Kitten keeps nipping my mom's legs... ideas please!

L.S. is about 9 months old now. Perfectly behaved except for one thing - he keep biting the back of my mom's legs. And I'm clueless as how to get him to stop.

Some background: We've had him since mid-October. He was supposed to be just a foster but I filled out the adoption papers a few weeks later. He had been at the shelter 12 days before I took him home, and he came from who knows where, but was really healthy. He has some alley cat habits - scrounging for food, afraid of strangers, slinks through the house. Otherwise a pretty much normal kitten. My other two cats I had before I brought L.S. home. They get along great. The biting of my mom started about two months ago, and he's been doing it more and more often.

The situation: She'll be standing somewhere, usually in front of the bathroom or kitchen counters, and he'll just strut right up behind her, reach out, and nip her. About half the time he'll then just strut away. The other half of the time he'll accept some stroking and then walk away. He never breaks skin, but from what I understand it hurts like all heck, and my mom lets out a huge yelp. Not enjoyable, from what I can tell.

There's no "trigger" from what I can tell. He's nipped her in many different situations. He's also chosen her as his favourite human. (He sleeps on her, and has to follow her around the house.)

So here's what I'm thinking:

1. He wants attention:
The only problem is that he'll walk away half the time and won't accept any kind of affection. I doubt it's him trying to grab her attention, since sometime she'll be talking to him before he bites her.

2. He's asserting his dominance.
This is what I'm thinking is happening.
I noticed that when all three cats start play wrestling, they'll nip each other's back legs. L.S. does it a lot more than the other two. I think he's trying to tell my mom that he's in charge.

I've been suspicious about mom have dominance problems with the cats. They tend to treat her and act around her like she's at the bottom of our Pride.(that's my "packs" name. The Pride.) I'm top cat. Don't know how that happened, but they really don't treat me like alpha human, they treat me as alpha feline. I have no problems about this. Merlin is beneath me, and he keeps everyone in line (he's a kiss butt ). Hans I'm pretty sure is next, though he's not thrilled about that since he was used to being an only cat. And I'm pretty sure the L.S. is on the bottom. The problem is I think my mom falls between Hans and L.S.. Hans has charged mom before, and just generally acts superiour to her.

L.S. is growing up, and has been trying to challenge the boys for dominance. It's not working, no matter how hard he tries. So since he can't beat Mer and Hans, and I won't even let him question my authority, I think he's trying to assert his dominance over my mom, and I think it's been working. sigh.

I used to be a psych major, and I tend to over analyze things with my cats (can't help it, they fit into human psychology rules so well). Maybe I'm looking too far into this, and if so, what else could be causing his behaviour?

And if it is dominance problems, how do I get my mom either left out of The Pride (so there's no issues with her whatsoever), or get her in as an alpha without causing the cats to fight for the new ranks?

She really doesn't interact with the three of them that much. She puts their food bowls down in the morning for their breakfest, and they never give her problems. Otherwise they only bother with her when they want attention. Sometimes Mer or L.S. will sleep with her for a few hours, but both end up on my bed by morning. I do all the grunt work when it comes to them, including any car trips or vet visits, because mom doesn't want to. I've been trying to figure out how she can let them know she's in charge, but I don't have any ideas.

L.S. is about 9 months old now. Perfectly behaved except for one thing - he keep biting the back of my mom's legs. And I'm clueless as how to get him to stop.

Okay, then he isn't perfectly behaved, but in reality few kittens are, and yes he is still a kitten.

Some background: We've had him since mid-October. He was supposed to be just a foster but I filled out the adoption papers a few weeks later. He had been at the shelter 12 days before I took him home, and he came from who knows where, but was really healthy. He has some alley cat habits - scrounging for food, afraid of strangers, slinks through the house. Otherwise a pretty much normal kitten. My other two cats I had before I brought L.S. home. They get along great. The biting of my mom started about two months ago, and he's been doing it more and more often.

What happened between him and your mom two months ago? Did she inadvertently hurt or scare him?

The situation: She'll be standing somewhere, usually in front of the bathroom or kitchen counters, and he'll just strut right up behind her, reach out, and nip her. About half the time he'll then just strut away. The other half of the time he'll accept some stroking and then walk away. He never breaks skin, but from what I understand it hurts like all heck, and my mom lets out a huge yelp. Not enjoyable, from what I can tell.

There's no "trigger" from what I can tell. He's nipped her in many different situations. He's also chosen her as his favourite human. (He sleeps on her, and has to follow her around the house.)

