Biting

psychopomp

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Briza has developed a nasty habit of random biting attacks and it's getting out of hand.

She's a very well loved and cared for cat, never abused and doesn't want or need anything. She gets all the attention she can desire and more... in other words, she's got a good life.

But sometimes without warning she bites. Someone said "oh she's just showing you that she loves you..." Now I know my cat likes me, she greets me at the door and is very talkative and sweet. But biting because she likes me? Uh... .

These are not gentle, playful bites. These are "I intend to hurt you bad" kind of bites.

Sometimes I can just walk through the kitchen and out of nowhere there's what feels like eighty-six claws and about fifteen fangs dug into the back of my leg. Almost made me fall on my face once.

Today I got home from work and we were playing on the bed. She's all purrs and sweet cat and the next thing I know, ears are back and she's sank fangs into my wrist. She doesn't have any spots that she doesn't like touched... tail, feet, doesn't bother her.

I pushed her off and said "no" forcefully. She immediately went back to sweet purring cat. For about ten minutes.

Sitting at the desk she hopped up and started purring, so I began petting her... until she took a chunk out of my thumb and left blood all over my keyboard and desk.

I will not hurt an animal, but I draw the line when I lose blood. She's off sulking somewhere while I clean up my wounds and desk.

What can I do to stop this? I've got bite marks all over the backs of my legs from just walking through my house, and today she went just a little too far.
 

goldenkitty45

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Some cats have a lower tolerance to petting/touching. When you see signs she's had enough (ears laying back) then stop immediately and do something else.

You might consider a 2nd cat as she could be lonely and want someone to play with
 
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psychopomp

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The problem is, there's no signs of doom to come... it's just purr purr purr purr bite. But maybe she has just had enough and wants me to stop. That's fine.

But what about the walking through the house and she charges me and bites the back of my leg? Is that really just her being playful and not knowing where to stop? Or have I unknowingly walked somewhere I shouldn't be?

Maybe she's actually a vampire cat (catpire? vamcat?) and is trying to turn me into a vampire...
 

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Originally Posted by Psychopomp

The problem is, there's no signs of doom to come... it's just purr purr purr purr bite. But maybe she has just had enough and wants me to stop. That's fine.
It does sound like she's had enough (she's overstimulated) in these cases. Unfortunately, since they can't tell us when were crossing the threshold from pleasure to discomfort, many cats react with petting aggression.

I know you said that there are no signs of her impending attack. But that's usually not true. It's just that sometimes the warning signs are very subtle, and it will take some time and observation for you to pick up on them and respond accordingly. Some of the more common signs are tail swishing or flicking, flattened ears, head turning quickly and repeatedly towards your petting hand, dilated pupils, and growling. Maybe you could begin to really focus on looking for some or all of these signs if you haven't already done so? Whatever you do, when she attacks just leave her alone and give her time to settle down. Maybe 10 minutes isn't always enough time for her.

Find out what her petting tolerance level is in terms of time and intensity, and stop well before reaching that point. If things go well and she begins to understand that all of the petting sessions are 100% pleasurable for her, you should be able to gradually increase the session duration.

Originally Posted by Psychopomp

But what about the walking through the house and she charges me and bites the back of my leg? Is that really just her being playful and not knowing where to stop? Or have I unknowingly walked somewhere I shouldn't be?
It might just be her being playful, practicing her hunting technique. How old is she? Do you know her history? Maybe she never learned in kittenhood how to play with humans appropriately. I don't think she's acting out of hatred or anything like that, because you do have positive play and petting sessions with her. And I'm sure that you haven't walked where you shouldn't --- remember, you're the human and it's your house, even though she might feel a little differently....
 
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psychopomp

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Originally Posted by RobertM

How old is she? Do you know her history? Maybe she never learned in kittenhood how to play with humans appropriately.
Playful I can accept, but the loss of blood is... frustrating to say the least.

She's a little over a year old, I've had her since early September. She was given up to foster care because her original family moved somewhere pets weren't allowed. Other than that, I don't know anything about her history other than she's always been very well cared for and never abused.

