# My aggressive kitten! Help!



## Jadeybaby0167 (May 2, 2012)

Hi guys, basicly i have a 9 month old birman kitten that we have had since he was 13 weeks old, we live in an apartment so he is indoor. Also for his own safety and he would probably get stolen, he has access to outdoors but we take him with a harness on, now the problem is his turned into an aggressive monster and im at a lose end, he is very spoilt he has loads of toys etc i take him to get his nails cut at the vets, his been castrated, but its mainly me who he attacks he goes for my hands, feet, legs etc, and it really hurts! I sprey him with a water bottle and he stops until the next time! I dont know wot to do and why he does this please share your advice thanx


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## RabbitMonster (Mar 20, 2012)

Does he do it unprovoked or is it during play time? What's his body language like when he attacks you? Are the whiskers and ears forward or pulled back? What is his tail doing?

It's possible that as he's still very young, he's actually just playing.


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## Jadeybaby0167 (May 2, 2012)

It is unprovoked i could be sitting on the sofa or lying in bed and he will stare at me his eyes dilate his ears upright and he will start to creep towards me then pounce on me or sometimes if i pick him up he will try to bite my hands im covered in scratches what do i do?


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## AlexTurley (Oct 30, 2011)

hey 

i have a bengal who did this - it seemed to be a phase tho
he will creep towards your feet and pounce with a bum wiggle ?

heffin was never doing it to be mean or anything but from what realised with him it was him initiating play time. is he a only cat?
he may be trying to initiate play with you if he is. 

the only things that stopped heffin tho is - he has about four half hour play times with me and his toys never with my arms or legs with wands. and then the rest of the time he sleeps and plays by himself. 

feliway has helped with heffin and also sometimes he will still pounce but as he is getting bigger and bigger it hurts. so i have his cat carry case to hand and he goes in there for 5 minutes. he can still see me but i do not talk to him and then after 5 min he comes out and apologises. it has been the only way to make him realise that it is "naughty" to try and draw blood hehe 

but i do make sure i see if he wants to play with a wand toy as much as possible.


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## Jadeybaby0167 (May 2, 2012)

Lol he is the only cat, i will try with the carrier sounds a good idea, he hunts me like he would a mouse with the startling stares and the crawling i have to run for the water bottle to distract his attention lol


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

His behaviour sounds very much to me like he is playing, but a type of play that kittens use instinctively when they are learning how to catch their prey.

Basically he sounds as tho he needs quite a lot of activity and stimulation to keep him amused and not bored. make a mental note of when he seems to be most active (often morning and early evening with mine) and then be prepared to give an hour at a time to playing with him. If he has been left alone all day, shut indoors he is bound to be bored, and bored often = mischievous, in a cat so young. 

If he was going outside he would be having great fun stalking birds, lying in wait for mice, chasing bees and butterflies etc. As he can't do any of that because he is kept indoors, his natural behaviour has been distorted and he is acting out his 'preying/stalking' type behaviour on you.

I would very much recommend you do NOT spray him with water when he pounces on you, as it is unfair to expect him to repress normal behaviour. Instead, as a previous poster has suggested, respond by playing with him using 'arm's length' toys such as wands, lengths of string etc. 

Also try and get him running around e.g. chasing little balls, which you throw for him. If you have stairs, get him chasing balls up and down the stairs. 
That way he will work off some of his pent-up energy.

He will all too soon calm down as he reaches adulthood anyway.


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## AlexTurley (Oct 30, 2011)

Jadeybaby0167 said:


> Lol he is the only cat, i will try with the carrier sounds a good idea, he hunts me like he would a mouse with the startling stares and the crawling i have to run for the water bottle to distract his attention lol


wen u do this try instead of going for the water find a toy that is a wand thats a fav such as heffin is a long thread with feathers on the end. 
wave this infront of him and he should play with that and stop. 
the cat carrier is only if he is going really loopy and needs to calm down. heffin gets a bit overexcited and times and its that or hes hurt himself a few times running into stuff .

it is playing tho - i thort mayyb heffin does this as he has no cat to play with as my best mates cats will play exaclty how heffin trys to with me - apart from im human and i bleed


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## AlexTurley (Oct 30, 2011)

"Also try and get him running around e.g. chasing little balls, which you throw for him. If you have stairs, get him chasing balls up and down the stairs. 
That way he will work off some of his pent-up energy. " this was a quote 


we tried this with heffin but he ends up rolling wen he goes to catch them and runs with such force he was going to end up hurting himself hurtling down or up the stairs and rolling over half way 

my silly boy


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## Jadeybaby0167 (May 2, 2012)

I do play with him every evening for atleast an hour with wands and toys but when he fed up of that he goes to sleep but he still attacks mainly me and not so much my partner i just think he dosent like me i need something to stop him biteing, he is so cute i could never give him up as i love him, but i want him to show me affection in return? Any tips?


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## buffie (May 31, 2010)

Jadeybaby0167 said:


> I do play with him every evening for atleast an hour with wands and toys but when he fed up of that he goes to sleep but he still attacks mainly me and not so much my partner i just think he dosent like me i need something to stop him biteing, he is so cute i could never give him up as i love him, but i want him to show me affection in return? Any tips?


