So Confused By My Kitten

[Frankophile Feline Fan]

Colette is 8 months old now. Since I adopted her at 9 weeks she'll seem to invite me to pet her by rolling onto her back and acting affectionate. I'm careful to watch for a twitching tail and avoid her stomach, just petting her chin, head, chest, or shoulders. She does seem to like her ribcage and shoulder area scratched. It seems to be the most innocuous thing that sets her off lately into overstimulation reaction. She's getting more aggressive whether it's one stroke or three and I can't find any warning signs. I try correct & reassuring her and withdraw but she still lunges after me. If I walk away she'll follow me and grab my feet, though with less violence. She'll either go fully savage or part way, and if it's part way she also acts like she still wants me to pet her, lying on her back and rubbing her head around while trying to grab and bite my hands.

I know little about her before I adopted her. She was spayed 2 days before I took her home. She had 2 brothers with her in the shelter cage, and she came with a fever coat. Of the 3, she was the one in the back of the cage if that reveals anything about her personality. She's generally playful and wants to be in the same room with me, but not the most outgoing cat. She retreats to my room if anyone comes to the house, so she's sort of shy.

Are there more signs to overpetting stimulation? Is that what this sounds like or is she just losing control and love-biting? Halp!

 

[rubysmama]

When she grabs your feet, do you say "owwww" so she knows she is hurting you? She's still a kitten, so hopefully will outgrow that "playful" behaviour.

Here's a few TCS articles that might be helpful:
How To Stop Playtime Aggression In Cats
Cat Aggression Toward People
10 Must-know Tips For Happy Living With A Shy Cat

 

[Frankophile Feline Fan]

I've done that in our first few months together and she responds to that. I'll go back to it. I think during this phase I've just been saying "no," "stop," enough," "calm down," and placating "you're okay" (to cover all bases from losing control to petting overstimulation).

 

[ArtNJ]

Couple of things. Firstly, I've found that ribs are a tricky area. Yes, they might like it, but sometimes it seems like if your attention wanders and you pet slightly more vigorously or your hand strays a bit lower down then there is suddenly a problem. So you might try avoiding anywhere below the neck and see if that helps. Second, the idea is not "no" as in the word, its "No!" loudly enough that its borderline startling to them. That is the only way they will learn what the word means. Some people recommend hissing instead, I'm not sure that people hissing sounds like cat hissing, but regardless, it should work as long as its loud enough to send a message. I would ditch those other phrases your using -- cats aren't dogs and just can't learn that many words, and have a much easier time learning a single word associated with a loud tone with stopping the behavior. Third, if you need a different strategy, a painful but possibly effective strategy is just to play dead with the attacked hand - hopefully making the behavior boring and extinguishing it over time.

 

[Hellenww]

If it's only the 2 of you in the house then you are her only living play thing. I read rolling on her back and showing her belly as an ivitation to come play. Get a kickeroo or other biggish stuffed toy so she can play fight without being able to reach your hands. Hopefully she'll start to seek out the new toy on her own or be easily redirected to it when she gets feisty.

 

[duncanmac]

I've done that in our first few months together and she responds to that. I'll go back to it. I think during this phase I've just been saying "no," "stop," enough," "calm down," and placating "you're okay" (to cover all bases from losing control to petting overstimulation).

Pick ONE command and use it consistently when you want him to do something. I use "no" to "make" my guys stop doing whatever they are doing, "gentle" to calm down love bites and "good boy" to reinforce good behaviour.