New Owner ; Cat Acting Weird

[haidrel]

Hi guys! I recently got an 8month old kitten last Saturday named Rey and she is just wonderful. She is really clever little cat who happens to be extremely agile as well. However, me and my mum go to school and work respectively for long hours and we keep her home alone for 6-12 hours. Today was the longest that we have kept her alone and waiting for us to return home and my mum first noticed that she was acting more agressive than usual. She was also biting the sofa which she doesnt usually because she is in fact a really tame kitten. But today she was acting more strangely because in addition to biting the sofa, she suddenly got very scared when I was playing around with her with a ball. At first we were just playing around, but around 5min into playing she got really scared and her hair stood up - she also formed an arch, like you know how cats do when they get scared. And she started running around like crazy. I decided to keep the ball then since she was so afraid just to calm her down. I also sit her down to give her some head scratches hoping she wouldnt be scared anymore. Just as I thought she was finally relaxed, she moved to another spot and got frightnened again. This time she pounced on a lot of the furniture in my living room, even knocking down some objects.

Rey is usually very tame she doesnt knock objects down at all, doesnt scratch or bite them an would stick to her scratching board, and usually just gets afraid when she sees her own refection in the mirror. She doesnt meow as much, but she did so quote a lot today. Being a first time cat owner, Im really scared and I went to read up on why Rey is behaving like that. Some websites say that its normal for cats to act crazy once in a while, but Ive seen her zoom in and out, but never once looking frightened (and she usually doesnt knock things over when she runs about too). Today she was panting so heavily she looked like a dog. Im really worried and I was wondering if this is normal for a kitten her age Any advice or help is much appreciated

 

[KarenKat]

Welcome to The Cat Site! Cats can definitely be confusing sometimes, and if you are really concerned it might be a good idea to have a vet checkup just to rule out any underlying issues.

Since you were gone longer than normal, this could also just be that the kitten was cooped up and bored, and is now a little more wilder than normal. Or it could be fright from seeing something outside, such as another cat or a dog. I say give her some time to calm down, don't try and pet her if she is too agitated and try and give her some interactive playtime to tired her out.

 

[susanm9006]

If she was growling and hissing, I would say frightened. But if not I don’t think she was really frightened but rather just acting goofy and crazy which a kitten can do when they are hyperactive. Hair puffing out, back arched and prancing sideways can all be done in play as well as mad racing, grabbing the furniture and generally tearing around. Help her wear off that energy with want or laser toys.

 

[Father of furbabies]

There are some interactive toys that can be controlled through the internet. I seen one where you can check in on your cats with a camera and it has a laser spot that you can play with your kitten.

It just sounds like she is bored and needs something to keep her active or entertained while you and your mum is gone so when you get home she is not so hyperactive.

 

[jen]

She doesn't sound frightened to me. She sounds like a bored, growing, playful, crazy kitten. Is she spayed yet? She will be coming into heat too if not. She needs play, play, play. Try laser pointers and interactive toys. She will probably love them.