Cat Attacked me and My Friend!

[ghostuser]

My 10 month old cat Pepper attacked me and my friend 3 days ago! He scratched up my side and My friends Back. I don't know why he did this, but this is very odd behavior for him. There is nothing that could have caused this behavior, except catnip. He gets extremley cranky without it. Do you think that he could be addicted to it?
Any advice would be greatly appriciated. Thanks.

 

[alicat613]

Whoa! A 'nip junkie!!

Seriously though, that's scary! Do you think maybe he was playing? My kitten sorta loses perspective sometimes, and gets a little rough.

Can you give us more details on the incident?

 

[hissy]

if you got him neutered. He would calm down a lot and be an ideal cat for you.

 

[imagyne]

Originally posted by alicat613
Whoa! A 'nip junkie!!

Oh Yeah.. sounds like me.....

*smiles*

Ken

 

[ghostuser]

I took pepper over to my friends house, to play with his 2 kitties spaz and chubby, and I guess he didn't want to leave, because when I picked him up to go, he got really mad and thats when it happened!


I guess he is a Cat Nip Junkie!

 

[debra myers]

Tahsa - my cats do not deal well with change and perhaps he was somewhat out of sorts, as he was in another kitty's home?!? Different smells, etc.......

 

[ghostuser]

I'm not sure, He's been playing with Spaz and Chubby since he was two months old, he has also been over there more than enough times to have acted like that. I really don't know what could have caused this behavior, except what I said before, catnip. I think he may be addicted to it. Is there any way to find out? Thanks!

 

[alicat613]

Well, I looked around, and it seems that catnip is not addicted, although I'm not sure how one would prove or disprove this.

I found this at http://vetmedicine.about.com/gi/dyna.../catfacts.htm:

"My cat gets very aggressive when I give catnip, what can I do ?

Cats usually get very active when sniffing nip. This is normal. If however, you find her attacking you,or getting very aggressive, it would be advisable not to give your cat catnip."


Several sites stated that cats' responses to catnip can change, and some become aggressive when taking 'nip.

Personally, my cats have never been into catnip. Many cats are not affected at all by it, so we just don't use it. We have fun anyway!

 

[clairey-pooh]

i think the previous posts were right in the fact that

a) you should have him neutered
b) you shouldn't take him to other environments

the last can be very upsetting to a cat - especially a male who is reaching sexual maturity. Playing together as kittens is somewhat different to territorial behaviour - which is what this sounds like.

It obviously distressed him, so my advice woudl be not to put him through that again

 

[ghostuser]

I really don't think that this is a territorial thing. Like I said, He has been going over there everyday for all his life, and this isn't the first time he has done this...(Sorry I didn't mention it before...must've slipped my mind). He attacked me last when we found him under the house...he was stuck there for 2 days, and not only that...but he does this weird face attacking things. He puts his paws on your face, one on each side, and then he claps them together on your face. We do plan to get him neutered soon. I don't know what else it could be but the nip.

Thanks for all the advice

 

[ghostuser]

He attacked me AGAIN!!!!! Me and my sister were giving him and my 2 kittens a bath, when he started to scratch my hand, then he started gnawing on it, then he bit me, right to the bone! I need help! I don't know what his problem is, but I don't want it to get so bad that I have to give him up. I have my little brother to think about, like if he picks him up, and accidentley hurts him, who knows what could happen! PLEASE HELP!!!!!

 

[debra myers]

Tasha - Pepper needs to be FIXED ASAP! He is growing up and does not know how to feel with all these hormones racing through his body. You will see him calm down a lot once this happens.
Cats also do not like change. Keep things routine for him and see if this helps.

 

[ghostuser]

He is fine now, but I really don't want this to happen again! I am going to get him fixed as soon as possible, probably in a few weeks. Thanks for your advice!

 

[dtolle]

Tasha, isn't there any way to have him neutered sooner than just a few weeks?? If you have a child in the house ( and you said something about your little brother ) and he is biting you to the bone like you said, I don't see this as being a safe environment.

 

[ghostuser]

I can't get him fixed any sooner than 2 weeks, due to icy roads from the snow. We are going to keep him in our room with food and water and a litterbox. He is a very sweet little cat, the reason he attacked is because he dunked his head under the water. But I am going to get him fixed as soon as possible and talk to a vet about this problem.

 

[nikki haveachat]

Cats generally attack because they are defending their territory , this guy obviously thinks he's top cat and is starting to show that you are not his equal.

It is unusual for a cat to attack the owner of the house, but I would also have to question your behaviour - you say "but he does this weird face attacking things. He puts his paws on your face, one on each side, and then he claps them together on your face." - why is he close enough to your face to do this - are you holding him there? (Since he's not using his paws to stand on I can only assume this) apparently he doesn't like this - so stop doing it.

Although on the bathing front I stick up for his right to attack you - HE'S A CAT !! THEY DON'T LIKE WATER! what were you expecting... I'd expect to be ripped to shreds if I bathed most cats - so again, stop doing it and he'll stop attacking you.

 

[hissy]

Doubtful because most cats will shy away from water. Chances are you were bathing improperly and holding him wrong and he started to fight you and in the tussle you dunked him under THAT could be why he bit you afterward. Why would you bathe him anyway especially in wintertime? If you feel you have to bathe this cat, do it in a bucket with a little bit of water at the bottom and make it a quick bath and keep him warm with towels that have cycled in the dryer, until he has at least stopped shivering.

 

[ghostuser]

I wasn't bathing him improperly, that's the way I always bathe him. He dunked his head when my kitten was trying to get out of the tub, and I HAD to bath him becuase he had fleas. And the face attack- he can stand on his hind legs for a minute, and if you bend down to pet his head then he does this. It's not all the time. You're making it sound like i'm a bad pet owner, like I don't know how to take care of my cats when I know how to take care of my cats.

 

[alicat613]

Hey!

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...?threadid=6840

Bathing cats is alright. I started doing it because they had fleas too.

 

[maui]

". . . .He puts his paws on your face, one on each side, and then he claps them together on your face.. . .

My kitty has done this in play since she was a kitten. The scenario goes like this. . .we are playing hide and seek. . . I am hiding from her crouching down behind something, she sneaks up on me, then when she finds me she play attacks me (with claws pulled in) by pouncing with her face next to mine and holding my head in her arms, then running off.

My interpretation of this is that she is playing with me as if I was a cat and she is grabbing me around the head as she would another cat before tussling on the ground. Her face is next to my face since that is the only way she can get her arms around my head. Since I really am not a cat and really huge compared to her, she just stops at the grab, then runs off.

I think the suggestion to neuter ASAP is a good one. The problem with an unpleasant behavior such as attacking is that the longer the behavior is done, the greater the chances it might turn into a life long habit. If you absolutely cannot neuter sooner my suggestion is to simply walk away from cat when he attacks. Just ignore him and don't give him any attention unless he is behaving.

Good luck