My Newly Adopted Cat Is Biting *everything*, I'm At The End Of My Rope!

zootgirl

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Hi everyone, I'm new here and I desperately need some help.

My husband I adopted a cat from a shelter about two months ago. She'd been very recently spayed and all her shots were up to date. We were told she was a year a half old, transported by the shelter in MA from a kill shelter in TN where she had been surrendered. We took her to a vet for a wellness exam and distemper vaccine. Our vet said she was in great health, all adult teeth had come in, but he was dubious about her age, he said she was eight or nine months old, at best. Also, she had had her rabies shot here in MA, so she couldn't have been transported from TN as they wouldn't have allowed it if she hadn't had the rabies vaccine. We were okay with her being younger than we though and she was in good health so, what could go wrong?

For about two weeks she was a delight. She has a crazy hoarse hungry meow, she doesn't mind being petted, and slept at the end of our bed. THEN, the biting started. She doesn't bite us. But, she bites everything else in our small apartment. I discovered deep puncture holes in ALL my furniture. Armchair. Sofa. New faux leather desk chair. So, I started putting towels on chair arms and a moving blanket went over the desk chair. Over the past month and half she has put deep puncture holes all over a sports bra (ruined), backs of sneakers, leather bench, back of the sofa, basically anything that isn't something she should be biting on.

I took to the internet and forums like this. I've read dozens upon dozens of articles about this behavior. She has more chew toys than I can count, two corrugated cardboard scratchers (that she bites A LOT), two cat trees, a window perch, and a new cat condo. We've tried playing with her for half an hour at a time with some breaks. She loves it, but it hasn't deterred her. In fact, it seems to wind her up even more before go to bed. I have two different kinds of bitter spray, which seems to have helped a little. I thought maybe she was stressed and tried Rescue Remedy Pet, but that has zero effect on her. I'm at the point now where we have to cover our sofa with heavy plastic floor runner after I discovered holes all over them. It's absurd and I hate that it has come to this. This morning I found she had bitten hard into a towel that is currently covering the top/back of the sofa. I know we're lucky in that she stays away from cords or hard things, but week after week of destruction is wearing on me.

Other than this behavior she is a perfectly sweet cat. She snoozes with us, is very playful, and a very enthusiastic eater. I have no idea if she was weaned too early or if this is a new behavior (I suspect it is not). My husband and I are both out of the apartment for up to nine hours a day for work. A lot of this damage happens when we can't see her. Either we're not at home or we're asleep. But I'm at the point where I'm considering returning her to the shelter, which I know is not ideal, but I can't keep waiting for her to ruin the next thing. I've been agonizing over this for a few weeks now and we're fighting a lot about this issue.

Has anyone successfully stopped destructive biting? Thanks for reading this short novel. :)
 

FeebysOwner

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amethyst

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Since the majority of the damage happens when you are asleep or away it make me think possible anxiety. Unfortunately their is no one cure for all cats, so although the Rescue Remedy didn't work that doesn't mean something else wont either. Some cats even need to go on medication, but I would save that for a last resort.

I realize you have to work, but look at it from the cat's point of view, you are gone for 9 hours a day and then sleep about another 8? So she only gets you guys 7 hours a day. Cats can suffer from separation anxiety just like dogs, especially coming from a shelter where they were, in their mind, abandoned by the previous owner. I know this may sound counter productive but another cat to play with when you are not home might help (though it could also make things worse). You could also try things like leaving the tv on, there are even cat tv shows you can buy, they have birds and rodents for the cats to watch. Maybe also try leave a radio on so it sounds more like she isn't alone. My last thought would be, is it possible to keep her in a room while you are gone or asleep? Just put things in there that she can play with, chew on, etc. Along with the water, food (if you free feed), and litter box.

As for playing before bed, you need to play long enough so she is actually panting or you haven't actually played long enough to tire her out. If possible try playing until she is actually tired, then give her a small meal or treats. A cat's natural cycle is hunt, kill, eat, sleep, so it might help to follow that. So if you free feed you might want to try feeding meals instead, on a set schedule. Cats like schedules and can help with anxiety since they know when things happen. So say before you leave for work you play a bit, give her breakfast, then when you come home play some more then feed dinner, then before bed play some more then give a small amount of food or some treats.
 
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zootgirl

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Thanks, FeebysOwner! I've read all of those, believe me when I tell you that I've read every article I can get my grubby, little hands on!
 
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zootgirl

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amethyst, thanks for the reply – you guys are all so fantastic.

We play with her until she collapses and refuses to play any longer. She loses interest in a certain toy after a few sessions. We have multiple feather/butterfly on a stick toys, tweet birds, teething pretzels, and more and more and more.

She just doesn't appear to be anxious though, she's an extremely relaxed, curious cat. I'm sure those aren't the only indicators, I'm just wondering why she wouldn't be exhibiting any other symptoms associated with anxiety. And, sadly there is not another room (other than the bathroom) for us to put her in at night or when we're at work. I wish there were.

I will definitely try to the radio or tv on during the day. My mother actually did that for our cat and dog and they were both calm as can be. I hadn't even thought of this! Thank you!
 

BlueJay

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My kitten is about 7 months old. She doesn't chew on quite as much stuff, but she does like to chew. When I leave and at night, I close her in to our bedroom so she doesn't have access to as much. Mine particularly likes to chew on plastic like the bread bag, and shoe laces, even the hard plastic ends. It isn't too destructive here so I haven't tried to curb it too much, but distracting her seems to work the best. Her favorite actual toys to chew on are her kong kickeroo, a little bunny that "makes real mouse noises" when it is bat around, and she will often chase ping pong balls. Oh and she used to love empty toilet paper tubes and balls of paper, they can be hit around as well as chewed on. She doesn't like to chew on other toys designated as "chew toys", so maybe try some others? I know every cat has different preferences but finding some kind of toy that they like to chew on is probably a good start. Good luck, let me know if you find something that works!
 

BlueJay

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Oh and I've started building her a new blanket fort every day. She likes to hide and explore something new. She isn't so interested if I just leave it up, though. It has to be a new, slightly different one.
 
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zootgirl

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BlueJay, thanks – I will definitely post back here if anything works on biter!

You know, I bought her a kong kickeroo because of the rave reviews on Amazon. She used it exactly once and now it just lies on the floor, totally ignored. Figures right?

I was going to buy a mouse toy that squeaks because, man, she LOVES the tweeting birds. And I love that she loves them, but I don't love it at 2am in a 450 sq/ft apartment. :)
 

BlueJay

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Lol I know, the squeaking bunny is locked out of the bedroom at night. Firefly doesn't usually seek out her kickeroo anymore, but if I wave it around and toss it, she will attack it.
 
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