Cat Started Biting More Than Usual

[LoserAndTheCat]

My 5-months furbaby has started biting at things more than usual. She will bite the regular sticks and toys but she's started to bite the corner of my phone and laptop. She reminds me of teething babies honestly. With her still healing from her spay surgery (it's making me stress though the healing seems to be going perfectly as it should be, curse you anxiety) I don't want her to be jumping around trying to bite toys, sticks, cardboard boxes, etc more than she usually does. Help?

 

[susanm9006]

It could still be stress from her spay or maybe it is her teeth, which come In around 4-6 months if I recall. Discourage her from your laptop and phone by setting her down or taking them away but I would make sure she has chewing substitutes. There really isn’t any reason she cant or shouldn’t chew on those. So treats that are in sticks or strings that she can chew, a kickaroo and a good old cardboard box that she can chew on and tear apart.

 

[margd]

You're absolutely right that your kitten might be teething. Her canine teeth are coming in right about now and her premolars will be coming in at around 6 months. There are items made for just this purpose - look for chew sticks that can be chilled and that are safe to chew on. Chew toys can also help. Try chilling a carrot or lettuce or even freeze some canned cat food. susanm9006 has given you some other great ideas.

There is a product called Bitter Apple that is often used to prevent cats from chewing on objects but I don't think you'd want to use this on your computer or your phone because odds are that you'd get some Bitter Apple in your mouth and it really is nasty tasting. In these cases you should say NO firmly and hand her an alternative, accompanied with praise for being such a terrific little kitty. Bitter Apple and similar products can be sprayed elsewhere, e.g. on furniture. (Make sure to test it first to make sure it doesn't stain).

Your kitten may, at some point, go in for chewing on electrical cords and cables. In these cases, it's best to enclose them in plastic tubing. There is tubing made just for the purpose but you might also check out Tygon tubing, which is used in labs. It may be cheaper.

Just a note about her healing from her spay - you aren't being overly anxious just because you're worrying about her jumping around too much and opening her incision. You are being a good caretaker to your kitty!

I'd sure love to see a picture of that little minx of yours. She sounds pretty adorable.

 

[LoserAndTheCat]

Thank you susanm9006 and margd , I'll try being more firm with her (though it's hard when she's so cute) and I'll look into getting stick-shaped treats and such. Here's a picture of her when we first got her and one that's just too adorable not to share!