My cat likes to bite and it's leaving me with marks on my hand. I try and use the water bottle and he still remains defiant. You can tell he just wants to play and I've done everything in the book to get him to bite other things. Like placing a toy on his stomach so he knows that's the object to bite. I raise my voice cause a book said higher pitch communicates inappropriate play.
I even went to the extreme of inserting my knuckle in his mouth (when he bit it) so that he gagged because I was told it was a good negative reinforcement and that's how cats learn. He knows not to bite the finger but will instead go after another body part.
What do I do?
Answers:
Does he 1- IMMEDIATELY start to bite when he plays?
Or does he 2- start to bite after he has been playing for a while?? If 2 is the answer then he, like some cats, is getting overstimulated (it's a "cat thing") and he WILL then start to bite. My Big Bad Baby Twinkle gets overstimulated after she's been playing with me for a while and she tries to bite-- when she does that, I STOP, I say absolutely NOTHING, but I WALK AWAY from her, calmly and I go do something else - END of playtime.
How old is he? IMHO, anything below 2 yrs is still a "kitten", as far as playing is concerned.
Buy one of those "wand" toys and stand above him and let him play with the wand toy. Use positive vocal reinforcement (high pitched "Good boy!!", a few times) when he plays with the TOY.
That might settle him down-- AT LEAST it will reduce many instances of biting, because you will know when to take yourself away from the situation.
Squirting water does not have any effect on him (it doesn;t mkae him defiant as much as it just is being over-ruled by his overstimulation), so I think you can shelve that idea, as well as the idea of gagging him.
What you need to do is Re-direct his "aggression" (which is basically his overstimulation) into proper channels, by playing with him at a distance, with a wand toy.
Putting a toy on his stomach might mean absolutely nothing to him once he gets overstimulated.
Enjoy your kitty -- let your friends know that he will start to bite if they start to play with him, and you will be giving your cat his space, and your friends fair warning.
tell him "He's being bad and go lay his *** down before he get hurt."lol
Is caticide a legitimate answer?
But seriously, I think the knuckle technique is right, but you have to be patient.
Actually, to a cat, a higher-pitched voice communicates that you want to interact. A lower-pitched voice communicates displeasure or aggression. Talk to your cat in both voices and see which one gets him to perk his ears up and which one makes him lay his ears back.
When he bites, stop playing (freeze like a statue if you have to), and tell him "No" in a low-pitched voice. Then don't start playing again until he lets go. That communicates to him that biting is against the rules, and he doesn't get to play if he breaks them.
Another thing is to make sure he's playing with objects (toys) instead of your hands and feet so he's not tempted to bite you. Hope that helps!
I was told just the other day that there is an old wives tale that you should put about 4 or 5 pennies in an empty coke can and tape up the hole. When any pet does anything wrong you shake the can. They say that the first couple of times you may have to throw the can at the animal but after that the sound of the can will scare them and they will stop what they are doing. I have not gotten to try this yet but I was about to. So if you find out if it works before I do please let me know. Hope it helps.
we have the issue with our 3 year old. our 5 year old still does it from time to time, but i was always raised with outdoor cats, and you roughed them up and they would bite and kick and all that stuff. i continued that with our two cats that we brought indoors... i didn't want them to forget about being outside or loose some of their playfull skills. our youngest loves to pounce and bite...he bites ankles and arms... he hasn't been too rough on me because i'm use to it, but for my husband, he can't stand the bitting... water does not do anything for our youngest cat. we've found that blowing in the cats face when he does something wrong can help... but you might also want to try putting something on your hand that they don't like (there's things they don't like and i can't think of them now) and put it on your hand, that way, they will know that when they bite you, it's a bad taste and that should stop them...
Aattura has given you some excellent advice and suggestions.
Cats being independent natured creatures actually respond best to positive reinforcement. Any kind of physical punishment or negative reinforcement just makes them resentful and can make them afraid of their owner.
Like Aattura, I believe that as your cat is still so young he is simply getting a little over excited when he plays and doesn't realise how much his biting hurts. It's best if you play with him using toys attached to a wand stick or a long piece of string,then he can be as rough as he likes with those without you getting hurt. If you continue to play with him using your hands, he probably thinks you enjoy the game as much as he does. Next time he bites or scratches you, gently scruff his neck and say "no" in a firm voice. If he persists, then walk away and refuse to continue playing until he has calmed down. He will quickly learn that biting is unacceptable behaviour.
Is he an indoor only cat? At his age he has a lot of energy that needs to be burnt off. I don't know if adopting a second cat is a viable option for you, but it could be a solution. Your cat would have a playmate to help burn off his energy and he'd learn first hand from another cat just how much biting can hurt. My female cat used to be very feisty until I adopted another cat for her to play with. I've posted a link on how to introduce a new cat to an existing one in case you decide to try this option.
http://www.tulsa-animalshelter.org/tips/...
If taking on another cat is not an option for you, here's another link giving advice and suggestions on how to keep an indoor cat actively amused and happy.
http://www.celiahaddon.co.uk/pet%20probl...
Good luck.
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