Any cat body language folks out there?
Our tomcat about a year old and we adopted him with his female friend. Both have been neutered before we adopted them. We play with both of them daily (he's way more energetic and active btw), but there's a problem. He bites us hard enough to draw blood. I have observed the triggers, but I'm not sure on all of them.
His body language is confusing.
First, whenever he wants attention he meows (of course) and will sit somewhere where I can see him. He'll lightly swish his tail meowing. When I get up, he'll chirp and raise his tail high, leading me to where he wants to go. When we play he's usually interested. When he isn't, I still know what to do to engage him some more.
Now, whenever I'm getting very energetic or there's a loud noise (thunder, something falling over) he seems to fixate on me.
Example: I tried to show him a spider on the balcony. It had hidden behind some Styrofoam so I knocked on it to get his attention + calling his name in a high voice. His tail was up high, but as he approached he tried biting my hand. Then he left and I engaged with our female cat, and he bit me from behind, making my leg bleed. I instinctively yelled (these bites are too painful not to), turned around and hissed at him. By that point, he'd already lain down on the floor looking scared, as usual.
This always happens: he'll bite, we'll get loud cos it hurts, then he's scared. But he still bites. Then, I avoided eye contact and went to sit on the sofa, not looking at him. He followed, tail up, looking at me for a while (I ignored him), then he left. Now, I had to treat the bite so I got up for the bathroom. He was there and chirped at me, tail up and rubbing against me.
What does this mean? Is biting his way of wanting to play? Why doesn't he understand it means he'll be ignored instead of engaged with? How can we make him stop?
Our tomcat about a year old and we adopted him with his female friend. Both have been neutered before we adopted them. We play with both of them daily (he's way more energetic and active btw), but there's a problem. He bites us hard enough to draw blood. I have observed the triggers, but I'm not sure on all of them.
His body language is confusing.
First, whenever he wants attention he meows (of course) and will sit somewhere where I can see him. He'll lightly swish his tail meowing. When I get up, he'll chirp and raise his tail high, leading me to where he wants to go. When we play he's usually interested. When he isn't, I still know what to do to engage him some more.
Now, whenever I'm getting very energetic or there's a loud noise (thunder, something falling over) he seems to fixate on me.
Example: I tried to show him a spider on the balcony. It had hidden behind some Styrofoam so I knocked on it to get his attention + calling his name in a high voice. His tail was up high, but as he approached he tried biting my hand. Then he left and I engaged with our female cat, and he bit me from behind, making my leg bleed. I instinctively yelled (these bites are too painful not to), turned around and hissed at him. By that point, he'd already lain down on the floor looking scared, as usual.
This always happens: he'll bite, we'll get loud cos it hurts, then he's scared. But he still bites. Then, I avoided eye contact and went to sit on the sofa, not looking at him. He followed, tail up, looking at me for a while (I ignored him), then he left. Now, I had to treat the bite so I got up for the bathroom. He was there and chirped at me, tail up and rubbing against me.
What does this mean? Is biting his way of wanting to play? Why doesn't he understand it means he'll be ignored instead of engaged with? How can we make him stop?
