Help! Kitten Won't Stop Attacking Our Hands And Feet!

[motomomma491]

So I love my 8 week old kitten to death! And she's such a love. But when she goes on her crazy sprees she attacks all of our hands and feet! And it's worse at night when trying to go to bed or when she wants to wake me up in the morning! She does it to my 1 year old daughter too when she's trying to go to sleep. I've tried saying no firmly and doing the psssst sound. But it doesn't always work. What do I do?! I want her to be able to sleep with us but if she's going to keep attacking us when we try to go to sleep we have to shut our door and let her roam the house.

 

[Kieka]

Saying no and withdrawing all attention for a few seconds is usually the best way to teach kittens that claws and teeth aren't welcome. It does take time though and is only effective if it is done every time it happens. It is usually about two weeks of constant reinforcement for the kitten to fully understand that action equals reaction.

 

[motomomma491]

Ok thank You! Usually when we're awake and she does that I'll say no then grab a toy and have her go after that instead. Maybe I'll bring a toy to bed with us. She's like a gremlin sometimes lol her tail gets so poofed and she runs million miles an hour

 

[serpico21]

I've been having the same issue...good to know i'm not alone. LOL

 

[Kieka]

Its a fairly common kitten issue, especially when talking about kittens under 16 weeks who are away from Mom before that time. 6 weeks to 16 weeks is when they learn Manners 101 from Mom and siblings. So if they are rehomed before that the humans have to teach Manners 101. It usually takes at least 2 weeks for new habits to take route.

Now would also be the time to firmly establish that once humans are in bed that bed is for petting or sleeping. So I wouldn't bring a toy to bed. If she goes after hands or feet in bed, try petting first, if she still goes after then pull hands and feet under covers and 100% ignore her. Don't respond, talk, or do more then cover the hands or feet. If you do that when she gets older you will find you have a kitten who respects bed time too.

Even better would be to establish a nighttime routine about an hour before bed. Extreme play session, followed by dinner, then bed. I did that with my kittens and now as adults they continue the habit. I get yelled at by them if I am late with play and dinner, then yelled at again if I am not in bed on time. It's all about establishing expectations now as kittens and they will carry them into adulthood.

 

[motomomma491]

serpico2, I'm glad were not alone either! Lol she's crazy. And ok kieka! I'll try all of that. My husband gets extremely mad so I'll have to tell him to bear with it for a few weeks so we can establish that with her

 

[Kieka]

With your husband, just let him know it will pass. Routine and standard reactions will go a long way in teaching the kitten how to behave. Through the kitten stage (up until about 6-9 months) you do want to make sure you stick with the routine, even on weekends, and probably twice a day playtime to get that kitten energy out.

If you stick with it I promise you will have a well behaved adult cat. I have two Snowshoe Siameses and survived both their kittenhoods by following routine and giving them standard reactions so they knew what to expect. I really do get yelled at by mine if I go to bed late, my girl sleeps through the night and leaves us alone until the normal household waking time. My boy is a little more demanding about it (Siamese vocals) but if we don't go to bed on time he will put himself to bed.

You might benefit from reading Jackson Galaxy's newest book, Total Cat Mojo. It is a very reader friendly book to really help understand behavior and lots of great tips.

 

[motomomma491]

Thank you so much for the advice! I'll look into that and read it!