Cat Attacking...

Hi there,

George just attacked my husband on the head...let me back up a bit...
george was scratching and going nuts in the window sill, he does this often if there is another cat, squirrel and kind of critter in his yard- we know to not touch him, as he will usually go after us- i guess to get his agression out- i know to just not suddenly move and when I can take my hand or whatever he is clamped on out of the way to just walk away- sometimes i blow on his face so he will let me go...

anyhow, he has attacked me once on the head for what seemed like no reason, he was at the screen ripping at it, I bend down just to look out the window, and pow! he attaked my face and head- and if it has ever happend to you --you know it hurs alot! Well, my husband just went through this- he is very angry with george, as he did not even touch george and yet george attacked him. I mention he did not even touch him, beacuse we do sometimes have I guess what you may call "rough" playtime- george can nip and bat and jump- and most times we are fine with it...

I guess what i want to know is how can we teach him that attackign us like this is not okay-should we place him in a room immediately afterwards kind of like a time out???

and jsut wanted to mention, that george is spayed, he just gets aggressive, he is young and we take it to be part of his personality...

any suggestions would be great!

thanks!
shannon

I have the same problem with my 3-year old little girl. She can be sweet as pie one second and then the next, turn and bite me. This especially happens if she's looking out the window at a bird or squirrel...and the first time she did it, she really scared me the first time.

She's calmed down a lot within the past year. I just tell her "NO!" and walk away from her every time she bites. She knows she's bad and comes stalking over. I asked the vet yesterday about it and he just said it's the temperment of the cat.

But I would love to hear from people that have had this problem and if they have gotten the cat to stop. Unfortunately, I think this is just the way she is and hopefully with age, she will relax. Hopefully!?

This time of year, kitten season with so many scents outside, even the most laid back cat will respond strangely depending on what they smell- If he caught a scent or a sound or saw something he would be in attack mode. I would steer clear of him if his attention is riveted, and instead redirect him with a toy on a string or something to get him to relax a bit. You can also use catnip if he doesn't get aggressive on it.

Hissy,
yes, sorry I meant to say that george is neutered!

lovemycodygirl, it is good to know I am not alone

thanks!
shannon

That must have been scary!

Please click here to read a thread about stopping aggression. Pay close attention to the section on Redirected Aggression. Good luck!

Yes. They don't want hurt you. They just see you! So, use toys.

Yeah, I think mine thinks I'm a toy sometimes! Just happened again now, we're sitting here at the computer, she's sitting in my lap, purring and acting all cute and then BAM, she bites my arm for no reason. ARGH! This has got to stop!!! WHY?

[sigh] gotta love the codygirl!

We found that blowing catnip bubbles calmed one of our cats. We kept little bottles all over the house and if he started to look agitated, we'd start blowing. He'd sit right down and watch them. Getting him a companion made the most difference.

You may want to stop playing "rough" with George. Our first kitty grew up with boys who played rough with him, so we figured that's why he attacked us. It's better to have them attack toys (wooly mice are our/their favorites since they can really sink their teeth in, and rabbit punch) than us!

Our Charlie kitty attacked my head within a month after he moved in. He was on my shoulder purring, I was petting him, then all of a sudden he howled and clawed my head. Took me awhile to put him back on my shoulder. I think it's taken time for him to get to know us and trust us. Now I kiss him and pet him while he's on my shoulder without worries.

I tried the bubbles, tried the catnip, tried the toys...the only thing that is helping is her age. As she's getting older, she's getting a little calmer...and also, if I ignore her for a while, she'll feel bad, come over and lick me.

I'd to get another kitty, but she puffs up like like marshmellow when other cats come around to her window. Oscar, did you say getting a companion helped?

Yes, getting a companion helped tremendously. We were never attacked again. We kept them separated for 24 hours, letting them sniff under the door, then supervised visits for a couple days. It took one day for them to stop hissing and growling, within a couple months they were grooming each other, and then cuddling. We were very careful about who we picked as his companion. It felt so right when I saw the new guy. Maybe we were just lucky!?!

