tigra 0 #26 June 28, 2005 OK- a serious answer. IGNORE him. When he does it, tell him NO firmly and loudly, then pick him up and take him out of the room and close the door and don't pay attention to him for at least 30 minutes to an hour. Keep doing it. He'll get the message. Unfortunately, the fact that you fund it "cute" the first few times and probably gave in and played with him for a while reinforced the behaviour. He needs to learn he won't get what he wants when he acts like that. And I assume by biting you aren't talk about breaking skin or drawing blood- more like a nibble? BTW- is he declawed? Seems to me that cats that have been declawed have a tendency to become biters. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skychick312 0 #27 June 28, 2005 if the cat will not leave you alone or bites you just blow in their face.. that works for my cats and i have 3 of them...give the cat some sweet grass to chew on and that will keep them busy for a while... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Be the change you wish to see in the world! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tigra 0 #28 June 28, 2005 Chances are, your water IS better. My cats do that too sometimes. You could always use one of those squeeze bottles instead of a glass. That way there won't be any unpleasant surprises when they knock it over at 3:00am! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
masterrig 1 #29 June 28, 2005 Quoteif the cat will not leave you alone or bites you just blow in their face.. i ... __________________________ I tried that with a cat, one time... he tried to claw my facee-off! Chuck Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChasingBlueSky 0 #30 June 28, 2005 QuoteOK- a serious answer. IGNORE him. When he does it, tell him NO firmly and loudly, then pick him up and take him out of the room and close the door and don't pay attention to him for at least 30 minutes to an hour. Keep doing it. He'll get the message. Unfortunately, the fact that you fund it "cute" the first few times and probably gave in and played with him for a while reinforced the behaviour. He needs to learn he won't get what he wants when he acts like that. And I assume by biting you aren't talk about breaking skin or drawing blood- more like a nibble? BTW- is he declawed? Seems to me that cats that have been declawed have a tendency to become biters. Bites, has claws and breaks skin....and he is fixed. Nothing has changed with food patterns or anything else. He has always been a well behaved cat - the other cat usually keeps him in line. However she is getting lazier so he is finding other ways to expend his energy....like attacking me or my leather chair._________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tigra 0 #31 June 28, 2005 Breaking skin is NOT cool. Sounds like he is bored and does not know his own strength. I'd suggest more toys, a scratching post and setting aside some play time for him every day to burn off that excess energy. Plus, odd as it sounds, the "time outs" work. He's doing it for attention, so if instead he gets the opposite reaction, he'll figure it out. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kbordson 8 #32 June 28, 2005 What I did when my male cat went through that pattern when he was young (many many years ago), is when he nipped I would quickly grab his nose (?muzzle?), hold it firmly and say NO. Staring him down. He would try to back up and I would hold it for just a touch longer making him understand that I was in charge.... I think it worked but maybe I'm biased cuz I'm just that kinda of a girl... Karen Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChasingBlueSky 0 #33 June 28, 2005 QuoteWhat I did when my male cat went through that pattern when he was young (many many years ago), is when he nipped I would quickly grab his nose (?muzzle?), hold it firmly and say NO. Staring him down. He would try to back up and I would hold it for just a touch longer making him understand that I was in charge.... I think it worked but maybe I'm biased cuz I'm just that kinda of a girl... Karen Thought about doing that - I know it works on dogs, but didn't know if it was a good idea with a stubborn willed cat. I will try a combination of that and what Tigra said._________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nightingale 0 #34 June 28, 2005 My vet recommended a sharp tap on the nose. Worked with one of my cats. The other one just doesn't learn no matter what. Indy is a cat of very little brain. He's a very sweet cat, just not all that bright. A squirt gun loaded with water and a teaspoon of vinegar works temporarily, but he forgets really fast. I think he just doesn't have either the memory or thinking skills to come up with "bite=tap on nose". Of course, I'm not sure how I expect him to make that connection, since, after repeated incidents, he still hasn't figured out that "running into closed window = sore head" or "drinking out of water glass = face stuck in glass." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
