kitten of 5 months keeps misbehaving.

I can certainly sympathize. . .I have 3 5-month-old kittens right now! It's a very naughty age. With patience and time, he should grow up to be a good kitty. For now, it sounds like he needs more exercise. Do you have a fishing-pole type toy for him? Those can really help to tire a kitten out. A laser pointer would be good, too. And lots and lots of regular cat toys and scratching posts. If possible, getting another kitten would be an excellent idea, nobody can play kitten games as well as another kitten! If he's not neutered yet, you should have it done soon, you don't want him to start spraying. The neutering might calm him down a bit, but mostly age will do that. Someday he'll be a sedate mature cat, and you'll remember his kitten naughtiness fondly.

That is kitten language for let's play. Kittens seem to have three modes: eat, sleep and frenetic and the latter mode they do outgrow. When it starts scratching and biting, give it something of its own to scratch and bite, meaning a toy, preferably one on a string. I still have, tied to a drawer knob, a toy with a heavy duty tie cord that I used on Da Magpie when she got that way. So, redirect instead of trying to stop, it is much easier on you and the kitten; get an assortment of toys and make sure some can dangle from door knobs and things but do play actively as well

Please understand that your kitten is not misbehaving. He is behaving exactly as a kitten normally behaves.

Kittens require a lot of attention. You have to play with him several times a day. If you do that, using interactive toys, he will be content to entertain himself at other times, when he is not sleeping.

Always use toys in play, never your hands or feet.

The ideal solution is to get another young cat, so the kitten has someone else to play with. You would still have to give them BOTH attention and interactive play every day, but they will play with one another a lot, too.

If you wanted a good boy you should have got an older cat.. Thats normal kitten behavior.. Get it a playmate if you can.. I have 2- 6 month old ones and they are constantly playing rough with each other.. but they still attack me on a daily basis..

ahhh i remember that age all to well its one of the reasons i got Sooty so Flash had a friend

its normal behaviour for a kitten they love to play, as everyone has said redirect the kitten when it tries to bite, i found the best ones were wand toys or balls with bells in because the noise distracts them and they then concentrate on that (be carefull with toys with bells incase they break )

Oh my gosh, I would get rid of the boyfriend.

I have a bunch of cat trees, and while they love em, they are more for lounging than anything else.

To wear the suckers out, I primarily use a Da Byrd and I have feather and a tiny mouse attachments.

The mouse seems to be the biggest hit.

I get them breathing so hard they are panting like crazy mouths wide open. Its the jumping more than the running that really gets them out of breath and is probably the best exercise.

I only do that once a day for about 15 mins straight, and that seems to be enough for them. Trick to keep em highly interested is to let them catch it and nom it every once in a while.

They do say you shouldn't discipline your cats the way you do a dog though, but if really WAY out of line I do hold them up so they can look at me with big eyes (out of face scratching distance heh) and tell them firmly no or growl until they seem submissive. I've seen mom cats go so far as to smack the disobedient one's upside the head, so a firm "time out" doesn't seem overly harsh to me. Don't want em to fear you, but should respect you and realize that unacceptable behavior gets an unacceptable response. Do X get instant Y response is pretty basic that they can understand.

That cat tree is a great idea and your kitten will love it.

The thing is, the more attention you pay to him now, the better adjusted he will be as he grows up. At 8 months he will likely be in the "teenager" phase. He will require just as much attention at 8 months as he does now.

You want to form a bond with him, so he understands how the relationship is supposed to work. You are the mama, and the mama plays with the baby, but also teaches him what's acceptable. When he jumps at your hand, you put a stuffed animal in his paws instead, or get his wand toy or string on a stick toy out and give him a few mintues of interactive play.

My kitten is 3 1/2 months old and is just starting to show some of that rambunctious independence. She has three doting older cats to play with her, and they do play with her, a lot, but she still gets a couple of sessions of play with me every day, they all do.

Get in the habit of giving him interactive play time at the same times every day. Also a grooming session. He soon will accept this routine and look forward to his bonding times with you. When he sees you turn off the computer, or brush your teeth, or whatever, he'll know you're about to get on the floor with him and give him that one on one time.

But spread the time out. 15 minutes in the morning, another session when you get home from work, and another before bed.

This will help you raise a happy secure well adjusted kitten.

Since I am participating in this thread I feel the need to say that I completely disagree with this post. I would never treat a cat in such a way.

A mother cat may cuff her kitten, but a human should never hit an animal. And yes, I know you didn't suggest that, but it's implied.

You teach a kitten with hissing maybe and use the kitten's name, or firm NO and use the kitten's name and turning your back and ignoring.

However even this should come after substitution of toys for hands lessons. One step at a time.

Getting physical with a kitten (or a cat) in the way you describe as "discipline" and forcing "submission" is absolutely the wrong way to treat a cat.

The kitten is not doing anything "wrong". He is being a kitten. He needs to be taught, with love and gentleness, the way to behave. Not with fear.

You asked about neutering. Your vet would be the best judge of that. By now he should have been de-wormed and had his kitten shots. If he hasn't had those, make an appointment for them, and ask the vet about it when you are there.

My "rule of thumb" has always been the first time I smell tom cat pee, in he goes to have it done. That's usually around 6 months, I think, but it can vary.

I had the 2 - 6 month old ones done last month when they were 5 months old.. I dont ever want to smell the tom cat pee pee... Neutering does calm them down a little too. but, mine still want to climb up the shower curtain for fun..

im glad you found something that works!

I would definitely get a cat tree, some new toys, and get a string toy and countinue playing with the laser. Wear that kitty OUT!

And, I've seen people cause this in some kittens and cats, getting physical with an already riled up and very physical kitten can back fire. They learn it's ok to be rough and instead of backing down take it as an invitation to fight (fight as in scuffle like two cats playing roughly together). You don't want a cat think that's ok, especially if they'll happily jump on guests looking for that sort of play.


I'm glad to hear that he loves the laser pointer. With a little creativity you can invent some other games to wear him out. Many cats will even fetch if you find the right type of toy for them to fetch. I have one who likes fleece pompoms and another who likes to fetch mylar balls.