Need help curbing aggressive behavior...I'm desperate.

[delitebrite]

I am a little less sure about the time out and using crate or other room at this point than P3, and wonder if you don't just have a high energy young cat who is very easily excited and seeks human play interaction.  Mouse used to be like that, and would rarely play on his own with a toy but would do what he could to get human attention - be that wrapping his jaws round my arm or pouncing at my head and landing fully on belly in my face (though thankfully his momma cat never taught him what claws are for).  Your little guy didn't have long with other cats to learn the does and don'ts of social behaviour in terms of biting and scratching and I'm guessing he will launch at you with any movement he interprets as either a threat or an invitation to play - which may well not be intended by you.  

I think one of the most important things P3 has said, and given you a link to is on learning your cat's signals, the little twitches, body language and facial expressions so you can predict when he is about to lauch.  If you can react and divert / avoid and then offer an acceptable alternative you may be able to show him other ways to get what he wants without hurting you.  I had to do this with Mouse - it took many months but I did get there.  He went through learning he could still bounce and head pounce at me as long as I couldn't see him coming so he started to make his approach from off side or behind and I learned to keep an eye on him where ever he was, and slowly but surely he got the message on what was and was not OK.  I had to be very consistent in the body and verbal language I used with him through this but it was well worth it.

If you can get in fast enough to dodge the attack and find an interactive play solution - be it with a large kong like toy if he wants physical, or a short session of chasing around after you and then move on to you going to bed and throwing toys to chase or run about play for him on your bed then rest you might find he is more satisfied and will learn that a less aggressive approach can still get him what he wants.   It does take time when you have a cat with a high play drive but the rewards are worth it.  

I only use time out for a couple of minutes at a time and as an immediate response to over excitement biting where Mouse is like a bouncing biting creature that has a hyper exited look in his face no matter how still and calm I am and slowly repeat ouch he continues to jump and bite.   He is lifted out of the room, left for a couple of minutes but no more on the other side of a door and then let back in.  If he repeats his behaviour the process is repeated until he calms down.  If lifting causes more aggression then you can leave the room and then come back in in the same way.  What ever means the least stimulation and postive reward for your cat.   

Good luck.

This is an excellent response - thank you! Gandalf's eyes look wild when he's in one of his moods, and he does get ripples down his back. I have also noticed that his eyes are green when he's calm, and yellow when he's wild. His tail is almost constantly twitching though, unless he's grooming or sleeping (or in the early morning when my alarm goes off, he will crawl up on my chest and snuggle me and purr - I'm assuming in an attempt to bribe me from leaving haha). The problem with watching him is he doesn't always exhibit these signs (like of he's laying or walking around the house with his tail held high, he may let you pet him or he may bite if you try), or I am not always watching him (I am working two jobs so my days are long and I have a lot of stuff to do before I leave/when I get back, so he can "sneak up" on me when I'm distracted).

The time out advice is GREAT! I know cats have really short attention spans so letting him out after a few and recrating him if he continues the behavior sounds like it would send the message a lot faster (that biting and pouncing mean boredom and no attention from mom).

Do you think it would be effective if, after an attack, I give him a short time out (telling him that's not how to get attention), let him out and then try to play with him appropriately (redirect)? Repeating if necessary. Of course if I am noticing him getting wild before an attack, I can engage him in play beforehand (which is what I try to now - playing with him when he seems to have too much energy). My only concern is that if I'm the one intiating play, how can I teach him an appropriate way to get my attention if he wants to play? A long time ago, we used to play fetch, and he would occasionally bring me a toy when he wanted to play. I would like for him to have a way like that to get my attention - bringing me a toy, swatting without claws or something like that. But I'm not sure how to teach him that without getting another cat (which I don't think is an option but I will discuss it with my roommate).

Again, thank you for your super helpful reply!

