Cat Keeps Biting - Even When Purring ?!

[Pennygriggs87]

Hi - our kitten is 5 months old now and her biting is getting worse. She will come over to us and sit with us and when we stroke her she purrs really loudly and then about 3 strokes in she whips her head round and bites the side of your hand. She does it with all of us. Yet she is still purring ? Why does she do this ? Also when we pick her up she is fine and purrs and then about 5 seconds in she will bite. It isn't because she wants to be on her own as she is the one coming over to us for attention. It's very strange and we have tried eek noises , hissing noise, putting her down and ignoring her for a while.

None of the above works.

She is a very energetic cat who runs around the house like a nutter a lot! We give her a lot of attention and play with her before work and when we are home and lots more on the weekend. It's very strange she keeps biting as you think she's purring and happy yet still bites you. Not enough to draw blood but does make little marks on your hand.

Can anyone help ? Thank you !

 

[rubysmama]

Some cats are just biters. How old was your kitten when you adopted her? Sometimes kittens taken from their mom and siblings too soon don't learn cat manners/etiquette.

Teach Your Kitten How to Play Nice : The Humane Society of the United States

I'd continue saying "owww" and "no" whenever she bites you.

Cat Aggression Toward People
How To Stop Playtime Aggression In Cats
Cat Bites - What Every Cat Owner Needs To Know

They could also be "love bites". Here's an article on How To Deal With Cat "love Bites"?

 

[Momto3newkittens]

My 10 month old boy does that too! I don't know if he is trying to play so we will play with him a bit if he is purring, but if he hurts us we tell him no and he licks us instead. If he starts biting right off the bat without any purring we say no and walk away and he will come back with a better attitude. We are just hoping he grows out of it as he matures since right now he acts like a toddler. My 10 month old girl is the opposite and doesn't cause us any problems other than her meowing an hour or so before it's time for her to eat. The no's and ow's and not nice's seem to help. We also praise him when he licks instead or just stops all together.

 

[Pennygriggs87]

Thanks for your replies. Will take a look at the links. We were told she was 8 weeks old when we got her from the owner but the vet thought she was younger as she was very small. It's a bit strange as we feel it's getting worse!
Will continue with the no s and also read about trying a shaker to associate biting with that horrid noise. Haven't tried treats to reward her for licking instead so will try that too !

 

[danteshuman]

I'm guessing they are love bites. I would try gently tapping the side of her face/muzzle when she bites, while to say ow. By tap I mean 2 fingers very lightly. It worked on our semi-feral who gets over stimulated. Neutering helped him to.

 

[Pennygriggs87]

I'm guessing they are love bites. I would try gently tapping the side of her face/muzzle when she bites, while to say ow. By tap I mean 2 fingers very lightly. It worked on our semi-feral who gets over stimulated. Neutering helped him to.

Ok great thanks will try. Would have said love bites but as it's sort of short and snappy not just one continual bite I thought it seemed unlikely ?

 

[catlover73]

This could still be love bites. My 12 year old Starbuck was adopted when she was only six weeks old. She thought nose biting was a form of communication. When she would bite our noses she would get a gentle tap on her nose. She would then be put down on the floor and we would walk away from her. She learned that nose biting gets does not get her attention. She would start out grooming and then bite. It could be one bite or a few bites. She also used to bite our adult cats when she wanted to play. One of them put a stop to that behavior by pinning her to the floor with his paw until she calmed down. He would play with her when she was calm. If she nipped him she got pinned down by a paw. She would scream when he did this but I could tell he was teaching her manners and not trying to hurt her. His nails were always retracted and he was actually very gentle with her. He would only use one paw. She figured out pretty quickly that biting us and her adopted brothers was not an acceptable form of communication. She still nose nips once in a great while and when she does all we have to do now is say no biting and she stops.

 

[Pennygriggs87]

This could still be love bites. My 12 year old Starbuck was adopted when she was only six weeks old. She thought nose biting was a form of communication. When she would bite our noses she would get a gentle tap on her nose. She would then be put down on the floor and we would walk away from her. She learned that nose biting gets does not get her attention. She would start out grooming and then bite. It could be one bite or a few bites. She also used to bite our adult cats when she wanted to play. One of them put a stop to that behavior by pinning her to the floor with his paw until she calmed down. He would play with her when she was calm. If she nipped him she got pinned down by a paw. She would scream when he did this but I could tell he was teaching her manners and not trying to hurt her. His nails were always retracted and he was actually very gentle with her. He would only use one paw. She figured out pretty quickly that biting us and her adopted brothers was not an acceptable form of communication. She still nose nips once in a great while and when she does all we have to do now is say no biting and she stops.

Ok thank you will try the tapping of her face . She is being neutured this week so will see if she chills out more too.

 

[catlover73]

Ok thank you will try the tapping of her face . She is being neutured this week so will see if she chills out more too.

You want to be very gentle with the tap. Make sure to say no biting when you do the tap. Also ignore her when she bites. She needs to learn that biting does not get attention. Her not being neutered yet could certainly be contributing to the behavior. Hormone changes could cause the biting too.

 

[danteshuman]

Should I have said 2 finger touch? I'm very light handed when tapping our semi-feral .... it isn't to hurt him. It is just to get his attention and tell him no. He didn't speak human very well so I had to learn how to speak a little cat.

 

[Maruandme]

Just adopted a very sweet 18 mos female from shelter. No background but that she gets along with other cats. She does not seem to know how to play and will grab at my hand with claws and teeth, not out of meanness, but what a younger kitten would do. Trying different toys, but would appreciate ideas for the biting and grabbing with claws.