# Training a Naughty Kitten?



## Harley

A few days ago I got a new kitten. He's 6 weeks old and I'm having a lot of problems with him. He can be a nice cat sometimes, when he's tired usually. Other than that he drives me crazy 24-7. Here are the problems I'm having:-

He never ever puts his claws away

He constantly claws and climbs my legs, especially when I'm sitting on the sofa

He won't play with his toys & instead climbs all over me, bites & scratches me

He meows whenever I leave the room, and sometimes for no reason at all

To try and tackle the behaviour, whenever he scratches me I say 'NO' and put him on the floor. If he scratches at my legs I remove his claws, say 'NO' and move him away. When he's being soppy and I'm stroking him, he'll climb my clothes to try and rub on my face. I say 'NO', move him to my lap & keep stroking him. When I'm eating he won't give up trying to get to my food. I put him on the floor and say 'NO'.

He ignores me every time I do any of these things and just does them again. Can anyone help me with what else I can do to try and change his behaviour? Cheers


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## ErbslinTrouble

Firstly he's very young to be away from the litter mates and mum. Secondly he will need lots of attention because of this and he may need extra feeding times in the day. As for the naughtiness get a small water gun or a spray bottle fill it with water and use it with the NO command. Eventually you won't even have to spray just pick up the bottle and then on to just saying no. Also would be an idea to have his claws trimmed at the vets.  sorry to say but that's all normal kitten behaviour and if you don't think you're up for it maybe you should re think having a cat. they need a lot of time an attention for playing to lose some of that energy, you might also want to think about what you are feeding. some kitten foods are full of preservatives and cereals and can be very high energy. look for something with more real meat and high protein levels so the kitty doesn't have sugar rushes.


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## Lumpy

I don't think I'm going to be much help at all and I'm no expert but your little chap sounds like he is just being a typical six week old kitten to me

Six weeks is very young for him to have left his Mum and siblings (if any) and I can understand why he won't play with his toys and keeps pestering you. He's probably lonely and needs attention as he has been used to having company from his fur family.

I've got three kittens that I have had from birth (two have gone to their new slave). They chase each other and seem to play really roughly, climb anything in sight and try to climb on my plate when I am eating. I have the advantage of having more than one so they play together and are not constantly asking me for attention (I work so wouldn't have kept just one).

Do you play with your kitten? I may be wrong but I am not sure a six week old kitten knows how to retract his claws yet which could be partly why you are getting scratched. Kittens are like young babies - they need constant attention - they won't amuse themselves for long. Do you think it may be a good idea to get your little one a playmate?

I've found it quite difficult to 'train' a kitten but I do say 'no' and move them when they are trying to share my food. My adult cats don't do this so I think it is something they grow out of. At the moment my kittens are so curious that they want to have their noses in anything I may be doing.

It is exhausting - but they soon grow up - and you will then be looking back nostalgically on the time when your fur baby was tiny and playful

Do you have any pics of your little one?


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## LousKoonz

Sounds very familiar to me ( not ALL kittens are like this though - some arent so hyper but generally kittens will push boundaries and obviously play cos they're young xx)

But my eldest Mog Max (7.5 years old now) well that sounds like him, and he WAS a complete nightmare to start with xx

You have to show him that your "mum" or "boss" and just persevere with it hun x
The spray gun is very helpful aswell, though try to make sure that he doesn't know it's you doing it to start with - he'll cotton on eventually but it's good to start out with him wondering where the hell it's coming from xx


it took me a fair while to get Max straight - once neutered he calmed a fair bit aswell though but if you set boundaries in stone and don't give in even if he has a cute moment with you then he will get into the routine and work out what he's not supposed to do xxx

The food one can be the hardest - i had to shut Max out of the room as he was very bad for this xx

He is now a wonderful kitty so your efforts will be rewarded hunny and your little bundle will calm i promise you - just takes patience in abundance to start with xx


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## Harley

Thanks for all your replies. I suspected he'd need a lot of attention to start with as he had 4 brothers and sisters to play with before I got him. I know its normal for kittens to play like this, but not all throughout the day (you should see the state of my arms)

I do play with him a lot, but I can't be playing all the time which is what he wants. I've managed to get him to like the little tunnel I bought him which he'll play with and sleep in so long as I'm not in the room. If I'm in the room he'll only go to sleep when he's on my lap, & won't really play with his tunnel. He hates balls.

I'll just carry on teaching him as I am then, and might give the spray bottle a go. I did consider taking his brother as well when I got him but decided not too because it would be too expensive.

There's some pic of him in that part of the forum

Thanks


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## helz

Hey, welcome to the wonderful world of cats and kittens.

He does sound like a normal playful kitten to me, you are doing the right thing with telling him "no" when he is naughty, but these things take time. Just don't give up.

Try chashing a bit of string around for him to play with, maybe even tie one of his toys to the end of the string and pull it around. This will make is toy interactive and keep your hands well clear of his claws.

