Cat bites and we have a baby

Hello everyone! I'm new here and I joined hoping to get some advice on our cat Ty. I adopted him 3 years ago and the shelter said he was about 2 but his neuter papers were almost 2 years older than that so I'm estimating that he is at least 6-7 years old. He is the sweetest and most loving cat I've ever met but I think he had a rough life prior to coming to us. He had been in and out of the shelter his whole life so rehoming him is not an option for us. The issue we are having with him is that he bites. He's always done this but we are really concerned now because we have an 8 month old baby who is becoming more mobile and is obsessed with Ty. He has bit her once but luckily didn't break the skin and didn't hurt her but he left an indent. It always happens the same way: he walks up to one of us and runs on us so we pet him or run his ears and he is all happy until we stops and then his ears go back and he bites and holds on until we yelp or pull our arm free. We have tried just letting him rub on us or lay next to us without petting him but he still bites after a minute or so and he is purring the entire time. He is an indoor/outdoor cat right now so it is easy to keep a close eye on him and our baby when they are interacting but we will be moving to an apartment soon where he will be strictly indoors and I think it will be harder to keep him away from her when I need to do other things around the house. I apologize for the lengthy post. Any help or advice is greatly appreciated!

There are several issues here I can pinpoint but I'm not good at providing a solid and thought out solution for each.   I'm hoping someone else will chime in with advice that I lack.

I would first suggest playing with him regularly with wand toys, 2-3 times a day if you're not already. This just tires him out and hopefully, gets rid of any pent up energy he might have. This will be VERY important once your family moves and he becomes strictly indoors (which is a whole other process that I hope someone has good advice for you!). 

He sounds like he has petting aggression but then you mentioned if you leave him alone, he still bites. This makes me think he's getting himself worked up so play would really help with decreasing his energy/boredom. 
[article="29673"]Cat Aggression Toward People  [/article]
If he's acting out aggressively with no stimulation, that's something to be worried about and a visit to the vet might be in order. 

It sounds like he was maybe separated from Mom too early. The kind of biting you describe is classic in bottle babies who never got to learn about appropriate behaviour from their cat mom and littermates. Obviously, you can't change that now, but it often helps to understand where the behaviour comes from.

mingking is absolutely right that daily interactive playtime will help drain excess energy in a positive way - and it goes without saying that the use of wand toys is essential so that your hands stay a long way from the action. I would also make sure that you always have a biteable toy on hand so that you can redirect Ty when he does latch on. The scenario in his case would be something like this - he comes over, you pet him and then immediately get his attention to the toy, so he can still bite, but safely.

No matter how great a cat is, it is vital to ALWAYS closely supervise any interactions between cat and baby. When you have biting issues this is even more important. It might take a little creative thinking, but it can be done.

If Ty does latch onto you, instantly freeze. You're instantly a less appealing target if you're not moving, and I suspect there's a little play aggression (ie treating your moving hand/arm as prey) in the mix here. A firm no, or even a yelp (like a kitten would if it's brother or sister got a little too rough) is helpful too.

As to the transition to indoor only, making a lot of vertical space available will really help, as well as giving Ty plenty of observation points where he is a safe distance from the baby. Leash training would allow him to have some safe outside access - but be prepared for this to be a regular part of his routine if you choose it. Treat balls can also be a good source of entertainment, and never underestimate the value of a good view from a comfy windowsill.
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Thank you both for the advice! I'll admit I have been slacking on the play time since we had a baby so o will definitely start making it part of our routine and hope that works.

I'm not surprised you slacked off on playtime for a while - new babies are exhausting! Getting Ty's routine back on track should make a real difference to his behaviour. :cross: that he settles down soon.