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- May 24, 2023
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I am back once again seeking advice regarding my problem child, Atlas. Picture of the handsome devil below.
Ever since I got him, he's had a tendency to bite/nip. I know it is possible to change his behaviour, when he was a kitten he would always bite/scratch my head while I was trying to sleep and after a lot of persistence and sleepless nights, he did eventually learn he will only be ignored and never does it anymore. I also ended up getting a second cat, which did solve majority of these issues almost overnight. He had a fellow kitten to burn that playful energy off with.
But I am still having some trouble with his nipping. He isn't doing it particularly hard, but he is a big cat (7kg) and even without full strength, his teeth are sharp and they hurt. I am almost certain it's his was of trying to communicate as he often starts doing it while I'm in the kitchen... Near his kibble The cats have a solid meal routine, so I'm not entirely sure why he thinks nipping the crap out of my legs will make it happen any faster. I know he's being hopeful but I've never given in, they get fed at their usual time and I typically end up with a big fluffy cloud following me around biting/nipping at me for up to an hour before their mealtime. I have tried putting the food away in a cupboard in a completely different room, but Atlas, while not the brightest cat in general, is very motivated when it comes to food and knows exactly where it is, and starts nipping at me in the room where the food is. I'm really struggling with his persistence. I'm at a point where I have to shut myself in my office for a few minutes to get away from him. The nips start gently and can be ignored, but then he just uses more force until I have to physically move away from him. I feel bad essentially taking 'time-out', but I thought if I was persistent with this like I was with the head biting when he was a kitten, he'd learn to stop doing it but that hasn't happened.
The other time he nips me is while I'm at my desk. I think he does it at this time for attention/play. I make a huge fuss over him when he displays more positive behaviours like nudging me with his head or meowing at me, but it doesn't seem to be clicking with him he gets a positive reaction from me when he does that instead of nipping. Like I said, I've been just shutting myself in my office or bedroom for a few minutes in the hope he will realise he lost any attention from me and settle down a bit as well. It doesn't really work, even if I don't open the door for a good 5 minutes he often just marches straight over to me and bites my legs.
Does anyone have any advice for a persistently bitey/nippy cat? It's not all day long, just a few specific times and locations. I haven't taken him to the vet specifically for his nipping, but when he has his checkups everything's been fine and they've only really made note of the fact he has very healthy teeth (I already knew that!) and while he isn't overweight, just to not let him gain any more weight. If anyone has any suggestions to help prevent the nipping, I would really appreciate it
Just for fun, here is my other cat putting him a headlock. I am at least not the only one who is constantly harassed for playtime and attention
Ever since I got him, he's had a tendency to bite/nip. I know it is possible to change his behaviour, when he was a kitten he would always bite/scratch my head while I was trying to sleep and after a lot of persistence and sleepless nights, he did eventually learn he will only be ignored and never does it anymore. I also ended up getting a second cat, which did solve majority of these issues almost overnight. He had a fellow kitten to burn that playful energy off with.
But I am still having some trouble with his nipping. He isn't doing it particularly hard, but he is a big cat (7kg) and even without full strength, his teeth are sharp and they hurt. I am almost certain it's his was of trying to communicate as he often starts doing it while I'm in the kitchen... Near his kibble The cats have a solid meal routine, so I'm not entirely sure why he thinks nipping the crap out of my legs will make it happen any faster. I know he's being hopeful but I've never given in, they get fed at their usual time and I typically end up with a big fluffy cloud following me around biting/nipping at me for up to an hour before their mealtime. I have tried putting the food away in a cupboard in a completely different room, but Atlas, while not the brightest cat in general, is very motivated when it comes to food and knows exactly where it is, and starts nipping at me in the room where the food is. I'm really struggling with his persistence. I'm at a point where I have to shut myself in my office for a few minutes to get away from him. The nips start gently and can be ignored, but then he just uses more force until I have to physically move away from him. I feel bad essentially taking 'time-out', but I thought if I was persistent with this like I was with the head biting when he was a kitten, he'd learn to stop doing it but that hasn't happened.
The other time he nips me is while I'm at my desk. I think he does it at this time for attention/play. I make a huge fuss over him when he displays more positive behaviours like nudging me with his head or meowing at me, but it doesn't seem to be clicking with him he gets a positive reaction from me when he does that instead of nipping. Like I said, I've been just shutting myself in my office or bedroom for a few minutes in the hope he will realise he lost any attention from me and settle down a bit as well. It doesn't really work, even if I don't open the door for a good 5 minutes he often just marches straight over to me and bites my legs.
Does anyone have any advice for a persistently bitey/nippy cat? It's not all day long, just a few specific times and locations. I haven't taken him to the vet specifically for his nipping, but when he has his checkups everything's been fine and they've only really made note of the fact he has very healthy teeth (I already knew that!) and while he isn't overweight, just to not let him gain any more weight. If anyone has any suggestions to help prevent the nipping, I would really appreciate it
Just for fun, here is my other cat putting him a headlock. I am at least not the only one who is constantly harassed for playtime and attention