I'm trying to overcome the need to smack her when she bites me; but like I said, when I lose blood I draw the line. A little bite and I'll push her off and say no, but no matter what's been said about cats and discipline, I won't stand for getting myself hurt and let her get away with it.
 

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Is she declawed?

Thank you for adopting this kitty.


You're absolute right - the biting MUST be stopped. And she has to learn that biting does not get her attention.

Our kitties give us love bites - and it is easy to tell the difference. Love bites are when petting, and their ears are NOT back, their tails are NOT twitching, and they just put their mouth on our wrist. No bite.

When our kitties are overstimulated from petting, they put their paws on our hand to say "enough." The love bite also means "enough" - but just for a few seconds. If your kitty was declawed, her biting during petting may very well be from overstimulation. It still is not acceptable.

If part of her biting is from overstimulation, while it is important that you at least try to learn the signs - or maybe just pet her for a minute and then stop for 15 seconds - and do it in a start and stop fashion, that may help - it is also important that she learn that biting is not OK.

The way to do this is in her language. All that hitting her will do is teach her to be scared of you or nervous around you - not the message you want her to learn. Instead, blow a short, sharp puff of air directly into her face and say "NO" sharply but not too loudly. She'll be startled, and pull her head back. Put her down on the floor (if she hasn't jumped down) and ignore her. Be consistent.

Same thing if she runs, attacks, and bites. Lean down, blow a short, sharp puff of air directly into her face and say "NO" sharply. Do it again if you feel the need to. Then walk away and ignore her.

She understands that puff of air. It is the same as another kitty hissing at her. It'll help her learn the word "no" if she doesn't already know it. And she'll learn that biting gets her ignored.

Also, you may want to consider giving her an extra 10 - 15 minutes of play time a day. This will help direct her "hunting" and playing energy in the right direction.
When she's playing with you with an interactive wand toy, make sure you use lots of "good girl" or "Good Kitty!" or whatever. She needs the positive reinforcement to understand what she's doing right just as much as she needs the puffs of air in her face to let her know what is not OK.


Hope this helps,

Laurie
 
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psychopomp

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Thank you, this is helpful indeed.

Originally Posted by LDG

All that hitting her will do is teach her to be scared of you or nervous around you - not the message you want her to learn.
I know, but... all the running out at me from who knows where has made me nervous around her. I can't walk through the kitchen at night without worrying that I'm going to get attacked, even if it is playful it still hurts.

I'm still new at this cat thing. But I'm enjoying 95% of it... it'd be great if the biting stopped (at least she's not poo-ing next to the litter box anymore).

Thanks again.
 

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Maybe kitty just has lots of energy stored up from not having anyone to play with! I mean sure, you can play with her, but that doesn't stop the need to play with another kitty to run around the house, attack, learn new kitty stuff! Maybe a friend would be nice!
 
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psychopomp

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Last night I was sitting here at the computer. Didn't even know the cat was in the room until I felt her bite the top of my foot. I reacted (and justifiably so) rather violently.

The biting while petting has stopped because I've learned her warning signs. But there ARE NO WARNING signs when I'm sitting here with no clue that the cat is in the room. She got a reflexive kick when she bit me and then a backhand across the back after I figured out what was going on.

Why? I don't know. I've done nothing but love this cat, and I still do, but the biting has got to stop and I've tried everything.

Blowing in her face doesn't work, kicking her off of me doesn't work...

What I don't understand is that she knows what she's doing is wrong. She knows when she's bitten me that she's about to get smacked because her ears go back and she starts to back away. She just can't figure out that "if I bite him, I'm gonna get smacked... I don't want to get smacked... maybe I should stop biting."

It's frustrating and also painful to have ten or so puncture wounds on the back of my leg.

Sorry I'm just venting here
 

zane's pal

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Originally Posted by Psychopomp

What I don't understand is that she knows what she's doing is wrong. She knows when she's bitten me that she's about to get smacked because her ears go back and she starts to back away. She just can't figure out that "if I bite him, I'm gonna get smacked... I don't want to get smacked... maybe I should stop biting."

It's frustrating and also painful to have ten or so puncture wounds on the back of my leg.

