begins aggressive behavior pick up sock and try to direct the cat's aggession to the sock. The catnip helps with this. Play with the cat with the sock & let the cat take out its aggession on the sock instead of on you. Be consistent and try to do it every time so that cat eventually gets the message. Be sure to tell it NO if it bites or scratches your hand. Let cat know the sock is ok but your body parts are off limits.

By the way, how old is this kitty and how long have you had her?? Have you spoken to your vet about this problem?

[tabatha42183]

My baby is about 3 months, we've had her since she was about 9 weeks. She hasn't been to the vet yet, as right now our financial situation isn't good enough but as soon as I can get the money she'll be there!!!

[paulette2]

I think a trip to the vet is a very good idea in any event. Be sure to tell him about kitty's behavior. You want to be sure that there isn't anything physically wrong causing kitty's behavior.

It's entirely possible that kitty is trying to tell you something, believe it or not. I had this experience with one of my cats. For no reason her behavior changed out of the blue--she started to attack my legs/fee -- biting & swatting. It hurt both my feelings and my legs!

Anyway it turned out kitty was upset because my husband was locking her in the laundry room at night [he said he couldn't sleep, but that's another story]. Anyway the laundry room was small & had no windows and this kitty didn't like it one bit. Once we stopped locking her up she went back to her old sweet self!

Another time the same cat was going crazy in front of my pantry. She was rolling around and carrying on in front of the door of the pantry. At first I ignored her and then I finally got the message--I opened the door and guess what?? Her baby was locked in the pantry!!!! So you see, cats cannot talk and therefore they have to find other ways of communicating with humans. You haven't had your little one all that long. As time goes by you will get to know each other a lot better and you will be able to figure things out!

[MA]

There is a danger in using catnip for an aggressive cat, because sometimes catnip will make a cat more aggressive. You need to figure out if you are doing something to provoke her to attack you? Playing finger games with her, rubbing her tummy? petting her to long, or to hard to overstimulate her, holding her when she doesn't want to be held? Then you go about correcting your behavior to stop hers. She is still a kitten and she will be playing and sparring with you. Get a small stuffed animal - a beanie baby works well, and give that to her when she is in attack mode. Ignore her as much as you can, and when she has you with claws or teeth, don't tense up and pull away, but gently push your arm forward, that will disengage her teeth and claws and startle her. Also saying OWW really loud and hurtful will let her know she has hurt you.