Adult Cat Has Play Aggression?

[Kvla]

Hi all! I posted before about my cat so I’m just going to copy and paste some general info:
“I got my kitten from a friend who found a litter at a barn. The kittens were only a month old. So definitely really young. Now, 7 months later, I'm noticing some really weird behaviors from my cat and I'm wondering if it's because she was taken away at such a young age.”

She’s 11 months old now and is still biting at my feet and attacking my arms the when I walk by or I’m doing something nearby. She’s definitely doing a lot better than she was when she was 3-4 months old, but I was really hoping she would grow out of it and she hasn’t yet. I’m getting really frustrated and I know the older they get the harder it is to train them out of it.

I’ve tried hissing, which she seems to ignore. Water bottles and change jars to make a loud noise seem to just make her bite and scratch me harder to the point where she’s drawn blood. Even then, sometimes I don’t have those things on me to scare her with.
I’ve tried walking away, which she seems to just follow me and attack my feet. I’ve tried putting her in the closet for a couple minutes but she just cries and cries and comes out and she does fine but then like an hour later will be back to biting me. She has endless toys, cat trees and things to do..
Whenever I reach over to pet her she grabs my hand and if I pet her for too long she’ll bite me. She never purrs unless she nurses.

I’m really considering contacting a behaviorlist but they’re so expensive. Is there anything else I can try to end this?

 

[FeebysOwner]

The key to successfully stopping a behavior in a cat is to establish a correction process and repeat it ad nauseum - in other words EVERYTIME the behavior occurs you must enact the correction process you have chosen.

The one process I have seen/heard works the best is: 1.) Pick up cat, hiss or say a firm "no" directly toward their face, 2.) place cat in time out for no more than 2 minutes, 3.) let cat out and ignore them for a minute or two, and 4.) repeat 1 - 3 each and every time - even if that means doing it 20 times in the time span of an hour. After a few days of this, it won't be 20 times in an hour ever again. If you have to, use a towel or gloves to pick her up.

Usually a time out is in another room, not a closed closet unless that closet is relatively large. And, it probably would be best if the closet has a light that you can leave on.

I do suspect her behavior is somewhat boredom related. So, you can add a 5th step (after the minute or two of ignoring her) to the above by offering to play with her using a hand held toy - not your hands. Or, place her in a cat tree she likes or a cat perch she enjoys, ideally by a window that she can look out. If at all possible you might want to consider adding a bird feeder outside that window for extra entertainment.

Bored Cat? What Cat Owners Need To Know (including 10 Actionable Tips)

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I can't agree more with FeebysOwner . The key is that corrections have to be done EACH AND EVERY TIME, and it has to be the SAME CORRECTION. Consistency is vital so that the cat learns to associate the correction with the action.

But you are right. Her issues partly stem from her early removal from Mama. She just never learned to cat properly, and probably partly from boredom.

When petting her, watch for skin rippling along her back and her tail to twitch, then lash. That means that she is getting over-amped and WILL bite. She's warning you most likely, you just aren't reading her signals fast enough. And different cats can tolerate more stroking pets than others. Try confining your petting to her head and cheeks. That generally provokes far less a STOP IT response.

 

[Kvla]

Thank you for the advice. I will try the correction that she seems to hate most and just try to keep the change jar on me everywhere in the house and will do the 3 steps.
Mamanyt1953 I do notice the twitching on her back, I thought maybe that had to do with her nervous system or she was just super touchy. Will she forever hate being pet like that? If I respect her boundaries will she be more loving towards me or is how distant she is from me just her personality and she’ll never want to lay next to me or be pet? She doesn’t ever purr or cuddle, it’s like she hates interaction with me unless she’s attacking me.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Thank you for the advice. I will try the correction that she seems to hate most and just try to keep the change jar on me everywhere in the house and will do the 3 steps.

No, not the change jar, please. Just because she seems to hate it the most means nothing. I wanted to tell you, but didnt - and should have - not to do that or the water spraying because for what you are trying to accomplish neither are going to be effective. In your situation either could reinforce, not deter, the behavior.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Will she forever hate being pet like that? If I respect her boundaries will she be more loving towards me or is how distant she is from me just her personality and she’ll never want to lay next to me or be pet? She doesn’t ever purr or cuddle, it’s like she hates interaction with me unless she’s attacking me.

It isn't so much that she "hates" it as that it overstimulates their nervous systems and when it gets to be too much, they just have to stop it at any cost. Now, once the two of you are more in sympathy, you may find that she tolerates being stroked along her sides, so long as you don't get the spinal area into the action. Hekitty is like that.

I know how you feel, wanting so much to be close to a cat who just isn't that outwardly affectionate. I spent a lot of years like that. Hek has gotten much more affectionate as she has gotten older. The first 3-4 years I thought she just didn't like me at all. I never heard her purr...not once. Then one day, she was allowing me to touch her, and when I put my hand just right on her side...THERE IT WAS! She had been purring very softly all along! You couldn't hear it, only feel it, and then only if your hand was in the right place

Also, pay attention to HOW you are moving to pet her. Try putting your hand down low, and slowly reaching out for her cheek. NEVER let your hand come down from above her. Or at least, not until the two of you have reached a much higher level of peace and trust. Did you know that large owls and hawks can carry off a cat? And cats instinctively know this. "That Which Comes Down From Above" triggers those instincts. Keep your hands low.