do all cats bite, or just the mean ones? he's an inside cat but whenever he gets excited he bites. recently he's just been walking up to me and biting my leg for no reason. any thoughts? I don't know how to make him stop, and i don't want to hurt him.

6/8/2007 12:32:05 AM

i was gonna say smack him when he does and say no but i dont know if you consider that "hurting"

6/8/2007 12:39:53 AM

how old is he?

6/8/2007 12:40:01 AM

get him fixed

6/8/2007 12:44:01 AM

he's been fixed since october, he just turned 1

6/8/2007 12:45:08 AM

he will calm down as he ages a bit more (cats naturally like to bite during play or at moving objects), my grandmother used a small super soaker and it actually was pretty effective at curbing the leg/ankle biting.

6/8/2007 12:49:47 AM

1) Get rid of cat
2) Acquire dog.
...
3) Profit

6/8/2007 12:50:35 AM

i can't get rid of my cat... but i do want a dog... have to wait until i move out of my apartment...

back to the biting...

6/8/2007 12:52:49 AM

http://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+a+one+year+old++train+a+cat+to+behave&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

i hope this helps you find a link thats helpful

6/8/2007 12:59:51 AM

:super soaker pic:

6/8/2007 1:17:56 AM

quit pissing him off.

6/8/2007 1:17:57 AM

shovel.

6/8/2007 2:13:27 AM

It can't be biting hard...

At that age, it's still pretty young though, and it's just trying to play with your (probably).

You have to play back... I would just grab it and flip it over on its back, and squeeze it with your hands like you're biting it, to send the message that you're a lot stronger, and won't stand for biting. Eventually, it will learn not to bite you.

The super-soaker thing might also work, but i've never tried that method.

6/8/2007 2:23:49 AM

oh no, it's hard biting. i have the scars on my arms to show for that. i've tried squirting him with water, but that only works for a little while. the only time he likes to be on his back is when he's sleeping... lol. silly cat. he's good otherwise, just likes to bite. rawr.

6/8/2007 2:28:29 AM

6/8/2007 2:32:09 AM

i just want him to stop biting, i don't want to hurt him. you people... geez.

6/8/2007 2:39:20 AM

what do you expect at this hour? the best you can hope for is that i post nice things in your thread

6/8/2007 2:46:13 AM

How do you define hurting him?

Do you realize the punishment cats can take?

I suggest slapping it on the side/back, near the shoulder blades, as discipline.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTjxcf3uvi0

Look at that video to see how those cats fight... that's basically what you want to do. When it attacks you slap it down, and hold it down by the neck.

6/8/2007 3:01:59 AM

Well you can become one of those people with a dozen toys for him to play/chew with, unless you already are. What do you mean squirting him with water works 'for a little while'?

6/8/2007 3:04:42 AM

he has toys but he doesn't like to play with many of them. the spray bottle works for a little while and then he decides he doesn't like the bottle, so he attacks it.

maybe i'll try the shoulder thing

6/8/2007 3:08:13 AM

Esp. if it's a male cat... showing it who's boss is definitely the way to go.

6/8/2007 3:09:38 AM

my cat used to pull that shit, bite him back. i ususually went for the face.

6/8/2007 6:44:28 AM

Cats are very hard to train. You cannot punish a cat. Cat's do NOT associate punishment well with something they did. Very unlike dogs.

You should "teach" by rewarding. When he does something good like come up to you and rub reward him by petting him how he likes it. If he bites you ignore it or INSTANTLY make a loud sound. I'm not talking yell I'm talking "SCREEERRRSSCCCHHH". Something that obviously "freaks" your cat out. But it has to be instantly.

Going to get water spray won't work generally unless you have it on you right when it happens. It's better to make a sound because you can react instantly.

My cats have learned that way excellently. Hitting a cat does nothing except make it hate you for a bit.