Yep, you definitely were lucky! How old was your kitty when you introduced the second? How old was the 2nd kitty?

Cody is 3 now and freaks at the sight of another cat. But I think getting her a buddy would be great...if they like each other. With my luck, I'll get another biter!

Susan

Susan, getting a companion for Trixie worked wonders for her aggresion. Jerry found Petals out in the wilderness. She was just a very small kitten. When he brought her home, we put her in a big wire cage in the middle of the livingroom. (not a decorative choice, but I figured it was temperary) Trixie stalked the cage, hissed, growled, etc. I kept Petals in there for 2 or so days, then I got her out one day, and Trixie came over to sniff, and it was fine from there. They just have to get used to eachother. Some take right away, some take a few day. Then a year later, Jerry brought Tiggy home. We went through the same thing........out came the cage again. Both my girls growled, hissed, etc for a day or two, but then we got Tiggy out and they all started accepting eachother. Please go down to your local Humane Society and save a kitty.......
Susie

Our aggressive male was 10 years old. The new kitty (Cisco) was 4 months old and had some physical problems so wasn't a typical kitten. THey were together two years and when the older one developed an aggressive cancer and died, we adopted another cat (Moon Shadow) the next day (maybe a year older than Cisco). He was an extremely lovey cat at the shelter and when they brought in the "house" cat to see how they'd react, they ignored each other.
Moon Shadow was very sick with respiratory infection and Giardia, so was quarantined for 2 weeks, giving Cisco time to get used to his "presence" although not allowed to sniff under the door untill sneezing stopped. Once they were introduced, it took only an hour for Cisco to stop hissing, and they were grooming and cuddling a short time later. That was 2 years ago.

We do consider ourselves very lucky!!!

one of the best ways to bring a second cat in the home, is to make a list of the first cat's traits and try to find a cat that has the opposite traits. For example if your resident cat is a lap cat, then adopt a cat that doesn't really want your lap and prefers the floor. Lessens the competition that typically results with any new introduction.

When my cat hisses at me I smack her on the butt and put her in the bathroom for a half hour. a good way to pick them up is to reach under his belly and grab just above the elbows on both arms and just above the paws on the legs. it makes it so they cant bite OR scratch you.

I have a declawed female that sometimes will almost turn rabid and decide to shred me if I do something to offend her.  I've learned the absolute worst thing to do is to harm them physically in any way.  This actually ends up making the behavior worse as they just learn to fear you and feel the need to defend themselves.  The one thing I have tried, and has worked for me, is to scruff kitty really good, and tell them "NO!".  Momma kitty would discipline a kitten in this way, by picking them up by the scruff.  Now I'm not suggesting you pick the entire cat up by the scruff, it's not meant to hold an adult kitty's weight by any means.  I leave kitty where she is, grab a good hold of scruff and tell her "NO!", but I do not pick her up.  This also releases endorphines that will also help calm the cat.  This seems to be a language they can understand.  So I admit I originally tried to smack her for totally shredding me, having been a natural reaction, but it made it so much worse.  By handling this differently, she has almost completely stopped the extreme aggressive behavior.  When you scruff a cat, make sure to get close to his/her head so that they cannot turn and bite you, and do not release until they seem to calm down.  This has worked with all of my cats doing very naughty behavior.  My one male cat attacked my face only one time until I did this with him.  He has never done it again.  I know you're angry, but remain as calm as you can, but firm, as momma cat would be with them.  Also, my friends, never ever play with a cat with your hands.  Kitty will have no idea how to tell the difference between play time and "Ouch, you bit me!".  Always grab a toy of some sort to play with your cat.  I found it also helps to get a stuffed animal that's fairly close to the cat's size, maybe somewhat smaller and they can grab it with their front paws and totally shred into it.  Whenever you can, encourage ripping into this toy vs another cat or you.  Hope this helps.

This is a very old thread that will probably not get many answers. And smacking cats only makes them afraid of you.