Advice about new adopted kitty, please. I took her home last

[yy4me]

week from a local no-kill shelter. Spayed, approx 1 year old female.
Except for a couple of times I caught her scratching the couch,her behavior has been generally very good. She eats like a horse, uses her box and in general, does not seem to have other bad habits...except...

She wants to be on my lap all the time, walks around the house crying until I sit or flop on the couch so she can be on my lap or tummy. For the last three days, as I have been patting her, she has tried to bite me. It just happened again and this time I noticed her ears were back, as though she was angry. Is this a late kitten stage or signs of something I have to nip in the bud somehow. I know cat scratches can be nasty, bites worse.

I hope someone can fill me in on this behavior, my grandchildren will be visiting in a few weeks and they are excited to meet the new kitty. Now I am a bit concerned.

Thanks

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Some info here:

http://www.startribune.com/pet_central/11269221.html?elr=KArks8Da_3D:ayE7UeDa0D:ayE7Ueyc+D3aUUr

Apparently for some cats, petting can turn into a sort of sensory overload. This article has some advice for how to handle cats who suddenly seem angry. Good luck with your bitey kitty -- it sounds like something that can be cured.

[yy4me]

2. Thanks, I just read the article, I think my new cat needs a

shrink. Actually, maybe the biting is telling me enough patting. She's the one who demanded it in the first place. I guess I'll just stop at some point before she tries to bite me. I find it funny that I am playing mind games with a cat. The last few times she bit me, I just said "no" in a loud voice. She got off my lap and went to her bed. I have had 2 cats prior to this one, each led long and healthy lives and neither ever tried to bite any of the family. It is distressing and I feel badly even yelling "no".

Guilt is getting to me as I wonder if I should have adopted this little kitty. She looks much like your avatar, My avatar is of my last kitty, we were lucky enough to have for 14 years.

[japple]

3. I have a similar situation with my youngest kitty, Mildred.

She didn't have much human contact in her early kittenhood and, when she came to live with me at 3 or 4 months, didn't know how to use her claws and teeth around humans. She has become more aware that she can't use her claws on me or she will have to get down from my lap. She doesn't bite, but she still loves to softly chew on my fingers.

Your kitty sounds like she is becoming overly stimulated and doesn't know how to handle it. Maybe you should just pet her for short periods and then put her down, or just let her stay on your lap without petting her. I don't think it's a good idea to yell at her because she doesn't know why you're yelling. Does she like to play with toys? Maybe you could "direct" her attention to bite on her toys instead of you when you sense that she's getting excited.

[yy4me]

4. This ball of fur is now tummy up on the couch. She is really the

cutest thing, just the biting thing gives me cause for concern. I bought her the catnip scratch tray and a bunch of kitty toys. Except for a furry stuffed mouse, she pretty much ignores the rest. She also has a scratching post built for her by a friend. I have yet to see her use it.

After reading the article on the link provided, I gave thought to my yelling "no". I think you are right, that it will not do any good and will probably scare her. That idea came to me because on occasion, I care for my daughters dog who will respond to that command when doing something she should not be doing. It will be interesting when we introduce them.

I am going to allow her on my lap and let her bump heads and rub against me as she has been doing but not pat her. It takes a little of the fun out of getting a new kitty but I don't want to be mean to her by scolding.

[Lorien]

6. Thanks for that! I have the same problem with my newly adopted

blue domestic short hair. He wants to be on my lap at nearly all times, but if I pet him too much of move when he doesn't want me to move he growls and bites (lightly). I just say "no" firmly then pick him up by the scruff and put him down several feet away from me when he does this, and it seems to be curbing the behavior (He immediately want to "make nice" when I put him on the floor). "Scruffing" is something that mother and dominant cats do to kittens and subordinate cats; if she isn't heavy you can pick her up by the scruff, otherwise pick her up normally but hold on to the scruff of her neck while doing so. I learned this as about the only way to correct aggressive/ dominant behavior from a pet rescue that I volunteered for.