The water spray is also a good idea, you don't need to soak him, just a little squirt will do the trick.

Also, i think your picture was removed from the other thread, if you speak to one of the mods i'm sure they will explain why, but if you can get another one up, we would love to see him.


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## ErbslinTrouble

helz said:


> Hey, welcome to the wonderful world of cats and kittens.
> 
> He does sound like a normal playful kitten to me, you are doing the right thing with telling him "no" when he is naughty, but these things take time. Just don't give up.
> 
> Try chashing a bit of string around for him to play with, maybe even tie one of his toys to the end of the string and pull it around. This will make is toy interactive and keep your hands well clear of his claws.
> 
> The water spray is also a good idea, you don't need to soak him, just a little squirt will do the trick.
> 
> Also, i think your picture was removed from the other thread, if you speak to one of the mods i'm sure they will explain why, but if you can get another one up, we would love to see him.


and to add and not to be condescending but please be sure not to leave the string out with the kitten unattended. they can eat them and become very ill. Feather toys are big winners too!! do you have a slippery floor of some sort like tile or lino? you can make a ball of tin foil and push it across the floor, kittens usually go mad for that


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## Harley

Thanks again for your suggestions, yeah I have laminate flooring, my last cat used to love tin foil so i'll give it a go

The pic's up now if you want to have a look


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## ATD

Hi, 
I dont thing you have a huge problem he is just being a 6 wk old kitten who should really still be with his mother and siblings:



Harley said:


> He never ever puts his claws away
> 
> 
> 
> They have to learn to retract their claws, it doesnt come naturally to them.
> 
> 
> 
> Harley said:
> 
> 
> 
> He constantly claws and climbs my legs, especially when I'm sitting on the sofa
> QUOTE]
> 
> He wants to be with you but due to his size he cant get to you without digging his claws in.
> 
> 
> 
> Harley said:
> 
> 
> 
> He won't play with his toys & instead climbs all over me, bites & scratches me
> 
> 
> 
> Give him another few weeks and he will play more.
> 
> 
> 
> Harley said:
> 
> 
> 
> He meows whenever I leave the room, and sometimes for no reason at all
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> He is use to having his mum and sibblings close by and now he is left on his own. Try getting a small toy and put a ticking clocking in the centre.
> 
> Stick with it at the end of the day he is 6wks old the normal age to leave their mum at 8 wks plus.
> 
> ATD x
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> 
> Click to expand...
Click to expand...


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## Leah100

He's 6 weeks old.... he should still be with his Mum and other kittens, practising his playfighting and climbing with them. He's behaving perfectly normally. Get him some scratchers and fishing rod type toys, trim his claws with baby nail clippers, and perhaps look for a book on kittens and cats so you'll know what to expect. He will calm down as he grows, but there are plenty of mad weeks ahead.


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## Guest

Like the others have said, 6 weeks is rather young to leave mum and siblings. If he left later... mum would have had more time to correct him. They soon let them know when something isn't acceptable lol.

He does sound like a typical male kitten though, maybe more so because of his young age.

As long as he has plenty of his own toys and you encourage him to play with them and give him lots of attention and love, he'll soon learn what's right and wrong and grow up. Once he has grown up and become "boring" you'll soon miss his "naughty" behaviour lol.


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## Al_Howard

Hi
some really good advice here. I have two kittens now about 11 weeks old. my legs too are totally scratched up where they keep climbing up them to get at whatever they want lol 

I have made them each a ball from tin foil. they love em. also a feather on a shoe lace. they love this as my old cat tigger did when I was a kid. he he 

thanks again 

Al


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## Missy&Lenny

Hi 

Just wanted to re-assure you I had 2 kittens I was told were 8 weeks old however from the way they acted and their size and by another cat lover we think they were only around 6 weeks old too. 

they have not learnt how to retract their claws and will fight for food as they are used to competing amongst their brothers and sisters for food.. it took mine about 3 weeks to realise they will be fed equally and no longer try to eat what i am eating! the claws proably took the same time! 

I wonder if anyone else has any other tips..mine are half siamese so have some traits as in talking to each other and constantly needing attention.. When we go to bed they play fight with each other on the bed anything they can find to play with keeping us awake.. if we close the bedroom door they scratch at the door and cry which I hate doing but need sleep! they have their own bed but only sleep on it in one place which is the front room if i am in there with them!


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## Themis

He's still a tiny baby really at 6 weeks old. That's very young to be away from his mum and littermates. He probably want's to be on your lap all the time for comfort.

I got my 2 kittens when they were 11 weeks old and they are now almost 14 weeks old, which is quite a bit older than your kitten and they still want to play all day. That's just what kittens do. They are still learning and exploring their environment. I do think that having 2 kittens has made my experience a lot easier and more pleasurable though since they do all of their playing together and don't need me to entertain them as much. Is it at all possible that you could get another kitten to keep him company?


