Teething/Biting

[vivwraith]

I have a three month old kitten and he really loves to bite and scratch when we play. He doesn't scratch on purpose, he just always has his claws out. I do my best to distract him with a toy so he redirects that energy and I say no and stop moving my hand so he'll stop, which he does. He DOES stop, but around how old do they stop biting like that? I've never seen grown cat behave like a spastic biting machine haha. He's really good and scratches all the right stuff and not the furniture, and when he's tired or sleepy he doesnt scratch or bite, but if you get him excited in any way he starts to do it. We try to be persistent on telling him no, but obviously sometimes we still leave our hand there. I've read that this behavior can continue if you don't stop it, but those are the only ways I've seen to take care of it? Teaching him it's too rough etc. I got him around 8 or 10 weeks old. He might not be fully three months yet. I just really couldn't wait another week to take him home and I waited a couple weeks after he started eating solids so my worry is I took him home too soon and I won't be able to get him to stop biting me. Not aggressive biting, just like chewing

 

[Columbine]

Its vital to keep hands and feet (and any other body part for that matter) well away from play. Using wand toys is fantastic, and exactly the right thing to do. Make sure you have self play toys - such as a Kong Kickeroo - for the kitten to bite and bunny kick. This is just as important a part of play as the chase/hunt aspect, and I've yet to meet a cat of any age who doesn't love a good kick-fest!

If you do find you've been 'caught' - freeze and play dead. 'Prey' that is dead and immobile is no longer of any interest to a cat or kitten, and he should naturally disengage.
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