[badgerpup]

12. This is probably weird, but...

I've taught my guys the vocal cue 'Tumble-y down'...which means that 'I have other things to do besides being warm-blooded furniture' and they've got to get down off my lap.
Sometimes (about 30% of the time) they ignore this, and it requires the cat being physically removed and placed on the floor.

Either way, they then get scritches and pets and assured that 'No, I'm not mad at you...just I have to get up and do other stuff'.

Seems to work OK...

[CountAllVotes]

5. is she biting you hard or nipping at you?

my cat (see pictures under magic cat trick thread) was a nipper when I first got her - it was not an actual bite.

She was so happy to get adopted! These are "love bites" I call them.

I managed to break her of it the following way (and yes, it took time).

If the cap nipped me, I would push her face/head away from me and say, "NO BITING" and then push her away.

She gets the idea now and rarely does it.

Once in awhile, if she gets excited she will nip at you, but basically this problem is about 90% corrected.

Best of luck with her - I think she is simply excited to have a home and is expressing herself in a way that is not acceptable and she needs to know this.

I hope this helps!

[yy4me]

7. I'm glad to read that my problem is not uncommon. Hard to tell

if what she is doing is a bite or a hard nip. She puts pressure on my skin she clamps on my arm or hand. Much harder and I know she could break the skin if she happened to hit a soft spot like between my fingers.

Last night was the first time I let her upstairs at night and she seemed to stay at the foot of the bed as though she was aware that this was not a time to pester me attention. As soon as I got up it was down for breakfast and then the cry for lap time. I let her jump up and bump heads, then decided to open some windows(screened) and let her sit there and watch outside. She seems greatly interested in that. Besides, it is warmer outside than inside at the moment. Summer has slammed into us here in MA. I haven't watched the news this AM but I think yesterday they said it will be in the 90's. Certainly hot for this time of year.

I'm going to go read the Boston Globe now and see if she sits on the paper and reads with me.
All your help is appreciated, I love to read all kitty owners advice.

[CountAllVotes]

10. I'd keep her away from the kids

let her get used to things around there. Then allow the kids to have a look and a look only. The cat may hide when they come around.

All 3 of my cats hide when strangers come around the house. In fact, you'd never know I have 3 cats! :)

I hope the biting thing gets less. My cats has substituted a lick for her "love bites" now for the most part.

It is difficult to train cats, yes ... but it can be done as long as you remember who is in charge (the cat is in charge FYI). :D

[ginnyinWI]

8. one of my cats is very needy like that.

She wants to settle on top of me when I'm reading in bed. Then she inches closer and closer to my face, trying to climb right under my chin. I push her off to the side and she climbs right back on. The other two cats sleep in the living room by themselves.

It's just a matter of personality I guess. This one tends to be more fearful.

You need to draw the line and not always let her dictate when and where you cuddle so she can learn to be independent. That said, this might be a transitional time and she'll be more secure later on. Once she trusts the environment, she'll feel safe everywhere.

As for the nipping, I'd just let her sit on my lap and not pet her, at least until she mellows out and falls asleep. She may be jumping into your lap not to be petted at all, but just to feel like it's safe enough to sleep.


When we first got the kitty mentioned, she lived in the bedroom most of the time for the first four months or so. Now at almost 1 year with us she's totally at home everywhere.

[Why Syzygy]

9. If you are open to it ..

I have some background in homeopathy. One of my former cats was clingy like that. She crawled all over me, couldn't get close enough. I used 30C Pulsatilla pellets. You only need to put a few in her water dish. There really is a lot more to selecting a remedy than one symptom, but it worked for her. If it doesn't work, there is no harm done. The biting MAY be an extreme effort to be ever so much closer to you. There is a lot of information online about remedies, but it can be very confusing if you've not spent a lot of time researching in the field. Best wishes to you both.

[badgerpup]

11. Watch her tail when petting her...

Their tails can really tell you a lot. If it starts to 'flick' at the end, then you're moving into the yellow zone and it's time to stop petting and just let her sit.

Try blowing into her face- just a quick puff if she nips you. They don't like this, but it doesn't hurt them...and it does get the message across that biting is a no-no.

