Beautiful with a bad boy temper!

[kelseyjomo]

My cat has that silvery sheen against his gret(blue) fur and has rings around his tail. I was wondering if he is an American shorthair with leaning a little more towards a specific breed? That way I can read up on how best to manage his behavior

 

[kelseyjomo]

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• kelseyjomo
• Oct 21, 2013

This picture shows the sheen in his fur better

 

[StefanZ]

Nay, no American shorthair, sooner a  Russian Blue look alike.  Maybe even a real RB of pet quality.

My monitor is so so, so I dont see well on dark pics, but may be a look of RB.

Your signature pic and the two portraits is the same cat?  On the signature pic  its some similiarities to the american variation of the RB.  Even the eyes are somewhat greenish.

These rings around tail are ghost rings common in young RB, they shall disappear later.  If they havent disappeared when adult, it is seen as a fault = no champion title on Shows.

What is his history as long you know?

Please, what is this "bad boy temper"?  RB males are known to be friendly and kind, both to their humans and their "wifes", although some looks menacing and almost cruel - especielly males of the scandinavian variation are renown for it.

 

[kelseyjomo]

Yes, it is the same cat. I don't know any of his history. Most of the time he is very sweet to me, but within the last 4 months he has been randomly attacking me and my boyfriend. He has always been very very playful and will often jump at me whenever I'm walking around the house, but the random attacks are not playful at all. That is why I wanted to know if he had a leaning towards a specific breed so I could do some more research on his peculiar temperment.

 

[kelseyjomo]

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• kelseyjomo
• Oct 22, 2013

 

[StefanZ]

Is he neutered? 

If no, high time to do it, and it may help this behavior too.

If yes, my advice for now is you describe his behavior in our Behavior Subforum, and get help this way...  There are surely possibilities to give good advice.

I presume his health is good?  As cats in pains dont have the same patience and friendliness as otherwise.

Tx for the extra, lighter photo!   "moggies"  with a RB look arent that unusual, so we really cant know for sure, if he is a RB of pet quality or at least has a very near RB ancestry, OR is such a look alike moggie...   He is pretty anyway, and I really hope his behavior will become more even and  nicer, soon.

Good luck!

 

[kelseyjomo]

Thank you! I did get some great advice and i am making an appointment to get him neutered right away

 

[mservant]

Just jumped from your other thread!   I looked at what else you had posted after I asked if your boy was RB!  

I agree with StefanZ that he has a look of RB about him though his tail looks rather thick and bushy, certainly for what would be looked for in the UK where a long tapered tail is favoured.  

If you give it a serious go with the behaviour training and very good workouts several times a day once he's been neutered I think there is a good chance you will see a huge difference in him.  

Russian Blues are renowned for their gentle nature but that doesn't mean that you don't get playful ones.  Aggression is definitely not an accepted quality and if a cat does not have a gentle temperament they are not usually used for recognized RB breeding - even if they look spectacular.  Difficult to predict when you don't know your cat's history but I think you should continue with advice for change.  He sounds like he has a high play drive (& hormones).

If you haven't seen any of my posts beyond your behaviour thread, yes Mouse is pedigree RB UK standard.  He is also championship standard despite his somewhat playful manner and love of jumping at my head. 

    I had to teach him about biting and bite pressure as he had no siblings to learn them from. He is a complete love bug but with a lot of energy he has to get rid of on a regular basis. Once he's had his play he is one of the most gentle, chilled out cuddleboys you could care to meet and nothing gets him frazzled.  He did calm down a lot after he reached 2 so you can live in hope.   Oh, and Mouse was neutered at about 10 weeks but he still played furiously, chewed everything in site, and fearlessly launched himself at humans for his first year and a half while I set down the limits. Don't be too concerned if altering your boy's hormones doesn't sort everything out - I expect he will still need consistent limits to be set plus an understanding of his cat brain and what signals play and fight for him.

 

[kelseyjomo]

I still have hope! Last night wasn't good...I froze and said ouch and stop but he still kept at me and "roughed" me up a bit! Lol! Today was better at first....he wasn't jumping at me as much while I walked around, but towards the end of the night he started giving me the stare and I distracted him without success and ended up putting him in time out for ten minutes. Needless to say the appointment has been made

 

[mservant]

Keep it up.  With 'the op' and some consistent boundaries for games I'm sure he'll get it.  I still have to put Mouse in time out from time to time, but it is now predictable:  he gets way over excited when he 'helps' me make the bed. 

  I am quite amazed that I haven't been injured yet when he suddenly appears from nowhere and  lauches in to the sheet or duvet cover.  9 1/2 lb of solid muscle cat with long legs and a jaw that opens like a python's.  

 

[jmeeko10]

oh cute .. your cat is the same as mine cat attacked lol .. when my feet was moving then he jump and attack my feet lol and even when move my hands then attack me too argh .. even when I try to rubbing his stomach and attack my arm arghh! but he is so sweet friendly lol .. now he is passed away when he was 4 yrs old due infection bladder .. 

your picture of cat that look like russian blue .. my first cat is Russian Blue same like your pic.. 

This is Jasper (Russian Blue ) *passed away*

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• jmeeko10
• Oct 26, 2013

 

[mservant]

@JMeeko10, your Jasper was a very handsome Blue boy and his fur looks beautifully thick.   There is something irresistible about letting that thick fur wrap itself round you even when they are play attacking because it feels so good.  Mouse gets away with far more than he should because I love it when I feel his fur and those soft paws of his.  I hope you now have another cat in your heart, perhaps the cheeky ginger one in your avatar.

Kelseyjomo, how are things going?  Do you have a date for that vet appointment?

 

[jmeeko10]

Oh yeah Jasper had thick fur and soft ...yeah just miss him since 2011 .. I have Jasper's ash in the little vase in my bedroom ..  

 

[kelseyjomo]

Awe! Jasper was a gorgeous kitty!! I have made an appointment for next week....I have a whole new problem now though! My boyfriends brother is moving in for a few months and Dexter won't stop hissing at him! He did live in a house with other cats before moving in today so I'm wondering if Dexter is just hissing because he can smell them? Oh! And it also doesn't help that he has snakes and lizards in his room(door closed of course)

 

[jmeeko10]

Oh I have no idea :S

my cat Meeko knew there have 2 cats upstairs .. he have one sister live upstairs  not live with me no .. yes he already meet his sister rare   

 

[mservant]

Could be the smell of other cats, new person being around more, and add in this new person has shut a door so Dexter can't check out a bit of his territory.  Was the door open before?

Try and think about your home from Dexter's point of view and if there is some way you can restore a bit of control and safety for him, including some access to the room with the snakes and lizards in even if it's time limited and supervised?  Might be worth investing in some Feliway/pheromone stuff too to try and settle him  (I'm starting to think I should get shares in that stuff!). He's going to have a rough time what with his 'little op' coming up on top of his new intruder.

Don't give up on the consistent boundaries for the behaviour, and make sure your boyfriend's brother knows about it too.  (I hope he's a cat lover).

Good luck.

 

[kelseyjomo]

Luckily, he is a cat lover. Your advice has helped a lot so far, so I will definitely start doing this with him...and the feliway would be a good thing to try too!