I can sympathise with you.I had the same problem with my Ragdoll from 3 months till probably 12+ months he was very aggressive,I ended up getting the help of a behaviour specialist,who said he had interactive/predatory play aggression which was in his "hardwiring" in other words in his "Genes"
I agree with ditching the water spray bottle,hard as at it may seem you have to reward good behaviour and totally ignore the bad,by stopping what you are doing when he "attacks"and walking away.Ignore him totally and if necessary leave the room and close the door.Come back in 5/10 minutes later and continue what you were doing,if he does it again ,repeat the process.It may take a while to sink in but he will realise if he misbehaves you leave him,which is not what he wants.Any reaction from you to his "attacks" by that I mean,making a noise,spraying with water any use of your hands in a negative way,even to the point of not reacting if he bites and holds on,will make him think you are "joining in" which will only make things worse.I cant believe the difference in my boy now,he is just turned 2 years and although still nips,as part of play,he is so much better.Good luck with him I'm fairly sure if you are consistant and show him lots of encouragment when he is good,you will win.


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

Jadeybaby0167 said:


> I do play with him every evening for atleast an hour with wands and toys but when he fed up of that he goes to sleep but he still attacks mainly me and not so much my partner i just think he dosent like me i need something to stop him biteing, he is so cute i could never give him up as i love him, but i want him to show me affection in return? Any tips?


Please don't think he doesn't like you Basically he is regarding you as his playmate, and that's why he is a bit rough sometimes. He was probably the same with his litter mates. As Alex said, his behaviour is probably genetically determined - he would probably be a fearsome hunter if he was allowed outdoors, so it is just as well for the local bird and rodent population that he isn't

It is really up to you to set the boundaries of what is acceptable to you when he plays with you. If he is too rough with you walk away from him, ignore him, put him in another room such as the kitchen, and shut the door.

I wouldn't do anything that actually punishes him as such, as he won't understand that at all. But being put in a different room with the door shut will quieten him down.

Time, and lots of patience are of the essence here  He will learn what is acceptable, and will calm down, and I feel sure will begin to show you affection. Reward any affection with lots of praise and cat treats


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## Jadeybaby0167 (May 2, 2012)

Lol i was thinking of hireing a behaviour specialist, how much roughly dose one cost? Raggdolls are so cute, very simaler to birman, thanx for your advice


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## Jadeybaby0167 (May 2, 2012)

The only thing is with putting him in another room with the doors closed, is that he will scratch them until i let him in, nightmare i feel like ive tryed everything with him and he dosent listen, he is worse at night trying to get into hallway cupboard and eat all his treats, sometimes i find it funny as he such a little mOnster and cant behave lol


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## rose (Apr 29, 2009)

My birman kitten who is 5 months old is the cutest most loving purr monster (who is indoor with garden access 24/7) really really hurts when he bites and scratches!! I know he is only playing as he is usually purring at the same time! My arms and hands are scratched to ribbons! My daughter was asked by a work colleague is she self harmed!:eek6: I never thought he was nasty just over zealous! Im sure yours will calm down. Do you have any pics?


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## Jadeybaby0167 (May 2, 2012)

Aww bless my hands are scarred from him  how do i attach a photoe? I only join today, what colour point is yours? Mine is chocolate point he look so innocent with his beautiful blue eyes, but his not lol


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## buffie (May 31, 2010)

Jadeybaby0167 said:


> Lol i was thinking of hireing a behaviour specialist, how much roughly dose one cost? Raggdolls are so cute, very simaler to birman, thanx for your advice


To many it may sound a bit OTT to bring in the help of a behaviourist ,but to be honest,it can do more harm if the wrong tactics are used in tackling behaviour issues.I had been given so many different,conflicting advice that I was begining to make my boy worse.
After an hour of the behaviourist just sitting in my livingroom watching his reactions she was able to tailor a specific plan to change his behaviour,it took a while but it worked.
If you do decide to go down this route make sure you use a properly qualified behaviourist,your vet should be able to recommend one.I was fortunate that I had one living fairly locally and it cost £80 for a one to one home consultation.It was well worth it.


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## rose (Apr 29, 2009)

Mine is a red point boy. He is also very greedy and he has got quite fat!!
To add a photo go to the bottom of your post, scroll down to attach files then manage files then browse through your pics on the computer and then upload.
Here is my boy:thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## Puindoors (May 19, 2011)

Getting him a feline friend might help with the problem, they'd both teach each other what is acceptable and whats not.

Small kittens are so cute its tough not to play with them with your hands, but starting as early as you can putting the kitten down and walking away when it gets too vigorous does work. Hands are for stroking, not for playing!

mind you I do have a slight advantage, I usually do have quite a few young cats around so they do tend to take out their energy on each other, and it is quite easy to re-direct attention to another playful youngster rather than my digits!

PS Glad he's doing well Rose!


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## spacedementia (Nov 18, 2011)

Charlie does the same  I'm scarred!! But being on zylkene has massively reduced his aggression thank goodness. I always have an 'emergency toy' in a pocket but honest to goodness, if he's 'in the zone' and wants to draw blood from my ankles / hands - NOTHING will stop him :eek6: it's terrifying!!!


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## ellsbells0123 (Oct 4, 2011)

Amber is the same, she is 11 months old now and randomly attacks. For no reason this evening she jumped at my arm and bite me breaking the skin for no reason.


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## jo-pop (May 27, 2011)

My kitten is obsessed with balls of scrunched up tin foil. Plays for well over half an hour chasing them and bringing them back. Great exercise for him and I just get to relax. Maybe yours would enjoy those too


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