Hi y’all. I am seriously considering giving my cat away. I really don’t know what to do anymore. Please help me. I love him and I would do anything for him but I just feel like I have no other choice right now. What can I do to stop his aggression?
Some background on him. He is a little over 1 year old right now. I found him as a stray feral kitten. I had him neutered pretty early on. He has always been bitey, ever since he was little. At first it was play biting. I never encouraged him and would either redirect him to a toy or stop playing with him. For a while, he got A LOT better. Basically zero biting or aggression for a few months. He seemed really happy, and we were really close. He slept in my bed every night, followed me every where, loved being petted. He was never super cuddly but he liked being near me, and would fall asleep in my lap sometimes.
But these past few months I don’t know what has happened to him. It’s honestly been like a nightmare. I’ll just be walking by or standing there doing nothing or sitting on the couch watching TV, and he’ll attack me. He will sometimes hide and wait for me pass before he pounces or he will just run up to me. He either latches onto my ankles or my arms/wrists with his claws and bites me as hard as he can. Like this is not play aggression. All of his attacks draw blood. A few days ago he attacked my foot so badly it was dripping blood into my sock. I can feel him just biting me with as much force as he can possibly muster. I can’t even describe to you how badly this hurts. He doesn’t care if I scream or cry, it even seems to encourage him. If i try to run away, he’ll chase me and attack any part of me even as I’m running. If there was a blanket or jacket near me I would wrap my arms in it, grab him and put him in the bathroom for like 30 minutes as a timeout. This used to work, he would be a lot calmer after being let out but after a while he stopped caring. I heard that spraying water was bad so next I tried to use a bell to make a loud noise to scare him into stopping. This worked for a while too but now he just braces himself against the noise and keeps going. If i try to block him by shielding myself with a blanket or pillow he will circle me trying to find an unprotected spot to attack me. He used to sleep in my room but now I’m scared to let him in. He will meow and meow and meow for literally an hour straight until i let him in, and then he just attacks me. I grab him with a blanket, put him outside, and he just keeps meowing and meowing, and I soon as I step outside my room he is there waiting and attacks me again. I have never hit him or hurt him in any way but I am so scared I will snap one day. This has been going on for months. My arms and legs are covered in scars and fresh cuts and scratches. Someone at work noticed and worriedly asked me if I was self-harming and if I needed help. I am so desperate at this point. I feel so defenseless.
I am worried about him but I’ve taken him to the vet and they can’t find anything wrong with him. The vet told me to spray him with water if he bites me. He eats and drinks and goes to the bathroom regularly and normally. He sleeps normally as well. I have a big cat tree for him that I put next to a big window and it has different levels and hiding spots. I have a pretty big house so he has plenty of room to explore and run. He has plenty of high places and hiding spots to escape to. He also has tons of windows to look out into the backyard, and I leave them open so he can smell and hear the noises. He has a lot of different toys, and I play with him for at least 30 min-1 hour every day. I try to make the toys move as realistically as possible, and he goes crazy when he plays, doing flips and leaping through the air. I try to tire him out but it seems like he never runs out of energy. I can’t think of a single thing I’m not providing for him.
It’s like he hates me or something. This isn’t fear based aggression. It is like this is really fun for him. It’s like he’s hunting me. I love him but at the same time I almost hate him now. I feel like such a horrible person for feeling this way towards him. Please help me. I want to fix things but I have no idea what to do.
Some background on him. He is a little over 1 year old right now. I found him as a stray feral kitten. I had him neutered pretty early on. He has always been bitey, ever since he was little. At first it was play biting. I never encouraged him and would either redirect him to a toy or stop playing with him. For a while, he got A LOT better. Basically zero biting or aggression for a few months. He seemed really happy, and we were really close. He slept in my bed every night, followed me every where, loved being petted. He was never super cuddly but he liked being near me, and would fall asleep in my lap sometimes.
But these past few months I don’t know what has happened to him. It’s honestly been like a nightmare. I’ll just be walking by or standing there doing nothing or sitting on the couch watching TV, and he’ll attack me. He will sometimes hide and wait for me pass before he pounces or he will just run up to me. He either latches onto my ankles or my arms/wrists with his claws and bites me as hard as he can. Like this is not play aggression. All of his attacks draw blood. A few days ago he attacked my foot so badly it was dripping blood into my sock. I can feel him just biting me with as much force as he can possibly muster. I can’t even describe to you how badly this hurts. He doesn’t care if I scream or cry, it even seems to encourage him. If i try to run away, he’ll chase me and attack any part of me even as I’m running. If there was a blanket or jacket near me I would wrap my arms in it, grab him and put him in the bathroom for like 30 minutes as a timeout. This used to work, he would be a lot calmer after being let out but after a while he stopped caring. I heard that spraying water was bad so next I tried to use a bell to make a loud noise to scare him into stopping. This worked for a while too but now he just braces himself against the noise and keeps going. If i try to block him by shielding myself with a blanket or pillow he will circle me trying to find an unprotected spot to attack me. He used to sleep in my room but now I’m scared to let him in. He will meow and meow and meow for literally an hour straight until i let him in, and then he just attacks me. I grab him with a blanket, put him outside, and he just keeps meowing and meowing, and I soon as I step outside my room he is there waiting and attacks me again. I have never hit him or hurt him in any way but I am so scared I will snap one day. This has been going on for months. My arms and legs are covered in scars and fresh cuts and scratches. Someone at work noticed and worriedly asked me if I was self-harming and if I needed help. I am so desperate at this point. I feel so defenseless.
I am worried about him but I’ve taken him to the vet and they can’t find anything wrong with him. The vet told me to spray him with water if he bites me. He eats and drinks and goes to the bathroom regularly and normally. He sleeps normally as well. I have a big cat tree for him that I put next to a big window and it has different levels and hiding spots. I have a pretty big house so he has plenty of room to explore and run. He has plenty of high places and hiding spots to escape to. He also has tons of windows to look out into the backyard, and I leave them open so he can smell and hear the noises. He has a lot of different toys, and I play with him for at least 30 min-1 hour every day. I try to make the toys move as realistically as possible, and he goes crazy when he plays, doing flips and leaping through the air. I try to tire him out but it seems like he never runs out of energy. I can’t think of a single thing I’m not providing for him.
It’s like he hates me or something. This isn’t fear based aggression. It is like this is really fun for him. It’s like he’s hunting me. I love him but at the same time I almost hate him now. I feel like such a horrible person for feeling this way towards him. Please help me. I want to fix things but I have no idea what to do.
) If he still struggles too much have that towel handy, you may even have to drape it around your neck for a while, and wrap him into it, deposit him in a small room and give him a 10 minute time out. No longer or he will forget what he is being punished for and will not learn. EVERYTIME! If you are not consistent and let him maul you, you will have to start all over. He may come right back at you when you are done scruffing him, that is when you do it again and give him the time out. Long time outs, and physical punishment like slapping,or maybe even spraying water, do not work with cats, it only makes them afraid and to learn new ways to get away with what they were doing. They need to have a more natural, instinctive learning experience. Since your cat has been doing this for a while, it may take a little time, but I have never had it fail if you do it every time, he is long overdue to learn some limits and manners. I wish you all teh luck, please keep us posted and let us know how it turns out.
