Very aggressive play biting in 7 month old kitten

[siamesecat108]

Hi, I’ve been trying to stop my kitten from play biting for months but nothing has worked. He’s now 7 months, almost 8 months old and I’m afraid he’s getting too old to train out of it! Anybody have tips on stopping play biting at an older kitten age when it’s gotten really bad?

My kitty is super sweet and I love him, but about 3-4 times a day he goes into crazy attack play mode and literally chases me to bite me. He can now jump up to my waist or arm level and hang on biting me. He bites and bunny kicks HARD, drawing blood or causing bruises every time. He also does this in the middle of the night, and it’s scary to get bitten on the face in my sleep.

I know this is probably because he was an orphan kitten and separated from his one litter mate too soon, but I didn’t have a choice in that. The humane society I adopted him from called me up when he was 7 weeks old and said I had to take him home or else he’d go to the next adopter in line.

I cannot afford more than one cat, so getting another kitten is not an option.

He gets tons of attention as I am working from home and almost never leave him at all. I am certain this is only play aggression and not angry aggression. He is super loving and sweet and most of the time he is a purring, cuddling wonderful boy. He is already neutered, I got him fixed when he was about 5 and a half months.

Redirecting with toys: I try this, but he will not even look at any toys when he’s attacking me. He completely ignores them.

Shaking a can of coins: Worked for about 2 weeks to stop him during a play attack, but now he’s not afraid of the sound anymore.

Hissing/growling at him/yelling no or ouch: Doesn’t stop him at all if hiss, growl, or scream- he continues attacking.

Scruffing him: Hard to do, he reaches around and bites me if I do this. As soon as I let go he launches himself at me and bites.

Time-outs: Very difficult to get him into a room for a time-out, and typically as soon as I let him out he goes back to attacking me.

I’ve read through most of the posts on biting and tried the advice I’ve already found, but most of it seemed to be for younger kittens/before it’s a big problem. I’m hoping somebody has experience when it’s already become quite a big problem?

 

[maggie101]

What are you doing when he bites? If there is a sound my cat doesnt like, she will bite. What wand toys have you played with him? My cats do not like feather toys. Her fav is the Purrfect leather bouncer wand toy for $7. Not the most attractive but she loves it and it is still in good condition after 4 yrs. She also likes her trixie puzzle. Right now your cat is a teenager so eventually he will calm down

 

[ArtNJ]

Jump biting is something I've never heard of, clearly wayyy outside the range of normal, and cannot be attributed to being separated from mom a bit early. Sounds like a serious problem. I'm not clear on how long you tried each method.

Redirecting or time outs aren't going to cut it, so lets rule them out. Scruffing the cat, otherwise known as "make sure its not fun" by holding the cat still, can work. A loud noise can often work, but clearly with your cat it would have to be quite loud. A routine "no!" wouldnt cut it, but maybe a consistent "NO!!!" might.

But I am a bit concerned for you and find this situation urgent. A leaping biter sounds more like the devil rabbit from Monty Python then a real cat, and sounds quite dangerous. Biting hard at night is also very dangerous, since only the face is outside the covers, and if you, quite naturally, freak out, the cat could do a lot more damage than it intended by accident. So I really don't know what to tell you for sure, other than, for starters, I'd exclude the cat from the bedroom.

 

[siamesecat108]

What are you doing when he bites? If there is a sound my cat doesnt like, she will bite. What wand toys have you played with him? My cats do not like feather toys. Her fav is the Purrfect leather bouncer wand toy for $7. Not the most attractive but she loves it and it is still in good condition after 4 yrs. She also likes her trixie puzzle. Right now your cat is a teenager so eventually he will calm down

He attacks me randomly- when I’m sitting quietly working or watching TV, or sleeping. Sometimes he attacks when I pet him.

The other big ones are he runs into the fridge or the bathroom every time I open the doors, and I have to get him out, and he’ll start biting me then.

I have a few different wand toys for him, a couple with feathers and one with a stuffed toy, all of which he likes but he usually only plays with them for a few minutes and then gets bored. He quickly destroys all his toys, and I have to keep buying new ones. I feel like I am the ultimate toy he wants to play with and nothing is better to him then jumping and attacking ME, hah. I am glad to hear you think he’ll grow out of it. I really hope so!

 

[maggie101]

My cat Peaches does that. Glad she's only 7 pds. She usually wants something or she sees my arms available. If that happens,walk away. It also helps if I am above her, not on the ground. If I am sitting on my couch and shes above me she will bite if I touch her or if I move my arm. So I should pull out the trixie puzzle

He attacks me randomly- when I’m sitting quietly working or watching TV, or sleeping. Sometimes he attacks when I pet him.

The other big ones are he runs into the fridge or the bathroom every time I open the doors, and I have to get him out, and he’ll start biting me then.

