Biting!!

My 5 month old kitten has been biting for the past few months. We have continuously given him time outs, sprayed him with the water bottle told him NO....but none of that has phased him. He has continued this behavior and now it is even worse.....he used to let you pick him up and pet him all the time, but now every time you try to pet him he bites very hard. I'm wondering if any of this has to do with him needing to get neutered? He is scheduled to go in a week in a half and I'm tempted to call the vet to get him in sooner because he is so aggressive! I've noticed that it has gotten progressively worse over the last couple of weeks. Does anyone know if these signs of aggression have anything to do with him not being neutered?

It very could have to do with the fact that he's not neutered. He may want to mate so bad that he is getting aggressive. I think once he's neutered he should calm down alot.

Originally Posted by januaryg31

My 5 month old kitten has been biting for the past few months. We have continuously given him time outs, sprayed him with the water bottle told him NO....but none of that has phased him. He has continued this behavior and now it is even worse.....he used to let you pick him up and pet him all the time, but now every time you try to pet him he bites very hard. I'm wondering if any of this has to do with him needing to get neutered? He is scheduled to go in a week in a half and I'm tempted to call the vet to get him in sooner because he is so aggressive! I've noticed that it has gotten progressively worse over the last couple of weeks. Does anyone know if these signs of aggression have anything to do with him not being neutered?

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I do not have personal experience in this but I have seen tons of evidence presented on this forum that suggest nuetering could very well help this problem.

My little Go is exactly like that and he has been neutered 2 weeks ago. He still playfully bites me.

We have 6 month old male that I swear just came in Extra Feisty. When he was 8 weeks old it became apparent he had a mighty little hunter in him because he would attack everything that moved...and most things that didn't move as well. People who took care of him while we were on vacation and knew cats well were telling us things like (in sympathetic tones) "That's one very *male* cat you have there." Despite loads of loving care and persistent discouragement in the people attack department he was pouncing and scratching up legs and biting hands routinely. Honestly I don't think having him neutered at ten weeks made any noticable immediate difference in the aggressive play department but I do think it prevented it from escalating. I do think the constant presence of humans is what keeps his aggression in check.

Since then he has stopped attacking/scratching up legs but that took time and gradually stopped. The biting has persisted and I think thats both play behaviors and "don't know my own strength" love bites. Our kitty doesn't like to be held and frequently will bite when he's picked up. The solution of course is to not pick up an animal that doesn't like to be held (!) which I know is easier said and done. When we decided to keep him we had these images in our minds of nice long cuddles and that clearly doesn't jive with our kitty's needs/wishes.

One more thing--I have noticed his aggression does ebb and flow. He'll be cruising along doing pretty well and suddenly will have a week or so where he's feistier than usual and then he settles down again. I've never figured that out except I guess he's entitled to be a little moody now and then just like everyone else in the house.

I just thought of something else after kitty just proved me a total liar and climbed up in my chair for petting for the first time since I can remember...

I think it's reasonable to expect kittens/young cats to go through changes and in ours at least one of those changes is that as a very little baby he liked to be held and petted and as an older kitten he doesn't. We're far less likely to see the biting if we respect his wishes on when he likes to be petted vs. interrupting him when he's playing or just hanging out because we want to pet him or we think he should like it. When this fella wants petting he lets us know clearly by flopping himself down in front of us on the kitchen floor and then it's best if we stop petting him before he gets overstimulated and starts biting. He's definitely a "love me on my own terms" kind of cat.

That sounds exactly like my little guy. I tried so hard to discourage biting, or using hands as toys to attack. But one night my friend was over and that's all she did and ever since then he's been crazy with biting and scratching while I'm trying to pet him. I just pet him on his own terms and if he attacks me I just move him (off the couch, bed.. where ever). I always find that the next time I see him, he's coming over to lie on me or cuddle up and be petted. It's tough becuase when you want to cuddle, they always seem ready for play, and when you're busy, they're zonked out on the couch. You just both have to be in the right mood.