Sorry I'm just venting here
I know exactly what you are going through. Zane is the same way. When I go to take off my shoes, he will bite my hands as I unfasten the laces or straps. (Could it be the sound of the velcro?) He'll come up and rub against my ankles as though he wants me to pet him, but when I reach down all I have to do is touch him and--CHOMP.

When I'm in bed he'll get up beside me--mix,mix/purr,purr--and then, suddenly, sometimes when I'm not even touching him--CHOMP!

The vet tried putting him on Prozac. It didn't help.

I don't know what to do. He's normally a sweet, loving cat, but he gets these episodes. Fortunately, I don't have any kids, but I'm afraid that some child who visits will get bitten and the parent will come back with a magistrate's order declaring Zane a dangerous animal.
 

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Billy was something like that when he was around a year to two years old. Not quite as bad as your kitty, but he did end up putting me on a half-round of antibiotics after he bit my foot while I was sleeping one night.

He seems to have grown out it, thankfully, and I hope the same thing happens for your kitty, and soon! In the meantime, hissing worked for me, if you can manage a respectable kitty hiss. Canned air replicates the sound too, I think, just blow it off to the side and not directly at your cat.

Have you tried something really noisy like coins in a metal can? That might be enough to scare her away when she tries to bite, and she will hopefully learn to associate the scary shaking noise with biting. I've also heard of keeping a distracting toy in hand, so that when she tries to jump you, you throw the toy and redirect her agression.

You might also be able to invest in a high energy toy like Da Bird and just really tire her out to work off some extra energy.

I hope something works for you!
 

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We too are dealing with a biting cat. Blowing on him doesn't work, hissing worked the first two tries no longer does, squirting with water doesn't work, screaming doesn't work. I officially gave up last week and decided that hopefully it is a age thing and he'll grow out of it. In the meantime I look like I've been in a fight. It isn't that he scratches its his little teeth. Luckily they are on my arms where I can hide them (otherwise people start looking at you funny). My mom freaked out when I visited this past weekend--she was like don't get cat scratch fever! As soon as one heals another takes it place--oh well.

Leslie
 
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psychopomp

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We were doing really well until this afternoon.

I've been giving her treats, bought her new toys, given her all the attention she wants.

The biting while petting has stopped because I've learned her warning signs and know when to stop.

However, the random drive-by bitings started again today without warning and worse than ever before.

I got home from work at the usual time, she greeted me at the door. Nothing different than usual. I fed her, gave her fresh water and went out to wash my car.

After I changed into some dry clothes (stupid-ass me decides to wear shorts) I sat down at the computer and the cat tried to bite the back of my leg. I caught her and pushed her off and said "no."

That did a world of good, let me tell you. Not ten seconds later she had her fangs dug into the back of my leg. It was akin to a paper cut. Completely unexpected and extremely painful. The jerking reaction ripped her fang out of my skin and left me bleeding and her running.

She knew she'd just
ed up because she ran, and any time I'd get close, she'd run again. I'm not ashamed to say that if I'd managed to catch her before my leg started hurting too bad not to tend to, I'd have beaten the
out of her.

She knew I was mad and avoided me for a few hours and then finally jumped up on the couch with me and meowed. And she's so cute I couldn't stay mad at her for too long. I petted her, and told her she can't draw blood and expect to get away with it.

Things calmed down until I woke up from my nap and had to avail myself of the restroom facilities, only to be attacked. As I came in sight of the bedroom door, she ran at me, bit and retreated (sadly, I think this cat understands military tactics better than Bush).

And she just bit me as I was typing that sentence.

I think what I'm doing is working, and hopefully tonight she was just hyper or something. So I'm just venting here... but if anyone has any other ideas I'm all ears.

Keeping a can of rocks or spray gun of water doesn't work because she's completely random with this and I don't want to carry stuff around all the time.

I'm worried that she's going to get hurt too. Yes, I'll smack her pretty hard when she bites me, but not hard enough to do much more than throb or sting for a few minutes. But I'm worried that she's gonna get me in the middle of the night and knock me down on top of her or bite me while I'm in the kitchen with a pot of boiling water in my hand.
 