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## westwales22

Ive recently got a kitten and she is now 9weeks old. She behaves exactly the same and its because she is still young. I use teh word "no" with her in a different voice tone and she has started to take note that what she is doing is wrong. 6weeks is too young to be away from the litter they arent meant to be taken from their mum till they are 8weeks and fully weened. 

My kitten cried the first nite because she was on her own but because we have guinea pigs in the same room as her in a cage she has not cried since as she knows she is not on her own in the room. 

It just takes time with training. She claws and chews our fingers but we have taken it as just her way of playing and gettin attention from us as we are at work during the day.


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## dharma66

westwales22 said:


> 6 weeks is too young to be away from the litter they arent meant to be taken from their mum till they are 8 weeks and fully weened.


6 weeks is far, far too young. This is like taking a four year old human away from mum.
8 weeks is too young. This like taking a ten year old human away from mum.
10 weeks is ok. This is like taking a 15 year old away from mum.
12+ weeks is best. This is like taking an 18 year old away from mum.


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## littlebec

Hi, i have had my kitten since he was 7 weeks old and all the things you have mentioned i have experienced!!i am glad it is not just me!! i have never had cats before so had no idea what i had in store!! i had and still have some scratches all over my arms, legs and back!! 

my kitten is 5 months old now and although he is still a handfull at times he has calmed down a bit and is now quite happy to go and play by himself, he does still like to be everywhere i am but he's still young. i have found that crisp packets made into a ball and cotton buds are his favourite toys!! definatley get a scratching post or a scratching box as my kitten uses them a lot.

i may start using a water spray though as he has gone back to climbing the curtains and sitting on top of the curtain pole!!

becky


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## Rebeccaxxx

hello. my mum has always sworn by giving kittens a balloon to play with, she reckons they learn to play with their claws in so as not to burst the balloon!

I got my kitten when she was around 10 weeks old, and I just used to give a sad squeal if she scratched me or jumped on my legs and that worked quite well!


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## gloworm*mushroom

This thread is ancient lol the cats must be like 3 yr old by now 

And PLEASE do not use water sprays. They are very cruel and its not very fair to spray your kittens because they were taken away from their mother too young. It wasnt their fault...


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## dudasd

A few things that have worked with my kitten in past 3,5 weeks (we adopted it when it was approximately 10 weeks old, and it had no manners when it came):

- Food: mostly we are eating when she's eating too, or just after she has eaten, so she's not in temptation. The lucky circumstance is that we often eat fruits or salads as snacks. Of course, she comes and begs, but you should see her face when I give her a cube of a cucumber or a slice of a peach.  So she began giving up (probably she's shocked by humans eating that junk), and even when she asks to be fed while we are eating, she is not trying to reach the table and stick her nose into our plates, but waits by the fridge instead.

- Scratching: I was doing something similar to what Rebeca said. A threating "no" is usually enough to make her stop in whatever she's doing, but not when she would try to scratch or bite me while playing. So I tried with saying "Ouch" - in my language it sounds very similar to "meow". She reacted, and now she almost always lets me go when I say that word. Generally she learned to be careful and it seems she's really trying not to hurt me. (For some reason, she's not playing fight with other family members, but again, she's mostly by my side all the time.)

- Asking for attention when I am working - my job requires a lot of typing. So I arrange some interesting items around my keyboard, and then she stands in my lap and plays with those shiny thingies, probably believing we are playing together, just with different toys. When she tries to climb on my desk with her hind paws, I just say "no" and slap the desk gently a couple of times with my forefinger. Though I can't guarantee she's not typing here while I sleep. 

Of course, this doesn't work with all kittens - but may help.


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## KittyOwner

I'm also having problems with my kitten. She was lovely at first and as she's getting more confident she is becoming a psycho kitty. Biting, scratching and hissing more often than not. We play with her constantly and that's fine until she decides you are her pray and pounces. How can we stop the constant biting, scratching and hissing? Even does this when you try to pick her up now.


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## moggie14

Hi and welcome 
This thread is ancient - I'd suggest starting a new one and I'm sure you will get some help and advice.
One thing I want to mention is that biting and scratching is one thing, hissing is another


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## Lisa Clare

Harley said:


> Thanks again for your suggestions, yeah I have laminate flooring, my last cat used to love tin foil so i'll give it a go
> 
> The pic's up now if you want to have a look


Hi, I'm having similar issues and working from home is mare with computer and wires! Bottle tops and scrunched up paper has been a good way to distract while I'm working . I might try the tin foil on my work desk as a deterrent. Hope all goes well x


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## SusieRainbow

Lisa Clare said:


> Hi, I'm having similar issues and working from home is mare with computer and wires! Bottle tops and scrunched up paper has been a good way to distract while I'm working . I might try the tin foil on my work desk as a deterrent. Hope all goes well x


This is a very old thread, inactive for 7 years.
Just check the date at the end of the post before replying


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