So can i really not shout at my cat

[smokeygreen]

As the title says i got a kitten 2 months ago its a little bugger always trying to annoy me and doing things it shouldn't, I have read many guides and all say DO NOT shout a your cat.. Well how is it going to learn if i don't shout at it, Its like saying dont tell a toddler off or smack its bum for being naughty, every kid i have ever known that hasn't been told off is a little sh*t. When i tell my kitten off i hiss and pick it up by the scuff gently though is this correct? or not. I just feel all the articles i have read are wrote my extreme cat lovers and are only saying dont shout at your cat our tap its bum because they think its some sort of animal cruelty instead of discipline what are your thought am i doing things right or not and sorry if i come across as over the top but im at my wits end, the little bugger has just ran paint all through my house even thought i told the cat 10+ times to keep away and even moved the paint high out the way.

 

[greypaws]

I've found cats react entirely different to discipline than dogs. Their little wee brain says do this, what is this, I got explore and just do to their nature, they are going to do so until their curiosity is satisfied. There used to be an expression curiosity killed the cat, in many ways this is true. IMO, the best thing you can do is to set your kitty up for success. Don't want him in the paint, then close off the room you are working in. Don't want him on the kitchen counter, clear it so there is nothing there to investigate and so forth. Kittens and young cats live to play, eat and nap. That is their whole existence. If your kitty is an only, you have now become it's playmate and if you don't do that, it will get itself into trouble on it's own, trouble mostly in the form of human aggravation. Be patient, set kitty up for success which means you won't need to discipline and don't forget to play, lots

 

[lily paddy]

I am not anything but the keeper of my 6 month old Kitten .. but i have to say its all in my TONE and reaction, if my boy is overstimutlated and bites me as i pet or just attacks my feet under the blankets or jumps on me in a crazy frenzy of running like a pony... i stop and say NO.. not loud but stern. and stop any interaction.. Repetition and consistency seem to be the deal maker for my boy as he is being much more conscious of his teeth and nails.. Positive praise when he uses his scratchers..  New Litter Robot.. climbing posts.. lays nicely with me in bed..Lots of my good boy.. thats my good boy..  when i yell.. i swear it made him more nutty with worse behavior to follow, I can tell you with a very firm NO and placing on the floor many MANY times he no longer goes on my tables or counters. 

 

[Primula]

First, a cat is an animal with animal tendencies. It is not human & cannot be expected to fully comprehend what you are telling it.

Sounds like he has not been neutered?

 

[Brian007]

Cats don't equate being shouted at or chastised to the misdeed in question.  So, there is actually no point in doing so, your cat will just think you're being mean for no reason.  

However, I did manage to kinda train, or lessen at least, Brian from scratching my rented flat's stripped wood doors, which he scratched for food in the middle of the night when it wasn't his teatime, and he was a big fatso on a diet.  I did this by keeping a water squirter by my bedside, which I would squirt him with from across the room only if he was actually in the act of scratching, and only if he was persistent.  He would then go off to lick the water off his coat and forget about his "starvation".  I also put tape all over the bottom half of my doors after they were falling apart with scratches, which worked wonders at being a disagreeable surface for claws, though looked ugly but that really didn't cause me any concern.  I wouldn't have cared at all if I had owned the doors.  I didn't like the water squirt technique in the slightest and used it as sparingly as possible, but it did help both me and him, as he was a super bouncy rescue cat who responded to boundaries and routine.  I did feel awful about wetting his lovely, super groomed fur, and I would only advocate this in the most extreme cases.  

Dudley is besotted with the frays at the edges of the carpet in my new rented flat, frays I might add that he pulls himself.  But I just keep trimming them off and am thinking of putting tape along the carpet line.  I have not mentioned that this behaviour is naughty to Dudley as he simply won't get it.  It is super fun after all.  

I agree with @Greypaws  to reduce the attractiveness of the areas in your home that your cat finds irresistible.  And, to hope that he will grow out of his playful antics, which he will naturally to some extent.  I also agree with @Primula  that he should be neutered as that will calm him down greatly.  

 

[smokeygreen]

no he is currently not neutered he is due his last injection so i am going to get it booked straight after hopefully that calms the little monster down

 

[smokeygreen]

Its the first time me ever having a cat and im just used to having pet dogs they listen straight away, I can tell smokey "the cat" knows what i am saying he just chooses not to listen and then tests me after at how far he can push me. I find it funny at the same time because he knows how to wind me up so much so if i ignore him he will go do something to get shouted at so i give him attention XD I was thinking about getting another kitten near the same age just so they can annoy each other rather than me lmao.

 

[di and bob]

Cats are much more independent than dogs, you EARN a cat's love and affection. Everything you have said is normal for a young kitten, they act like tiny tornadoes of energy and don't listen to a thing you say. Another kitten would definitely keep him occupied, but they might not get along at first, the younger the better for new introductions. Once he is neutered he will settle down some, and stop VERY annoying behaviors like spraying everything and yowling constantly from even beginning. Neutering can be done very early, by 6 months, and if you get another kitten make sure you take them in together, vet smells can make instant enemies out of old friends. I do yell NO at my cats, they all know that it means I am mad, and they stop what they are doing. I use double sided tape on the places I don't want them scratching, Walmart has it in the tape section, and use corrugated cardboard scratchers, they love them. Another good thing to have is called a Kickaroo, sold on Amazon, that they bunny kick for hours, it gets rid of a lot of energy. Just like with toddlers, this too will pass, Kittens are much more advanced than puppies, who would be peeing all over your floor, and crying all night.  Time is what you need, after a few years they become couch potatoes and are perfect angels

  PS when doing things like painting or mopping floors, it is MUCH better on your nerves to lock them in a room for a while!