Increased Misbehaviour?!

toffeecaat · Sep 18, 2016

Hi all! I'm new to TCS, and this is my first post.

My 4 months old kitten, Toffee, has started misbehaving over the past week. I adopted her from a friend when she was 10 weeks old, and she has always been a (relatively) well behaved kitten. Occasionally she would do something she knows not to, like going on countertops or trying to run outside when the front door opens, but a firm "no" usually does the job. Lately, she has been running around like crazy, attacking people's feet randomly, and dashing out the door every time it opens. I don't understand why this is suddenly happening? She finished getting all of her booster/rabies shots a month ago, and a recent check up showed that she is perfectly healthy. Is there any reason why she is suddenly so hyperactive? I understand that kittens are very playful, and have a lot of energy, but she has never been this out of control before.

Also, Toffee has never had a problem with peeing outside the litter box, until today. There was one incident where she almost peed where she wasn't supposed to, but that was my fault, for moving the litter box while cleaning my apartment. The litter box has not been relocated since I brought her home, and she's always been very good about using it. However, earlier today she went inside the bathroom, jumped into the tub, pawed around, and urinated in the tub! I don't understand why this is suddenly happening?

I'm not sure why she is suddenly misbehaving. I firmly tell her "no" and move her away from whatever it is she may be doing wrong, but that's not working anymore. I don't like the spray bottle method, but I occasionally point one at her for show, and she runs away. I don't think she is learning though, because I occasionally find her returning to do her misdeeds.

Please, if anyone has some advice/knowledge of why this is happening, I would love to hear it! I don't think this is a serious problem, but I really would like to figure out why her behaviour suddenly took a turn.

Thank you!

2Cats4everLoved · Sep 25, 2016

Hi and welcome to TCS, sorry it took so long to respond.

Please don't think of it as misbehaving until we take a good look at whats going on. Patience is needed with a kitten.

First may I ask what her playtime is like. Do you work her hard, laser light, balls, running in a constructive manner. My boy was taught early how to play with is mice and toys and it made it easy for us because he learned to play on his own from time to time.

My male cat used to poop in the tub when he was really constipated. I truly believe it was because he didn't like pressing down on the litter because it dug into his paw pads.

What kind of litter are you using. Is it filled too much. Does she pee anywhere else outside her box.

How is her eating and grooming? Normal...

I'm sure someone will chime in with additional questions and answers for you.

talkingpeanut · Sep 25, 2016

I am wondering if she could have a uti. I would have the vet check. Is she spayed yet?

catlover73 · Sep 25, 2016

I agree with talking peanut. One of my cats had a UTI and the only reason I was able to figure out he was not feeling well was because he peed on our recliner right in front of my hubby. My cat is an adult but he had never gone to the bathroom outside the litter box before this. Sonny was acting completely normal other wise. He was still pooping in the litter box. When I called to make his vet appointment and they asked why I was bringing him in the person making the appointment suggested I have him checked for a UTI. The vet did a check-up for that and he was given an antibiotic injection. My friend who is also his former foster mommy suggested I do the injection for him because she went through hell trying to give him meds for a URI when he was younger. The vet agreed that the injection would probably be a better way to go. He started using the litter box to pee in again right away. I did set-up a new litter box in a new location upstairs because the vet suggested this in case there was any sort of issues with him associating his litter box with the pain from the UTI. He used the new litter box only for about a week and then went back to his old litter box on his own after that. The UTI was not expensive to treat. He was diagnosed, given meds and went back for a re-check to make sure the UTI was gone.

toffeecaat · Oct 4, 2016

Thank you for the responses, everyone. Toffee is not scheduled to be spayed for another three weeks. I've been taking her to the vet for regular check ups, but he has not found anything irregular about her health.

As for her daily activity, Toffee is a very active cat. My roommate and I spend a solid hour each day (morning and night) playing with her, using laser pointers, toy mice, balls, etc. Even outside of our "scheduled" playtime, she spends her days climbing the cat tree and chasing rogue balls we have laying around. Overall, she is a very active kitten, which I am told is healthy since they have a lot of energy. There has not been any changes in her activity levels since the day I brought her home.

The thing that confuses me is that she has had no problems with using her litter box up until the incident. There were no signs of her being confused by the location (which has not changed) or dislike for the litter. The box is always kept very clean, with the entire box being emptied and washed with water every week. Again, she never strayed from using the litter box after these washes/cleanings.

The past two weeks have been the same as usual, with her using the litter box provided for her. However, she has been acting up constantly. While normally very good natured and playful, Toffee has suddenly become very aggressive during her playing. She would randomly attack my roommate's legs/feet while she walks by, scratch at the window screen, and tear open pillows/bags/packages. We are still playing with her twice a day to keep her active, but she has become so destructive that we are afraid to leave her alone while we go out for short errands.

My cat-owning friends have been telling me that she is simply acting up because she wants attention. But she gets plenty of attention from us and visitors, who actively play with her. Some are saying that she will "calm down" after being spayed, but I am also confused as to why. Is it because of her hormones?