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Truthfully, at a little over a year old, your cat is still a kitten, but with adult teeth...and they are VERY sharp. Honestly, I agree, she isn't attacking you out of anger or aggression, that is just her way of stalking and attacking an unaware prey...which is NOT acceptable. But, that is a cat being a cat.

When my kittens were going through that phase (and they DO grow out of it) I would always have a toy at hand and throw it to distract them, and they would normally chase the toy rather than attack me. I say "normally"...not always.

It sounds like you are doing good with getting her to realize what is acceptable and what is not, but it will take time.

It sounds like she has the normal energy level for a cat her age, and honestly, a friend would probably be the best thing. That way they could stalk and attack each other, and you would be safe. You would not believe the difference it makes when you add a second cat to your household, and she is still young enough to not be territorial and cause a lot of problems. It sounds like she just wants a playmate, and chose you whether you like it or not!

Food wise, it really doesn't cost a lot more to add another feline mouth to feed, and I think it would make for a happier cat.

Good luck!
 

zane's pal

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Originally Posted by calico2222

When my kittens were going through that phase (and they DO grow out of it)
Zane is almost ten and hasn't grown out of it. Of course, he may be having psychological issues over father's death.

Two things I've been doing.

1. If he's on my lap or in bed with me when he does it, I just give him a push and send him flying. I'll shout NO! down in my lower register.

2. When he runs up to me and bites, I'll grab him and shut him in the bathroom for five minutes.
 

ldg

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It's only been about a month. New behavior and habits take time to instill. If you can't keep an air can handy to make the "hiss" at her when she attacks, and if you don't have the personality or patience to work with her through this and you fear you may seriously hurt her - if you honestly think you would throw a pot of boiling water on your cat, it's probably time to consider looking for another home for kitty.


Laurie
 

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She will not learn by you chasing her, they have a short memory span for what their actions are so unless you tell her no or whatever your no action is (water bottle, can of pennies whatever) right when she bites she is learning little from your actions. A friend wore a whistle around her neck when training her kitten and just gave a little whistle which was usually enough to stop the cat in its tracks so she could pick it up and point her finger at it's nose (which is her NO action).
 

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It sounds as if the drive by biting attacks are play gone out of control.

Cats, especially indoor cats, can need a lot of play and stimulation to get rid of their energy in constructive ways. My cat does this sometimes, she'll start getting all worked up and want to bite my ankles and toes.

I tell her no and give her a short time out to let her calm down if she's worked herself into a frenzy. What then has really worked (although it might NOT work for everyone and I'm not really recommending it) is I have really thick leather glove and then wrap a towel around my arm (up to the shoulder) and put on the glove and then play rough with her for a bit. Basically it seems as if sometimes she just needs to go to town wrestling and no toy will be good enough. She's a single cat so it's up to me to keep her entertained and busy. If I could have two cats they'd wrestle with each other and it wouldn't be a problem.

The reason this works is that now she knows the difference between my armoured in a leather glove hand vs bare skin and she doesn't even try to bite me normally anymore.

Also please don't hit or physically intimdate your cat. It really will only instill fear in her. Cats aren't as hardwired to be social as dogs and if they can quickly get into "fight back" mode if they think they're being threatened (as opposed to dogs who will often submit to 'punishment' by the pack leader) and it can break the bond you have with her. Cats don't see it as punishment, they just see it as you being scary and acting irregularily.
 
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psychopomp

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Originally Posted by LDG

if you honestly think you would throw a pot of boiling water on your cat, it's probably time to consider looking for another home for kitty.
no... that's not what I said, nor what I implied. I meant, I'm worried that I'll be in the kitchen cooking, moving about with a pot of water and get attacked, startled and accidentally drop the water.

Like I said before, I would never hurt an animal. Yes, she gets swatted when she bites me... hard enough for it to sting for a while, but not to injure her in anyway.

I love my little cat, she just has to learn that this is my house and she was adopted into it. When I lose blood unexpectedly and by force, I'll react and usually not in a overly plesant manner.

I'm thinking yesterday was just a little hyper spurt because I didn't play with her when I got home like I normally do because I was washing the salt off of my car. Aside from waking me up standing on my face at 3:30am, she's been a good girl today. She's lying on the desk getting a good petting right now.
 
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