 

[mservant]

For you to have some way he understands he is hurting you and biting is not OK is the priority from what you have said.  You can use time out but my own feeling is that time out should be used sparingly and only for extreme over excitement.  There is a short article on this site about how cats do not learn through discipline -   http://www.thecatsite.com/a/cats-and-discipline-dont-mix    A big part of this is cats short term memory is not like ours and they need to get a message which is relevant to their long term well being for them to pick up on the message.  Your link between attention is important I think, even to the point that if your cat experiences your picking him up to crate him as attention then the crating might not be the best action but you leaving the room might be.   It is important to know your cat and what he likes / wants to decide what will work best, and to make sure there is a positive outcome for him.  Sorry if I go on a bit here...

If you see  some indication he is feeling playful or wanting attention then offer play interaction.  This could be as simple as he is watching you rather than curled up with eyes closed.    Stop what you are doing and interact with him before he gets to that point of biting or hunting down.  It might seem painful but it takes the unwanted behaviour out of the equation so you can then establish a more positive interaction.   Use food treats if you need to to start with and reward non biting play, but if he is driven by your human attention which is sounds like he is the food might not be necessary.   I do understand how hard it is not to scream or cry out as I have told on may occasions before how my sweet little cat started out as a daemon kitty that used biting to get attention, and he was 100% energy until he was nearly 2 years old.  He had no siblings so never learned about bite pressure before he moved in with me either.  I am sadly well practiced in the calm breathing and staying still unless blood is drawn (then slowly and calmly peeling cat off and time out).  It probably took Mouse about a week to learn that OUCH meant he was hurting me and I didn't want him to bite, but it took quite a few more months to get him to cut his biting short and not have to look back at his cheeky face looking at me all set off to an angle and a glint in his eye like he new exactly what he was up to!   He did eventually get bored with the lack of reaction, and once he got the idea the biting and bouncing up at my head were not going to get a response and play time he had to find other ways to get my attention.  He moved on to looking cute, so I had to notice the cute poses and respond quickly as soon as he started the pose and a certain expression on his face.  He learned quickly that being cute got the play attention and thankfully he has stuck to that method ever since.  He now only bites when he is totally over excited and I know when that is - almost every time I am making a bed.  

With the hunting - leg attacks.   See if you can use chase toys or wand toys behind or in front of you to trigger his hunt and pounce instinct.   If he does get you then stand very still if you can so there isn't any chase reward, and use the word or sound you do if he bites your arm.   Consistency is crucial if he is to begin to understand you.   Our human vocalizations can be confusing for cats I'm sure.  Key words with selected clear tones help to get your desired message across, and everything in moderation.

With the biting unpredictably when you reach out to pet, try to see if there are any differences in his posture, facial expression, ears, tail or eyes when this happens, and also think about whether it matters which direction you approach him from or where you touch him.  Some cats experience being approached from the front as a threat of attack and some areas of the body as more sensitive than others.   

Because you say he is very cuddly much of the time I do think there is more of an energy level and communication basis to what is happening though do give careful thought to whether there has been any inidcations he is stressed, particularly given you have moved house with him and he is getting used to different surroundings and people (I know the behaviours are not new but there may have been stressors before moving too).    

 

[delitebrite]

For you to have some way he understands he is hurting you and biting is not OK is the priority from what you have said.  You can use time out but my own feeling is that time out should be used sparingly and only for extreme over excitement.  There is a short article on this site about how cats do not learn through discipline -   http://www.thecatsite.com/a/cats-and-discipline-dont-mix    A big part of this is cats short term memory is not like ours and they need to get a message which is relevant to their long term well being for them to pick up on the message.  Your link between attention is important I think, even to the point that if your cat experiences your picking him up to crate him as attention then the crating might not be the best action but you leaving the room might be.   It is important to know your cat and what he likes / wants to decide what will work best, and to make sure there is a positive outcome for him.  Sorry if I go on a bit here...

