Discipline!!!!

[kehorner]

Okay, we have a serious discipline problem in my house. Pat is the dominant cat out of 3 males. He is the world's most annoying cat.

He is constantly on the kitchen counter, on top of the fridge, etc. But he doesn't just go up there to sit, he goes up there to make a mess of things, messing with papers, knocking dishes over, sitting on top of the fridge and playing with the magnets... But he only goes up there when I'm not in the room. He knows that he's not supposed to be up there, and as soon as he hears me stand up to come spray him with water, he's on the ground.

He constantly demands attention. He sits on the counter and attacks me when I'm brushing my teeth. He tries to grab my hands, stand up on my chest, etc.

The biggest problem is that he bites me to get my attention. He doesn't bite hard enough to break the skin, but with my cat allergies, the bites cause little scratches that then swell up and get really itchy. If I'm working on something, he will sit there and try to get in my face, then he'll bite me.

He's also constantly trying to get in my face. He gets his face as close as he can to mine, and will rub it up against mine. He reaches his paws up and bats at my face. Not only is this annoying, but it's really a bad thing for somebody with cat allergies.

Spike occassionally has a discipline issue, and will sometimes go up on the counter, but really not very often. Spike's biggest problem is that he's majorly food-driven, and has gotten into the habit of begging for treats and not shutting up until I cave. Captain Hook is practically a perfect little angel.

I'm just not sure how to get Pat to stop these behaviors. I try loud noises (yelling, clapping hands, stomping), the water bottle, and even tossing him across the room (well, gently launching him about 3 feet, with his feet down and head forward... sort of a mandatory jump). But he doesn't care at all about the noises, just comes running back after I toss him (I think he sees it as a game), and runs away before I get a chance to squirt him (I usually do it anyway, if he's just jumped down from the counter). Also, when he tries to get in my face, I've tried blowing on him, and he doesn't mind that either.

I spend as much time as I can with the dudes. I spend about 5-10 minutes most mornings petting them. Then I play with them and pet them when I get home at night. Pat likes to play fetch, and I will do that with him for up to an hour some nights. Sometimes I wish I could spend more time with them, but I'm a grad student with two jobs, and I live alone, so some days it's just not possible. And Pat will just keep playing forever. I had people over last weekend, and the 5 year old played with him for over 2 hours, and Pat showed no sign of stopping. He's like a kitten, except he's 2.5 years old. They sleep with me every night, too.

Sure, it's great that he worships the ground that I walk on, and always wants to be mommy's little boy, but sometimes I just need to get work done. And I'd love it if he'd stop biting me and get out of my face, as these cause my allergies to flare up.

Any suggestions on how to actually get through to this idiot? I feel bad because I'm not home much, so I try to be home as much as possible so they can see me and I can pet them and play with them a bit and they can sit on my lap or next to me. But Pat is all over me so much that I end up spending even less time at home because when I need to do work I have to go to the library.

[Traci]

Some cats need more attention than others...it's obvious Pat wants more of your attention.

"caving in" to the cats is a hard habit to break...once the cat learns he can get away with whatever the behavior, then it's more difficult to correct.

Stop caving in.

All of the behavior and the things he gets into, is a clear sign he is outright asking for your attention, so you have to have a positive attitude and be creative, pay attention to his needs and his favorite activities/bonding/etc.

Despite your busy work routine, etc, you do need to devote more time to all of the cats. I know it can be difficult, but they are your family, they need you and your time.

[Tambrey]

for the kitchen counters and fridge top, you can try a variety of things...

