We have an 9 week old kitten that we brought home last Sunday. She is the usual crazy, rambunctious kitten. I know she's a kitten and they mouth but, at times, she bites hard that I know is not mouthing. For example, after I clean the gunk from the corners of her eyes she takes a swipe- usually at my face- and then bites me. Our other cat never went through this. And this kitten- she's a very sweet kitten and she loves to hang with us (she scream meows when I give my kid a bath and she's left outside the bathroom door alone) and sleeps with my daughter at the foot of her bed. Some mentioned the spray bottle thing but I don't think that would work here. She tries to bite at times like when she's laying on my laptop and I try to pick her up to get to my keyboard so it's not like I can spray her while she's laying on top of my computer. What to do?!
Put on a glove, hold her down, and let her bite, then say "NO BITING". Hold her there firmly until she stops. Worked with my cat when he was a kitten for both biting and clawing. Cats are trainable despite what people may tell you!
What worked with our cat (who was a biter too) was to give her ear a little tug when she'd bite. She eventually associated her ear being tugged with the biting and stopped. Just be sure your kids don't see or make sure you explain why YOU'RE tugging her ears (if you chose to try this).
We would train our kittens with thump/tap on the head with one finger and a snap of our fingers, then after a few thumps, you only have to snap, they have it associated with the thump now, and stop the undesired behavior. You don't have to thump them hard, just right between the ears on top of their head. It bothers them enough they don't want you to do it. About as hard as you would hit a computer key. Doesn't hurt them, just irritates the heck out of them.
Hi A.,
I've found over the years that the best course of action is to act like the mommy cat. When kittens act up and it irritates mom, she puts a paw on their forehead and holds it there, letting them know how annoyed she is :) This works really well - simply place the two fingers there and watch the kitten's ears flatten and cower down. Follow it up with a 'bad kitty!' or a 'No!' and very shortly that adorable kitty will mellow out. Best of luck!
Get her toys.... scratching post etc.
Clip her nails. (I do NOT mean de-claw. Just clip the nails).
Tell her in a firm loud voice, while looking at her "NO!" (just like with a Toddler), and clasp her claws together and say NO.
She probably does not liker her eyes being cleaned... so she instinctively swipes you away. This is animal instinct.
Do you have to wipe her eye gunk away? To a certain extent, a cat will clean themselves.
If her eye gunk problem is not normal...or an infection... then take her to the Vet... to look at it.
Cats... should not have excessive eye gunk... in healthy eyes.
Some pets are also just more temperamental. My neighbor's cat is like that... he will swipe anyone if they are doing anything HE does not like. He is a bossy cat. But some cats are just more hang-loose and mellow.
all the best,
Susan
yelp or meow when she bites, works like it would with littermates and lets her know it hurts
we used the Dust off electronic cleaner to get our cat to behave. it just blasts out air really fast but still don't blast it in the face. we just had to spray it near the cat and now if the cat is doing something it shouldn't i just have to go get the can and set it down in the room! i think it was the noise that got his attention. we used it for multiple purposes, keeping the cat from running out the door when the dogs go out, staying off the table, stop eating my plants! never used it for biting but it may work. the thing that worked with my cat for that was, i would either get up and walk away or i would pick him up and set him down and ignore him. he used to scratch me too hard when we would play and now every once in awhile he will still get me but i still have scars from the earlier incidents. try that and good luck.
I just wanted to mention that it will be very important NOT to get her declawed! If you think she bites a lot now, just wait if she doesn't have claws! I would consider giving her time-outs away from the family (locked in the bathroom for 5 mins?) every time she bites so she starts to learn a consequence with her biting.
Good luck!
T.
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www.ReadandGrow.com
My cat is a biter too! She'll play nice for awhile then she gets riled and has drawn blood on us couple to times. I don't think you can stop it if they are prone... but since it's a kitten you might be able to sway her. You have to instantly reprimand her for doing it tho.... no time for running and getting the spray bottle for that.
Several years ago I brought home an 8 week old kitten and he would bite like that. I used the thump on the nose and an authoritative sounding no. It seemed to work, it just takes time, the kitten is adjusting to a new environment. Be patient and good luck.