If you see  some indication he is feeling playful or wanting attention then offer play interaction.  This could be as simple as he is watching you rather than curled up with eyes closed.    Stop what you are doing and interact with him before he gets to that point of biting or hunting down.  It might seem painful but it takes the unwanted behaviour out of the equation so you can then establish a more positive interaction.   Use food treats if you need to to start with and reward non biting play, but if he is driven by your human attention which is sounds like he is the food might not be necessary.   I do understand how hard it is not to scream or cry out as I have told on may occasions before how my sweet little cat started out as a daemon kitty that used biting to get attention, and he was 100% energy until he was nearly 2 years old.  He had no siblings so never learned about bite pressure before he moved in with me either.  I am sadly well practiced in the calm breathing and staying still unless blood is drawn (then slowly and calmly peeling cat off and time out).  It probably took Mouse about a week to learn that OUCH meant he was hurting me and I didn't want him to bite, but it took quite a few more months to get him to cut his biting short and not have to look back at his cheeky face looking at me all set off to an angle and a glint in his eye like he new exactly what he was up to!   He did eventually get bored with the lack of reaction, and once he got the idea the biting and bouncing up at my head were not going to get a response and play time he had to find other ways to get my attention.  He moved on to looking cute, so I had to notice the cute poses and respond quickly as soon as he started the pose and a certain expression on his face.  He learned quickly that being cute got the play attention and thankfully he has stuck to that method ever since.  He now only bites when he is totally over excited and I know when that is - almost every time I am making a bed.  

With the hunting - leg attacks.   See if you can use chase toys or wand toys behind or in front of you to trigger his hunt and pounce instinct.   If he does get you then stand very still if you can so there isn't any chase reward, and use the word or sound you do if he bites your arm.   Consistency is crucial if he is to begin to understand you.   Our human vocalizations can be confusing for cats I'm sure.  Key words with selected clear tones help to get your desired message across, and everything in moderation.

With the biting unpredictably when you reach out to pet, try to see if there are any differences in his posture, facial expression, ears, tail or eyes when this happens, and also think about whether it matters which direction you approach him from or where you touch him.  Some cats experience being approached from the front as a threat of attack and some areas of the body as more sensitive than others.   

Because you say he is very cuddly much of the time I do think there is more of an energy level and communication basis to what is happening though do give careful thought to whether there has been any inidcations he is stressed, particularly given you have moved house with him and he is getting used to different surroundings and people (I know the behaviours are not new but there may have been stressors before moving too).    

Thanks so much for the excellent advice! We will try your suggestions! P.S. I do only crate him when he does the pounce and launch maneuver and it ends up in a screaming, bloody mess. I am not afraid of him biting me when I try to pet him or when I want him to get off of something he isn't supposed to be on. But when he does pounce and latch onto me that's when I get serious injuries from him and he's beyond the point of even dealing with because he will keep trying unless I give him a minute to settle down. I have only had to crate him once since we moved into our new apartment (which is excellent because they used to be a lot more frequent). I'm quite afraid of him at these times so it's really a desperate measure on my part, but it seems to help him because he doesn't do it again when time out is over.

 

[mservant]

That is really good if he doesn't repeat after a short time out.   If getting him into a crate for time out is causing more stress you could try just removing yourself from the space he is in and shutting the door on him - it is likely to have the same effect on him but perhaps faster as there is no handling to get distressed about  (or to cause you further injury). I haven't had to do this with Mouse as he's easy to handle but other members have had big success this way round.

 

[delitebrite]

That is really good if he doesn't repeat after a short time out.   If getting him into a crate for time out is causing more stress you could try just removing yourself from the space he is in and shutting the door on him - it is likely to have the same effect on him but perhaps faster as there is no handling to get distressed about  (or to cause you further injury). I haven't had to do this with Mouse as he's easy to handle but other members have had big success this way round.

Last night, he attacked my leg. I shut him out of the bedroom for a few minutes, and when I let him back in, he was sweet as can be for the rest of yhe night.

 

[mservant]

It isn't likely to be an immdiate change but 

  you start to see a change in his behaviour, with a reduction in how often he tries these attacks.  Would he usually repeat it again soon after the first attack?