If you're stroking her belly and she all of a sudden goes into predator mode and tries to disembowel your hand...try not to jerk it away. This feeds into the 'hunter-predator' wiring. It's hard, but if you can, let it go limp. Say something like "no" or "gentle" or whatever you choose for the leggo my hand, you little monster! 'disengage' cue.
Use something that you can remember and be consistent with.
Then use your other, unmutilated hand to stroke down her spine. This breaks the 'predator' circuit and helps the kitty change mode. Then you can extract your hand without her grabbing for it- "Give that back, I wasn't done with it yet!"

After a while you'll be able to use just the vocal cue to get her to disengage...but a stroke/scritch down the spine to reinforce the lesson is almost always welcome. ;)

[Warpy]

13. I have a rescue who was the same when I brought her home

She's going to need a lot of reassurance right now because she hasn't been able to count on much in her life so far, so just get used to having a needy kitty for a while and time your own activities to her nap time. Remember, the little buggers sleep 14-18 hours a day so you should have plenty of time to do what you need to when she's sacked out.

The nips are a warning, again because she hasn't been able to trust anybody much in her short life. My cat does it, too. I've found the best thing is not pull away, just say "OW!" She gets terribly ashamed and the nipping has become very infrequent and is usually a warning when it happens that something's a little uncomfortable.

If she's biting hard enough to break the skin, you do need to stop her now. You can't hit a cat, not ever. Blowing in her face when she does it will get the point across. If it doesn't, you might need to return her to the shelter. Cat bites are very dangerous and antibiotics get expensive. Scratches aren't as serious and can be treated by over the counter antibiotic salve if they turn nasty. Every cat roomie gets scratched once in a while, just comes with the territory.

Catnip can also be a friend if she reacts well to it. Ten minutes of kitty mania is usually followed by a couple of hours of sleeping it off.

Oh, and do get her a scratching post and rub some catnip into it so she'll know it's hers. Get a squirt gun to warn her away from the furniture when she starts to scratch it.

Bad kitty habits can usually be corrected if you know where they're coming from and you either gently discourage it without breaking the cat's trust and/or provide an alternative for the behavior, like getting a scratching post.

[badgerpup]

14. kitty wounds...

Cat bites are very dangerous and antibiotics get expensive. Scratches aren't as serious and can be treated by over the counter antibiotic salve if they turn nasty. Every cat roomie gets scratched once in a while, just comes with the territory.
Fer sure!

I keep H₂O₂ (hydrogen peroxide) on hand for when I'm doing horrible things to my kitties (like nail clippings, ear cleanings, or bathing). Every one in a while, they'll nail me (by accident), and applying the peroxide immediately cleans out the wound and avoids the welting, itching, redness, swelling and possible infection you can get with cat scratches if your immune system is compromised. I think it also helps speed the healing. It doesn't sting, either, so no worries about that.

Been fortunate in that I haven't had any trouble with actual biting...
except for maybe when I'm trying to check out Riktor's latest war wound and he snakes his head around ('snake' is le mot juste- he's really *that* fast)...but even when he connects, he always pulls his punch, so to speak. He's never broken the skin; it's just his way of telling me "Knock it off, damn it...that HURTS!"

Wimsey still nips as an attention-getting tactic (again, without breaking the skin) if he feels he's being ignored or dissed.
His 'dial' only goes up to five volume-wise, but he's got some respectable fangs to back it up...:wow:

[Warpy]

15. Have you put an Elizabethan collar on him

when it's time to check a war wound? That can really cut down on nips.

I had a cat just like him, a rescued Himalayan named Clyde. That cat could whip his little flat face around so fast he'd blur and he was a strong little bugger.

I used to cut the collars out of light cardboard, tape them together. It was kinder than a muzzle and let me take care of the kitty without danger to myself.

[badgerpup]

16. No...and thanks for the idea!

:yourock::hug:

It can be rather...er...challenging to examine a kitty for injuries...:banghead:
especially when it's just you playing the parts of both 'Hold the cat down' and 'Let me see the injury'...
and the cat is expressing DO NOT WANT to the best (and it's a damn GOOD best, believe me!) of his ability.