Thanks again to everyone for your responses! I appreciate the help and support.

talkingpeanut · Oct 4, 2016

ToffeeCaat said:
Thank you for the responses, everyone. Toffee is not scheduled to be spayed for another three weeks. I've been taking her to the vet for regular check ups, but he has not found anything irregular about her health.

As for her daily activity, Toffee is a very active cat. My roommate and I spend a solid hour each day (morning and night) playing with her, using laser pointers, toy mice, balls, etc. Even outside of our "scheduled" playtime, she spends her days climbing the cat tree and chasing rogue balls we have laying around. Overall, she is a very active kitten, which I am told is healthy since they have a lot of energy. There has not been any changes in her activity levels since the day I brought her home.

The thing that confuses me is that she has had no problems with using her litter box up until the incident. There were no signs of her being confused by the location (which has not changed) or dislike for the litter. The box is always kept very clean, with the entire box being emptied and washed with water every week. Again, she never strayed from using the litter box after these washes/cleanings.

The past two weeks have been the same as usual, with her using the litter box provided for her. However, she has been acting up constantly. While normally very good natured and playful, Toffee has suddenly become very aggressive during her playing. She would randomly attack my roommate's legs/feet while she walks by, scratch at the window screen, and tear open pillows/bags/packages. We are still playing with her twice a day to keep her active, but she has become so destructive that we are afraid to leave her alone while we go out for short errands.

My cat-owning friends have been telling me that she is simply acting up because she wants attention. But she gets plenty of attention from us and visitors, who actively play with her. Some are saying that she will "calm down" after being spayed, but I am also confused as to why. Is it because of her hormones?

Thanks again to everyone for your responses! I appreciate the help and support.

It still sounds to me like she needs to be checked by a vet for urinary issues. A uti or something similar could absolutely lead to aggression from pain and peeing out of place to tell you something is wrong.

And yes, her hormones could be contributing. If she is going into heat she definitely needs to be kept inside. I would keep the windows closed for now.

Kieka · Oct 4, 2016

How sure are you on her age? Could she be slightly older than you think? If so, she might be getting close to going into heat and it is just horomone issues. I'm a firm believer in early spay and neuters so you could bump up her appointment to rule that out.

If you changed litters (even just scents within the same brand) that could explain the peeing. Some of it just sounds like a kitten testing her boundaries though. They can be a lot like kids at that 4-8 month range with the testing of limits and exploring boundaries.

basschick · Oct 4, 2016

she could have started developing a UTI yesterday, so unless the vet checked her today, she needs to be checked for a UTI.

toffeecaat · Oct 4, 2016

I'm positive of her age (born May 13th), so I ruled out the chances of her being older than she is. I'm heavily considering bumping up her spaying appointment, but my vet is still recommending we wait until she is at least 5 months of age.

I've been using the same litter since I got her, so I figured it was not due to a change in litter. When I wash out her box, I use the same mild detergent so as not to surprise her with strong/different odours. But I agree with you--she's most likely just getting braver and starting to explore

toffeecaat · Oct 4, 2016

Kieka said:
How sure are you on her age? Could she be slightly older than you think? If so, she might be getting close to going into heat and it is just horomone issues. I'm a firm believer in early spay and neuters so you could bump up her appointment to rule that out.

If you changed litters (even just scents within the same brand) that could explain the peeing. Some of it just sounds like a kitten testing her boundaries though. They can be a lot like kids at that 4-8 month range with the testing of limits and exploring boundaries.

(I meant to answer you directly, but I clicked the wrong button)

I'm positive of her age (born May 13th), so I ruled out the chances of her being older than she is. I'm heavily considering bumping up her spaying appointment, but my vet is still recommending we wait until she is at least 5 months of age.

I've been using the same litter since I got her, so I figured it was not due to a change in litter. When I wash out her box, I use the same mild detergent so as not to surprise her with strong/different odours. But I agree with you--she's most likely just getting braver and starting to explore

toffeecaat · Oct 4, 2016

basschick said:
she could have started developing a UTI yesterday, so unless the vet checked her today, she needs to be checked for a UTI.

This happened a little over two weeks ago, and I had brought her to the vet a day after for her check up--vet said everything was in order. Her check up from three days ago resulted in the same answer, so I'm leaning away from the idea of a UTI now.

talkingpeanut · Oct 5, 2016

ToffeeCaat said:
This happened a little over two weeks ago, and I had brought her to the vet a day after for her check up--vet said everything was in order. Her check up from three days ago resulted in the same answer, so I'm leaning away from the idea of a UTI now.

Did they check her urine?

toffeecaat · Oct 6, 2016

talkingpeanut said:
Did they check her urine?

The vet conducted a urinalysis one day after she peed in the tub, but the results were negative for a UTI. Since she has since gone back to using the litter box, I assumed it was something else that caused her to pee in the tub in the first place.

Increased Misbehaviour?!

toffeecaat

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2Cats4everLoved

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