6/8/2007 7:01:20 AM

cat > dog

use a water gun... works like a charm

also, you're going to have to be patient as kittens are going to be biting and clawing at anything that moves and most things that don't. My cat is almost 3 and he's still a fiesty little bastard tons of fun tho

6/8/2007 7:24:36 AM

Quote :

"You should "teach" by rewarding. When he does something good like come up to you and rub reward him by petting him how he likes it. If he bites you ignore it or INSTANTLY make a loud sound. I'm not talking yell I'm talking "SCREEERRRSSCCCHHH". Something that obviously "freaks" your cat out. But it has to be instantly."

agreed, this worked for me.

My cat only nibbles at me when he wants attention, like when I'm sleeping.

6/8/2007 7:37:07 AM

i was always a fan of the nose bop when i lived with a biter... it worked on a temporary basis, but you had to keep at it if you wanted it to succeed longterm...

side note, is this Cat declawed? because that might be a factor (and make breaking him of biting that much more difficult)

6/8/2007 7:44:59 AM

yea cats can be spiteful creative little monsters
piss it off and it might get back at you by pissing on your bed/couch/clothes/right in front of the door so you step in it when you walk in.

The loud noise should work. It will think it hurt you/and or you'll scare it. If you do it everytime then you'll condition the cat to associate the scary noise with biting you and it should stop.

I wouldn't suggest playing rough with it (pinning it on its back and holding it down) becase then you're just encouraging the behavior.

6/8/2007 8:09:41 AM

my cat bites but only when he is playing with you or doing something that annoys him

6/8/2007 8:33:48 AM

I always teach my animals with a newspaper.

6/8/2007 9:08:07 AM

You could try ignoring it when it bites you... Its probably trying to play so if you immediately stop playing with it, it might get the message. Our cat is 4 years old and still bites to play but we just stop playing when she does that.

6/8/2007 9:09:23 AM

some cats will only bite when you've been playing with them. They can get over-excited and bite. most cases the cat is overwhelmed and will stop playing at this point.

It sounds like this cat is trying to provoke its owner into playing with it. just like it would provoke another cat. The cat needs to learn that this isn't an acceptable invitation

6/8/2007 9:14:04 AM

I don't know if this is anything as serious as what we had a few years ago, but here's my story in case it helps:

We had a cat three years ago that seemed super sweet to begin with. Then all of a sudden when he turned about 1, he started attacking me (it was a male in case you didn't catch that). He was neutered also. I would walk by him and he would sail on my leg and bite the blood out of my leg. If I tried to push him off, he would just bite me more. My husband would end up having to literally throw him off of me. Then he would be fine for a few days. He would come up to me and let me pet him and sit in my lap. Pretty soon, he would do it again. It got to the point where he began doing it to anyone that came in our house (including my husband). We ended up giving him away. I'm not sure if this trend continued or not.

6/8/2007 9:29:58 AM

My grandmother had a cat like this. She was sweet at first, but then she started biting, viciously. My grandmother had cancer, and had lymphozema in her arm, so when she was bitten, she couldn't fight off the infection. So the doctor told her to get rid of the cat, or she would have to be put to sleep. So I took her, and she was fine for a bit, with me, but was hateful to everyone else. After she got used to living with me, she turned mean again. So she went to my parents... same thing happened. My sister runs a rescue shelter, so she found the cat a home. Three months later, the cat comes back to the shelter. We have no idea what we're going to with her now.

6/8/2007 9:37:42 AM

Quote :

"SCREEERRRSSCCCHHH"

6/8/2007 9:55:20 AM

get a laser pointer. Maybe your cat wants to play. If not, then maybe you can burn out his retinas with it so he can't see you to bite you

6/8/2007 10:35:24 AM

he loves the laser pointer, it makes him go crazy trying to get it.

he's not declawed, he's only neutered, and he's been biting since i got him when he was eight weeks old. i'll do the loud noise and see if that'll work

6/8/2007 11:23:51 AM

You have to keep in mind it's still practically a kitten, and this is normal kitten behavior. It might continue for 2 weeks even with the discipline.

6/8/2007 2:45:03 PM

6/8/2007 4:29:34 PM