[puddy]

my 4.5 month old kitten has been biting me like crazy. it's play biting and he has been doing it less and less but I am wondering if this will eventually go away. I have been trying to distract him with his toys but that doesn't always work. please help!

 

[myblueworld]

Well, I've found with kittens is that when they bite you, if you say Ow! or No! loud and firm enough to startle them and stop playing with them for awhile, they start to get the point. Then when they don't bite, tell them that they're a good cat. Also, you can gently hold their mouth shut after or as they try to bite you, and say no! If you do it that way, keep playing with them and do that everytime, and they'll get the point, and you'll be surprised at how fast they learn! Remember to always positively reinforce their behavior and don't yell or hit them, and spraying them with water isn't all that great either (unless its the only thing that works, and is used in moderation). I'm not saying you would do this, that's just general advice. I'm always preaching about positive reinforcement, and not using negative tones!

If the cat also scratches while they play, you can grab on to their paw and squeeze just a little and say no. My cat learned so fast that way. Every time they do scratch, just squeeze... its so fun to be able to play with a cat, and have them bat at your hand with no claws, and you don't have to be afraid! I love it.

Hope that helps!

 

[ionestar]

I have the same problem with my kitten. He always wants to bite my hands. my NO!! doesn't work because after few minutes he comes back and tries to bite me again. I try to distract him with toys but he only looks at my hands.

 

[Gabreilla Moushigo]

Are your cats declawed Puddy? I just read some of your posts on declawing so I wasn't sure if your cats were or not. I might explain if they are tenacious biters.

If they are or aren't - try blowing air into their faces as they bite you - sometimes you have to do it more than once to make them let go. That way you don't have to spank or grab a bottle of water.

 

[Dusty&Lou]

4.5 month old

Is he teething??

 

[Question]

At that age??? My kitten is 4 months old, and she does that to me all the time. If you just dont react, they get bored quickly and will leave you alone.

 

[AngelZoo]

He is probably teething right now, so look into that and give him some good teething toys, he will apprechiate it!

The best way for tenaticous biters is to just NOT let them bite you in the first place.
If your petting him and he suddenly turns around for a play bite. Say "No!" in a firm clear voice. Let your hand go loose, and pull away from him, then just ignore him for about 5 mintues or so.

I'm going through this right now myself. The kitten just turned 5 months old, and had a hard time with teething, poor baby. So I personally let him suck/and genetly chew on my finger tips a little. This really seemed to satisfy him, lol.

 

[ChatCat]

My cat Humphrey play bites too, never hard, but loves it. No matter how many time we say no, and tap him on the head, it just seems to encourage him.

Naughty monkey!

 

[Kellz625]

I know someone at the store I worked at used to stick their finger in the cat's mouth and hold it there. The cat didn't like it very much and stopped biting pretty quickly. I tried this on Ska when he was biting and he stopped too! Within days! Good luck, it's not fun playing with a bitey kitty.

 

[puddy]

Are your cats declawed Puddy? I just read some of your posts on declawing so I wasn't sure if your cats were or not. I might explain if they are tenacious biters.

If they are or aren't - try blowing air into their faces as they bite you - sometimes you have to do it more than once to make them let go. That way you don't have to spank or grab a bottle of water.

i refuse to declaw my cat. too invasive of an operation and there really isn't any need for it. He is fine with his claws and I keep them nice and trimmed. I would be hesitant to declaw even moreso because of the biting.

 

[Wild_kitten]

i don't think she meant to declaw your cats, i think she just meant that if they are declawed it can cause bad behaviour, it's good to know that you wouldn't declaw your cats! im proud of being in England where it's illegal, i can;t understand people who would do that to a cat

 

[adavis333]

Surfboard only bites me. He only does this when I'm not petting him the EXACT way he likes it. He likes you to take your whole hand and rub it over his face from the bottom back to his ears. If I stop too soon or am not doing it properly he'll turn around and grab my finger. It's not even like a bite. It almost like he's trying to pull my hand back over his face. But it still hurts like a bite! 8O He doesn't do it often enough to correct the behavior. My "NO" or "OUCH" causes him to release my finger but then a month later he has forgotten this. I think I've learned to live with this behavior as part of his personality.

 

[KittyEnvy]

I read this a few days ago and was thinking, "hee hee, I got a nice kitty." Then the next day he bit me. :roll: I'm just saying "No!" and sometimes I tap him on his head with one finger. He only does it when he's kinda hyper and running around. Usually if I have one of his toys around he's fine. Hope this doesn't become habit! We have enough of a problem with the dog! (And this dog doesn't respond to anything we've tried yet, AGH)