I have a few different wand toys for him, a couple with feathers and one with a stuffed toy, all of which he likes but he usually only plays with them for a few minutes and then gets bored. He quickly destroys all his toys, and I have to keep buying new ones. I feel like I am the ultimate toy he wants to play with and nothing is better to him then jumping and attacking ME, hah. I am glad to hear you think he’ll grow out of it. I really hope so!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XPSKZWZ/?tag=thecatsite

as you know,cats like to grab and bite things. My cat is more interested in hiding,pouncing, and chasing on the ground
go cat catcher with a mouse is another fav but it tangles easily and costs more

 

[maggie101]

Just noticed the price has increased majorly

 

[siamesecat108]

My cat Peaches does that. Glad she's only 7 pds. She usually wants something or she sees my arms available. If that happens,walk away. It also helps if I am above her, not on the ground. If I am sitting on my couch and shes above me she will bite if I touch her or if I move my arm. So I should pull out the trixie puzzle


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XPSKZWZ/?tag=thecatsite

as you know,cats like to grab and bite things. My cat is more interested in hiding,pouncing, and chasing on the ground
go cat catcher with a mouse is another fav but it tangles easily and costs more

Thank you, I will look into this toy! Walking away doesn’t work for me as my cat chases after me when I do, unfortunately.

 

[siamesecat108]

Jump biting is something I've never heard of, clearly wayyy outside the range of normal, and cannot be attributed to being separated from mom a bit early. Sounds like a serious problem. I'm not clear on how long you tried each method.

Redirecting or time outs aren't going to cut it, so lets rule them out. Scruffing the cat, otherwise known as "make sure its not fun" by holding the cat still, can work. A loud noise can often work, but clearly with your cat it would have to be quite loud. A routine "no!" wouldnt cut it, but maybe a consistent "NO!!!" might.

But I am a bit concerned for you and find this situation urgent. A leaping biter sounds more like the devil rabbit from Monty Python then a real cat, and sounds quite dangerous. Biting hard at night is also very dangerous, since only the face is outside the covers, and if you, quite naturally, freak out, the cat could do a lot more damage than it intended by accident. So I really don't know what to tell you for sure, other than, for starters, I'd exclude the cat from the bedroom.

Thanks for your concern. I’ll be honest that it is a serious problem. I love the cat so much and I’d never get rid of him for anything, but it’s pretty ridiculous how I’m quite a bit afraid of him at times and I am covered head to toe in bites and bruises. I will try to scruff and say no louder consistently for the next few weeks and see if it gets the message across to him. I have been nervous about yelling too loudly because I have neighbors on the other side of the wall, but by now they’ve probably heard me yell “no biting!” enough times that they probably understand what’s happening lol

 

[susanm9006]

I would use one hand to grab his scruff and one to hold his back feet, tell him no and make him just sit still for a minute before letting him go. Just to make his game a little less fun. At his age they are just so full of themselves and think they are king of the hill. He will learn no but it does take consistency and determination on your part.

 

[siamesecat108]

I would use one hand to grab his scruff and one to hold his back feet, tell him no and make him just sit still for a minute before letting him go. Just to make his game a little less fun. At his age they are just so full of themselves and think they are king of the hill. He will learn no but it does take consistency and determination on your part.

I tried doing this last night when he attacked me and he looked so sad and confused, it broke my heart I know he needs to learn biting isn’t OK, but it isn’t easy because he seems just so happy when he’s play biting. After that I got out his feather wand toy and we played with that.

 

[susanm9006]

I tried doing this last night when he attacked me and he looked so sad and confused, it broke my heart I know he needs to learn biting isn’t OK, but it isn’t easy because he seems just so happy when he’s play biting. After that I got out his feather wand toy and we played with that.

That’s kind of the point. You are helping him to figure out that attacking you isn’t that much fun. Hopefully you only have to do it a few times before he quits.

 

[minish]

It's a very difficult situation and dangerous for you, but your cat is old enough to understand rules. They are incredibly clever creatures and keep learning until their senile years. Hopefully being extremely firm on some points will work.
As far as I have read, there are 5 instances of him biting, and I think you have to end all of those instances so that he learns there is absolutely no biting allowed.
1-Scruffing: minish bit or scratched me whenever I tried to scruff her. I learned quickly. Since I got her message, I never scruff her as a message . If I have to immobilize her I throw a towel etc on her and make a cat burrito.
2-Getting him out of the fridge, bathroom etc.: you can use something to put distance between your body and your cat, like pushing with a mop. If it's not necessary, I don't recommend moving the cat out. It's important they feel they own the territory. Minish used to climb in the fridge, after a couple of times of 30 min. locked in the cold shelf, she knows better. And I got used to sharing my bathroom time with her. Beats being alone
3-Petting: If biting occurs randomly, don't pet your cat. there are other ways to share affection. If it happens with a cue or some instances, don't pet on those occasions. Minish bites or runs away if I pet her playful or agitated moods. If her ears are pointed to the side, if she is active and has saucer eyes, I don't pet her. The ideal time is relaxed and about to nap. Even then, never hind legs or paws.
4-Fun or playful excitement. Your cat must learn fun ends whenever he bites, while he has oulets to let out his energy. I got minish when she was kittten and she prefers playing with me, not on her own. For a time, attacking me was a lot of fun for her. My advice is don't ever play with him or show any kind of affection if he bites. Any time minish bit me, I walked away. I made the timeout, spent time in another room. Re-entered without making a fuss. She didn't follow me though, I don't have an answer for that. For bunny kicking, I provided her plush toys, but she always preferred biting my arm instead of the toy. No more plush toy games.
5-During your sleep. Don't let your cat in the bedroom when you sleep. Minish got bedroom rights only when she was one year old, long after she learned to behave.
My experience with minish is, she learns I don't want something quite fast (about a few times, in a week). It takes more time for her to accept it. If i keep firm, in a couple of weeks. Patience and consistence solved many issues like this: keeping claws and teeth in while we play, not jumping on my back when I kneel down, not biting or licking my hair..