The 2 that have worked for me are...

the easiest to try is to get a clear carpet runner protector...you can get them at WalMart...they are palstic and have nubbies on one side of them...
Cut it to fit your counter(s) and fridge top and when you are not in the room, put them on the surface, nubby side up...(MOST) cats do not like to walk on taht surface and will soon learn to stay off...

you can get Ssscat!! It is a device that sits on top of a can of air...(they want you to buy their can of air, at exorbant prices, but ANY can of air works!!) The device is a bit spendy, but I got mine on ebay...
it has an "electronic eye" so a light needs to be on in the room for it to sense a shadow nearby...then it will sound a shrill whistle, and a few seconds later let loose with a squirt or air!
At first they get the noise and squirt of air, but soon enough learn that when the whistle sounds, they will get blasted (not hard, just startling!) and again, they soon learn to just avoid that area...

good luck...my Roo is like your Pat..he will even jump straight up into my arms from a crouching position on the floor then he snuggles itno the crook of my arm and nuzzles his face against my face and neck, or likes to be cradled like a baby...

[slvrwhispr]

I have to enthusiastically second the carpet runner thing. I still grin every time I see Izzy try and crawl under the couch that she was pulling the stuffing out of, and watch her run away because she doesn't like the nubbins just because I feel so damn ingenious for nailing that thing up there. Best idea I've gotten off this board yet. The cats freaking HATE those things. They don't hurt, but they don't feel good, and you know how picky cats are about anything they don't like on their paws. One jump up on the counter or the fridge with the nubbins will likely be their last. And once they've been broken of the habit, you can pull it off so you don't have to waste counter space with it.

Doesn't help much with him batting you and biting you... unless you wanted to make clothes made out of the nubbins... But I wouldn't recommend that so much, lol.

[kehorner]

I don't cave in to Pat. Only occasionally to Spike when he's begging for treats (which are actually hills dental diet).

My biggest issue is the biting. Definitely not acceptable, but I can't seem to get the message through his thick little skull.

I probably spend about an hour a day with them on average, petting them and playing with them. That's not counting all the time the spend sleeping on my lap. Right now, they are all contently sleeping elsewhere though. Pat and Captain Hook on the cat tree, Spike on the other couch. And they have tons of toys to play with when I'm not home (including each other).

Actually, I'm working on buying a townhouse style condo. Part of my motivation for that particular style is that it has stairs. My boys loved the stairs in my old place. Hopefully that will give them more opportunity to play.

I'm definitely going to have to invest in some of that carpet stuff for the counter. Before he gets himself into more trouble than he did today...

I got home tonight, after spending 12 hours at school, running from one building to another, working, lecturing, etc. Since I was lecturing, I was all dressed up. Skirt, pantyhose, pumps, etc. I absolutely never wear heels like that for long, so that was a shock to the feet. Plus, it was absolutely miserable today. Pouring rain, wind, cold, and then it switched to sleet, then snow. All I wanted to do was come home, put on my pajamas, and curl up on the couch with the boys.

But, I walked in the door and found glass shattered all over the kitchen floor. I'm not entirely sure what he did, but he managed to break one of the waterbowls. I'm pretty sure he was up on the counter, going after the oven mitts that were hanging on magnetic hooks on the fridge. I don't know how that resulting in the waterbowl on the floor getting broken, but two hotpads were on the floor, and the magnetic hook was at the other end of the house! And the bowl wasn't just broken, it was shattered.

So I spent the next 30 minutes in my heels and skirt, picking up the big pieces, vacuuming, mopping... Then checking the boys for cuts. ARGH!!!

I guess it's time to switch to cat-proof stainless steel bowls.

I didn't see any cuts in the mouths or any problems with paws. Nobody is limping around and I didn't see any blood on the kitchen floor. I'll check their litterbox carefully for blood for the next few days.

I just don't know what to do with him. Mostly the biting. I play with him as much as I can, at least twice a day. But he'll just walk up and bite me to get my attention, and then I feel like if I pay attention to him right after he bites me, I'll just be reinforcing his behavior. He also tends to be a bit "teethy" when he's playing. Never breaks the skin, but it makes some of my guests nervous when he first gets his teeth on them. How do I get him to stop using his mouth, when he won't pay attention to any of the usual disciplinary techniques?

[Traci]

Blow a puff of air into his face when he bites, along with a stern vocal "NO". Immediately divert his attention to something else, whether a toy or an activity, is up to you. Be consistent with this method every time he bites.