So here's what I'm thinking:

1. He wants attention:
The only problem is that he'll walk away half the time and won't accept any kind of affection. I doubt it's him trying to grab her attention, since sometime she'll be talking to him before he bites her.

2. He's asserting his dominance.
This is what I'm thinking is happening.
I noticed that when all three cats start play wrestling, they'll nip each other's back legs. L.S. does it a lot more than the other two. I think he's trying to tell my mom that he's in charge.

I've been suspicious about mom have dominance problems with the cats. They tend to treat her and act around her like she's at the bottom of our Pride.(that's my "packs" name. The Pride.) I'm top cat. Don't know how that happened, but they really don't treat me like alpha human, they treat me as alpha feline. I have no problems about this. Merlin is beneath me, and he keeps everyone in line (he's a kiss butt ). Hans I'm pretty sure is next, though he's not thrilled about that since he was used to being an only cat. And I'm pretty sure the L.S. is on the bottom. The problem is I think my mom falls between Hans and L.S.. Hans has charged mom before, and just generally acts superiour to her.

L.S. is growing up, and has been trying to challenge the boys for dominance. It's not working, no matter how hard he tries. So since he can't beat Mer and Hans, and I won't even let him question my authority, I think he's trying to assert his dominance over my mom, and I think it's been working. sigh.

I used to be a psych major, and I tend to over analyze things with my cats (can't help it, they fit into human psychology rules so well). Maybe I'm looking too far into this, and if so, what else could be causing his behaviour?

And if it is dominance problems, how do I get my mom either left out of The Pride (so there's no issues with her whatsoever), or get her in as an alpha without causing the cats to fight for the new ranks?

She really doesn't interact with the three of them that much. She puts their food bowls down in the morning for their breakfest, and they never give her problems. Otherwise they only bother with her when they want attention. Sometimes Mer or L.S. will sleep with her for a few hours, but both end up on my bed by morning. I do all the grunt work when it comes to them, including any car trips or vet visits, because mom doesn't want to. I've been trying to figure out how she can let them know she's in charge, but I don't have any ideas.

Instead of analyzing this from a human point of view, look at the cat. What is the posture when the cat is nipping your mom? Is the tail up or down? Ears up or pinned? Eyes slitted or open? If the tail is up, it is play biting and a show that he respects her. ( I know, but he does) he would be doing the same thing to his brothers and sisters if they were around.

If he is biting hard and drawing blood and pulling skin, then it is anger biting. Either she has scared or hurt him, and he now regards her as predator.

When it happens she needs to turn around to him, and in a gutteral way, she needs to hiss him. She needs to hiss him off her. The hiss has to the same sort of angry hiss a momcat would use on a rambunctious kitten. If he was born of a wild litter outside, he never was allowed to be a kitten, for momcat would make sure her litter stayed quiet and so she made them be still. My guess is he is rediscovering his kittenhood and he wants her to know he's there.

She hasn't hurt him. He adores her too much for something to have happened. He's not scared of her in anyway. The only thing that has changed is that mom had rotator cuff surgery, and I had a tonsilectomy. Plus, Hans had bladder stones. The cats have been stressed because of this, but because we've gone back to a normal schedule and everyone is back to being healthy, the cats are back to normal, too. The only thing that hasn't stopped is his nipping.

His posture is completely normal. It's like he suddenly decides "hey, I'm gonna nip her now." He kinda of slinks up to her (which for him is a normal stance), reaches his head out with his ears to the sides (Mer and L.S. both do this when they're content or in a wierd mood), and his tail in it's normal relaxed hanging position, sometimes twitching a little. His eyes are normal shape, and aren't dilated or constricted. That's what left me scratching my head. Interpreting cat body language has never been a problem for me, but this is just confusing. He isn't giving any signs of playing, or being angry, or aggressive. He just bites her.

He's never broken skin or acted violently. He just gives a little chomp and walks away. (I'd say he was doing it just for the fun of it, but he doesn't act like he's "getting away with something".) It really is funny, and even my mom will laugh, but I know it hurts her, and I'd like him to stop.

She doesn't believe in making cat noises - it was my first recommendation to her. She does has a naturally deep voice and kind of growls "HEY!" at him. But he acts like he doesn't hear her.

And I have my doubts he was raised ferral. He definately wasn't socialized with humans, but he knew what a stove was, and what a refrigerator was, and that a sink contained dirty dishes - all food sources - from the moment we brought him home.

I would suggest your mom wear boots inside the house for a few weeks. The cat won't be able to get her attention by biting her, and will give up on the behavior.